Box Score PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The Sacred Heart football team lost its third consecutive game Saturday, a 31-10 loss to the Duquesne Dukes at Rooney Field.
The Pioneers had 225 yards of total offense Saturday. RJ Noel threw for 93 yards and a touchdown, completing 14 of 26 passes. Nate Chavious rushed for 71 yards on 14 carries. CJ Parvelus led the defense with seven tackles.
Duquesne (7-3, 4-1 NEC) took a 7-0 lead with 3:07 left in the first quarter. A.J. Hines punctuated a 16-play, 66-yard drive that took over seven minutes with a three-yard rushing touchdown. The Pioneers got on the board with 4:20 left in the second quarter. Sacred Heart (6-4, 1-4 NEC) took advantage of excellent field position at the Duquesne 12 after James Rentz recovered a Hines fumble. However, the Dukes held SHU to a 25-yard Alec Finney field goal to make the score 7-3. Duquesne extended its lead to 14-3 1:06 before halftime on Hines' second rushing touchdown of the game, a two-yard score.
The Dukes scored on their first possession of the second half, driving 80 yards on 12 plays as Dillon Buechel found Wayne Capers for a 24-yard touchdown pass to make the score 21-3 with 9:14 to play in the third quarter. The Pioneers responded on their next possession. SHU drove 68 yards on 10 plays with Noel finding Andrew O'Neill for a four-yard touchdown pass to put the score at 21-10 with 5:12 left in the third.
The SHU defense then held Duquesne to a 38-yard field goal to keep it a two-score game, 24-10, at the 2:39 mark. The Dukes' defense put the game away early in the fourth quarter, recovering a SHU fumble in the end zone for a touchdown to make the score 31-10 with 11:06 to play in the game.
Sacred Heart closes out the 2016 season next Saturday with Senior Day at Campus Field against Bryant. Kickoff is at 12 p.m.
First Quarter
- The Dukes took a 7-0 lead with 3:07 left in the quarter on a 16-play, 66-yard drive. A.J. Hines scored on a three-yard rushing touchdown. Duquesne converted two fourth-downs on the drive, including a fake-punt on 4th-and-2 at the SHU 43.
- SHU had the ball for only 4:10 in the first quarter.
Second Quarter
- James Rentz recorded his 26th career sack early in the second quarter, taking down Dillon Buechel on a 3rd-and-13 at the Duquesne 36 yardline.
- Andrew O'Neill had a 30-yard punt return to give SHU the ball at the Duquesne 41 with 7:48 to play.
- The Pioneers turned a Hines fumble deep in Duquesne territory into a 25-yard field goal by Alec Finney with 4:20 to play in the half, making the score 7-3.
- Tim Johnson recorded his team-leading third interception of the season with 0:23 left in the half, picking off Buechel in the end zone.
Third Quarter
- Noel's touchdown pass to O'Neill with 5:12 remaining was the 81st of his career. It capped a 10-play, 68-yard drive that took 3:55. Chavious accounted for 45 yards on the drive.
- O'Neill's touchdown was his fifth in the last six games. He has caught a touchdown in each of the last three games.
Fourth Quarter
- Finney kicked a 52-yard punt to the Duquesne 19 with 4:33 to play.
- Jay Croom rushed for 37 yards on the final drive of the game.
