Carmel drops Notre Dame despite big night from Chris James

Carmel 24, Notre Dame 21

THE SKINNY

Despite a three-touchdown performance by Notre Dame senior running back Chris James, Carmel held on to beat the Dons on the road Friday. Boosted by a key defensive stop in the final two minutes and its own big running game, Carmel snapped a five-game losing streak. It was the Corsairs’ 16th win in a row over the Dons, who were already playoff-bound.

TURNING POINT

Notre Dame (6-3, 3-3 ESCC) had turned things around after struggling in the first half and briefly took the lead at 21-17 with 2:22 left in the third quarter before Carmel (2-7, 2-5) scored with 9:07 to go in the fourth quarter. The Dons seemed to have gained the momentum back after a blocked punt recovery deep in Corsairs territory, but they couldn’t get into the end zone from the 12-yard line with about two minutes to play. A 21-yard field goal attempt was wide left.

THE STAR

Carmel senior quarterback Nick Grandolfo had several big plays and finished the night with a passing touchdown and a rushing touchdown. With a wild wind, the Corsairs took advantage of his speed on the ground. Grandolfo ran in from 38 yards out in the fourth quarter to regain the lead for Carmel at 24-21, before finishing the night with 107 yards rushing on 12 carries.

BY THE NUMBERS

Notre Dame fell short despite a monstrous effort from James, who rushed for three touchdowns and 243 yards on 36 carries.

QUOTABLE

“I can’t think of a better way to go out. It’s been a tough year, but this was a great way to finish the year. We didn’t give up.” — Grandolfo