Duquesne overwhelms Bishop Canevin

Duquense will take its high-powered, big-play offense to the Heinz Field grass for next week's Class A championship game.

Senior running back Layton Dunn rushed for 255 yards and two touchdowns, and Elijah Fields added two touchdowns of his own, as the No. 2 seeded Dukes defeated No. 3 Bishop Canevin, 48-25, in a semifinal matchup Friday night at Belle Vernon.

Duquesne (11-0) used a number of big plays to hand Canevin (11-1) its first loss and set up next week's championship game against defending champion Rochester.

Both teams traded punts to open the contest, and Duquense found itself with a first down deep in its own territory.

But the bad field position did little to stop the Dukes' powerful rushing attack.

With the ball on his 4-yard line, Duquense quarterback Durrell Dunn handed the ball to his brother, Layton, who broke an arm tackle and raced up the sideline for a 96-yard touchdown and a 6-0 lead.

"The big play was very important," Duquense coach Pat Monroe said. "We had confidence coming in. We knew they were a good team, but we planned on running the football."

Duquesne flexed its offensive muscle again on its next offensive possession.

Facing a third-and-7 from his 26-yard line, Durrell Dunn found a wide-open Fitzgerald Bobo, who outraced a defender for a 76-yard touchdown and a 14-0 lead.

Canevin responded when junior running back Matt Walker rushed for a 4-yard touchdown to cap a 14-play drive, but the Crusaders watched as the Dukes' offense quickly built a large first-half lead.

Durrell Dunn threw a 50-yard strike to Chris McCall to put the Dukes back in scoring position. Senior fullback Brian Machi then ran into the end zone for a 1-yard score and a 20-7 lead.

Fields was able to make it a three-touchdown advantage when he caught a 24-yard touchdown pass for his tenth post-season touchdown, and it seemed the Dukes would cruise to their first championship game appearance in three years.

But Bishop Canevin got a lift from backup quarterback Dan Gustine, who replaced an injured Robert Eberlein before connecting with a wide-open Lucas Amorose for a 24-yard touchdown pass on the last play of the first half to cut the deficit to 28-13.

The Dukes were able to reclaim the momentum when Bobo caught another strike from Dunn early in the third quarter for a 35-13 lead, but their defense allowed Bishop Canevin to get back into the football game.

"We knew they had a good football team," Monroe said. "Take your hats off to Canevin. We knew they would come to play."

Eberlein returned to throw second-half touchdowns to Casey Quinn and Walker, but the Crusaders were unable to contain the Dukes in the fourth quarter.

Layton Dunn rushed up the middle for a 24-yard touchdown and 42-25 lead, and Fields was able to put the game out of reach when he intercepted an Eberlein pass and returned it 40-yards for the game's final points.

"That's our game," Monroe said. "Our big plays separate us from everyone else."

Duquense finished with 500 yards of offense. Durrell Dunn passed for 170 yards and three touchdowns, while Fields finished 121-yards and two scores.