QUINCY — Quincy Notre Dame did not let its foot off the gas pedal in its season opener against Grandview (Mo.).
The Raiders kept the touchdowns coming and put up a dominant 50-6 win over Grandview.
“I think that we played well in all three phases,” said QND head coach Jack Cornell. “On defense, our guys were flying around. They understand what we’re asking them to do. They are really good at running the football and we were able to get a bunch of different guys in the ball game.”
It was the varsity starting debut for junior John Venvertloh, who did not disappoint and threw two touchdown passes.
“I had everyone telling me pre-game and throughout the game, ‘hey, you got this,'” said Venvertloh. “Don’t worry about it. We got your back and believe in me. It made me feel comfortable.”
Coach Cornell was happy with how Venvertloh performed in his debut.
“I think John was ready for this moment,” said Cornell. “I think the way he approaches his job and his preparation is at an all-time high. He’s really professional with how he goes about it. I think he was born for this. He’s also got a lot of really good weapons around him that he can get the ball to.”
It took little time for Venvertloh to settle in, throwing a 69-yard touchdown pass to Jace Allensworth.
“That was huge,” said Cornell. “We wanted to kind of air it out, especially early in the game to kind of get him going and the receivers as well. Just kind of stretch the field a little bit. Didn’t expect it to go all the way to the house, but I can’t say I’m surprised.”
QND scored in its next possession as well, with a 14-yard touchdown run by Oliver Triplett.
In the second quarter, the Raiders scored on a 27-yard field goal by Rowan Stegeman, eight-yard touchdown pass from Venvertloh to Gavin Doellman and a seven-yard touchdown run by Noah Benz to go up 30-0 at halftime.
Abel Berhorst scored two touchdowns in the third quarter, a five-yarder and a 54-yarder.
The Raiders added one more touchdown on a 56-yard run by Kaden Marth.
The unsung hero of QND’s outburst was its offensive line.
“They’re a very physical group,” said Venvertloh. “They’re taught to be very physical. They do a really good job at it game in and game out, just being big boys.”
Grandview spoiled the shutout for the Raiders in the closing seconds.
“We got guys who can fly around,” said Venvertloh. “We had a lot of people replaced, but the people who are replacing Wyatt (Mueller) and Taylin (Scott) are more than capable.”
Up next for QND (1-0) is a home game against Alton Marquette at 7 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 5.
“I think Alton Marquette is going to come in and give us their best shot,” said Cornell. “I think it’s always great when we get to play another team from our diocese. So we’re building this thing. As soon as you throw a wolf out the back door, there’s another one coming in the front door. The next wolves coming through is Alton Marquette and we got to go back to work and be ready to go.”