St. Rita wins outright CCL/ESCC Green title with 30-6 triumph over Niles Notre Dame

CHICAGO — St. Rita had a lot on the line Friday even though the Mustangs had already clinched a postseason berth.

The Mustangs hadn’t lost a CCL/ESCC Green game since 2019 and needed a win against Niles Notre Dame on Friday in order to win the division outright. Add in that it was St. Rita coach Todd Kuska’s final regular-season home game, and the Mustangs didn’t need more motivation ahead of their regular-season finale.

St. Rita responded to the challenge by playing a complete game, limiting the Dons’ offense while the Mustangs’ offense took advantage to win 30-6.

“I’d rather take it instead of share,” defensive lineman Pat Farrell said of winning the Green title. “I didn’t want to share with those guys, and it’s great to finally take it and end the season at 7-2.”

Farrell and the St. Rita (7-2, 4-0 CCL/ESCC Green) defense set the tone right from the start. With the Dons driving against a strong wind, the Mustangs forced a three-and-out and gave the offense the ball at St. Rita’s 47.

The Mustangs offensive line showed what kind of night it would be by dominating the line of scrimmage, charging St. Rita to a 7-0 lead when DJ Stewart rushed in from 2 yards to score with 7:27 left in the first quarter.

After another St. Rita defensive stop, the Mustangs took a 14-0 lead when Ethan Middleton caught a pass in the middle of the field and took it 25 yards to score with 2:47 left in the first quarter.

Niles Notre Dame scored when Howard Williamson caught a deflected ball while laying on the ground to make it 14-6 St. Rita with 51.3 seconds left in the second quarter, but that was all the offense the Dons could put together.

“Our defense has been playing really well,” Kuska said. “They really came alive last week too in bad conditions. We want to make people uncomfortable in what they do, and those guys were able to accomplish that today.”

St. Rita quarterback Jett Hilding made it a 20-6 lead when he found Kenneth Davis for a 30-yard touchdown pass with 9:38 left in the third quarter. Stewart added his second touchdown of the night when he found a hole on third down and burst out for 31 yards to make it 27-6 with 11:19 left in the game.

Mustangs kicker Conor Talty added a 41-yard field goal to give his team a 30-6 lead with 4:34 left in the game.

Stewart rushed for 98 yards and two touchdowns, while Middleton finished with 86 rushing yards and 25 receiving yards. Hilding completed six of his 15 passes for 92 yards.

Stewart has watched his offensive line develop during his time with St. Rita, and the senior and Middleton are grateful for an experienced group.

“It’s a real blessing,” Stewart said. “Before I came here, I looked at how our line was my freshman year all the way up to my senior year, it’s a blessing.”

Niles Notre Dame (6-3, 2-2 CCL/ESCC Green) couldn’t keep up in the trenches on both sides of the ball. The Dons found some success passing the ball, but struggled to run the ball.

Dons quarterback Vincenzo Ricciardi completed 12 of his 33 passes for 205 yards. Williamson finished with 61 receiving yards, while Quinten Jackson added 72.

“I thought we battled,” Niles Notre Dame coach Michael Hennessey said. “We’ve got a second season ahead of us, and I’m looking forward to it. We did some things today that I think we needed to do.”

Both teams will now wait for their postseason opponents. The Dons will play in the Class 6A bracket, while the Mustangs will compete in the 7A playoffs.

Farrell has enjoyed watching his team battle throughout the season after starting the season 1-2 with losses to Mount Carmel and Loyola. Now with the potential of any game being his and Kuska’s last, he’s ready to push forward with a happy ending and a state trophy in Champaign.

“It’s full go,” Farrell said. “We’ve been saying it’s the last dance with Coach Kuska and all these seniors, a lot of my buddies. I hope it ends with a win in Champaign.”