Billy Lucas ran for 170 yards, and his 8-yard run in overtime lifted Duquesne to a 35-28 victory over visiting Sacred Heart on Saturday.
The Dukes had the first possession of overtime and turned to Lucas immediately. He had four rushes and one pass reception among Duquesne’s five plays. Sacred Heart’s possession ended when the Dukes’ Jayden Johnson and Jon Muehlbauer stopped Rob McCoy for a loss of 2 yards on fourth down from the 16-yard line.
Neither team led by more than seven points in a matchup of teams that had been expected to contend for the Northeast Conference Championship. Sacred Heart (4-5, 2-3) was eliminated last week, and Duquesne (3-6, 2-3) was never a factor in the league race.
Joe Mischler completed 18 of 28 passes for 209 yards and two touchdowns for Duquesne. In addition to his overtime score, Lucas had a 1-yard touchdown run in the first quarter.
Marquez McCray was 20-of-26 passing for 213 yards with two touchdowns for Sacred Heart. Kenneth Womack had eight receptions for 123 yards with a touchdown.
The Dukes had lost two in a row at home and avoided their first three-game home losing streak since 2009.
