Having his team down 14-12 to Notre Dame heading into the third quarter, Catasauqua head football coach Phil Dorn knew his team still had the ability and the potential to pull out a victory, one that was needed as much by the Roughies as their opponent.

Dorn saw his prognostication come to its fruition the rest of the way as he notched his first victory as the Catasauqua head coach and his team rallied for a 28-14 victory.

With the win, Catty (1-1) will host an upstart Palisades squad Friday night at Alumni Field in a meeting that can also have some major implications toward the rest of the season.

The Roughies answered the bell as they won a key matchup over a team that is expected to contend for the Colonial League.

"This was a really good win for us," said Dorn. "Everybody saw Notre Dame as a front-runner. They have some quick backs, some big physical people and we knew we would have a real battle.

"We started sloppy, but we were able to finish strong. Our kids were excited to play football and they were competing all night."

Dorn noted contributions from seniors running back Mike Shutta, who rushed for over 100 yards; wide receiver Ricky Houser, who had just under 100 receiving yards; and wide receiver/back Jake Kober, who also had just under 100 combined yards on the night.

He also credited the play of his two-quarterback tandem of senior Brandon Keks and junior Cristian Burker, both of whom had another effective night. Keks completed 7 of 11 passes for 125 yards, while, Burker rushed for 52 yards.

"Both kids have really done the job for us and I feel comfortable with either one of them in there," said Dorn. "Brandon (Keks) has been throwing the ball well for us and so has (Burker). Cristian (Burker) has been getting the job done with his feet and running."

Along with some offensive standouts, Dorn credited the play of two-way tackle senior Satchel Stauffer, who has continued to shine since the preseason, along with sophomore linebacker Dylan Mitchell, who has played well at linebacker and special teams.

"We have had some kids who have stood out, but we really have had a solid team effort," noted Dorn. "This is a close knit bunch that has really come together since the first day of camp. They have made some mistakes but there is no questioning their work ethic.

"We had a huge win in a convincing way (against Notre Dame) and now we have to move forward."

Ahead for Catty is a hungry Palisades squad that bounced back with 20 unanswered points in the second half onward to a 33-12 victory over Salisbury. The Pirates (1-1) evened their season mark after they lost a slugfest in the opening week to league favorite Southern Lehigh.

Senior running back Christian Gretzinger, who was slowed in the opening week, came back to resonate himself back on the field against Salisbury as he rushed for a game-high 179 yards and scored a pair of touchdowns.

Palisades also feature senior wide receiver Devin Ramsden, who arguably is their best playmaker. Ramsden had a 93-yard punt return called back due to a penalty against Salisbury and he left early in the second half with a knee injury. His status for Friday is questionable.

First-year quarterback junior Austin Krauss has managed both games well and senior lineman Wyatt Schilling, who returned a fumble last week for a touchdown, leads a core of returnees who like to play smash-mouth football.

Dorn expects to see another mirror image from his opponent.

"They (Palisades) remind me a lot of Notre Dame," he said. "They have some size and like to be physical. Gretzinger is a kid who we have to contain because he is very quick and does a great job running downhill. Their line really opened some holes for him last week.

"Defensively (Palisades) is very aggressive and they fly to the ball. Their kids make plays. They played Southern Lehigh tough and then they had an explosive second half against Salisbury.

"Like Notre Dame, they (Palisades) expect to be near the top of the league. We know we will have another dogfight on our hands, but our kids have been ready for them the first two weeks. We have been getting better and keep correcting our mistakes.

"We'll be ready to play and see if we can pull it out. It will be another great game."