TOLONO - Through the first 20 minutes of Friday's game, Scott Hamilton beamed at his Tolono Unity team's ability to dictate the tempo.

St. Teresa's offense plodded along as though need deep in mud for much of the game, dragging out every yard.

But in a 1½-minute span, two split-second breaks changed everything. That was all St. Teresa needed to unload in a 23-6 victory.

Down 6-3 after Unity (3-3, 1-1 Okaw Valley Black) scored on the opening drive of the third quarter, St. Teresa looked as though it could be in jeopardy. The Bulldogs had just four plays for 10 yards or more in the first half, and moving the ball didn't expect to get any easier.

But on their second play from the Unity 45-yard line, the Bulldogs (5-1, 2-0) created enough room for Stephen Duncan to bust several would-be tacklers and eradicate the Rockets' optimism.

"Duncan is a heck of a runner," Unity defensive coordinator Dave Fink said. "Immediately, we were having to gamble and having to guess."

The first risk the Rockets took bit them hard.

On a first-and-10 from their 43, Unity attempted a rare pass. Quarterback Chris Ault found the hands of St. Teresa cornerback Sam Leyden. Leyden streaked 46 yards for a touchdown, less than two minutes after Duncan's jaunt.

After that, the pace returned to that of the snail - bad news for Unity.

The Rockets took a full five minutes to march downfield on their ensuing possession, only to turn the ball over on downs from the St. Teresa 9.

"We need to flat out play better," Unity running back Beau Taylor said. "There's no excuse for only putting up six points."

St. Teresa's defense provided plenty of reason, though. The Bulldogs allowed the Rockets to gain 220 yards of offense but repeatedly shut them down on key third downs.

Ault threw for 73 yards, including a 30-yarder for the team's only score, and ran for 57 additional yards. Taylor ran for 54 yards.

But no one compared to Duncan, who posted 124 of his 191 rushing yards in the second half.

St. Teresa quarterback Danny Walker threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Matt Moran to seal the win in the fourth quarter.

"Our kids had to answer the bell," Bulldogs coach Scott Davis said. "They were plugging us up the middle, and we were able to get some plays on the perimeter.

"We made some mistakes, but we were fortunate that those mistakes didn't hurt us."

The Bulldogs had four fumbles but turned it over just once.

Riding high atop the Black division, St. Teresa put Unity in a precarious - and highly atypical - situation. The Rockets will have to win two of their final three regular-season games to become playoff eligible.

In 13 years coaching the team, Hamilton has never missed the postseason. His worst season was a 6-4 finish in 2001.

Andrew Petersen can be reached at apetersen@herald-review.com or 421-7971.