NOTRE DAME KNIGHT-MARE TEAM'S 35-GAME WINNING STREAK SNAPPED BY DOMINGUEZ IN TITLE GAME DOMINGUEZ 41, NOTRE DAME 14.

Byline: Erik Boal Special to the Daily News

CARSON - For the first time in 26 months, the deficit was too much to overcome.

For the first time in a run of four consecutive Southern Section Div. III finals appearances, the opponent had too many offensive weapons.

And for the first time in 36 games, Notre Dame High of Sherman Oaks' football team found itself on the other end of a humbling result.

After suffering a 17-point loss to the Knights in last year's division title game, Dominguez of Compton got its revenge and then some, snapping three-time defending champion Notre Dame's 35-game winning streak with a 41-14 victory Saturday night in front of an estimated crowd of 4,000 at Home Depot Center.

``There's nothing you can take away from them. They're a great team,'' said Notre Dame senior quarterback Garrett Green, who concluded his career 35-2 as a starter, the only other loss coming to St. Paul of Santa Fe Springs in 2003, the Knights' last setback before Saturday.

``It's tough because no one likes to lose. But out of the 30 teams in Div. III, one has got to win. Unfortunately this year it wasn't us.''

After Dominguez (13-1) opened the game with a 19-play, 80-yard drive that spanned more than 10 minutes and culminated with Brandon Johnson's first of four touchdown runs, Green sparked Notre Dame (13-1) with a 75-yard quarterback draw to tie the score at 7-7.

Unfortunately for the Knights - which entered the final as the state's top-ranked team, according to Cal-Hi Sports - that was the only offensive play they would run in the first quarter, an ominous sign as to how the rest of the contest would unfold.

Dominguez, the state's sixth-ranked team, finished with 24 first-quarter plays and ran 26 of the game's first 27, including a 1-yard quarterback sneak by Marvin Johnson and a 9-yard touchdown run by junior Brandon Johnson.

``I still felt the pain from (last year's 38-21 loss to Notre Dame),'' said Brandon Johnson, who finished with a game-high 245 yards on 29 carries. ``I never wanted to feel that pain again, so I came out here and played my heart out.''

During its streak, which tied Loyola of Los Angeles (1962-64) for fifth all-time in Southern Section history for consecutive victories, Notre Dame demonstrated the ability to stage several impressive rallies and record a handful of heart-stopping, come-from-behind wins in the fourth quarter.

Thanks to a more than two-to-one edge in time of possession - which was misleading since Notre Dame ran 26 of its 45 plays in the final quarter - Dominguez never gave the Knights that opportunity Saturday.

``They definitely outplayed us at the line of scrimmage,'' said Notre Dame coach Kevin Rooney, who had to replace almost his entire offensive and defensive lines after several starters graduated from last year's championship team.

``We turned the ball over a number of times and put ourselves in a hole. We ran nine plays in the first half and it's hard to score when you only run nine plays.''

Dominguez ran 39 first-half plays, with Brandon Johnson recording 169 yards on 20 carries, the last a 3-yard touchdown run with 23 seconds remaining to increase the Dons' lead to 28-7. Dominguez finished with 363 yards in 61 plays.

Another indication as to how frustrating the game was for Notre Dame - the nation's 11th-ranked team by USA Today - was when kicker Kai Forbath, a returning All-America selection by EA Sports, lined up to attempt a 57-yard field goal on the final play of the half.

Dominguez, which won its first section title since capturing a Div. II crown in 1996, called consecutive timeouts to ice Forbath, who had been successful from that distance in the Knights' season-opening 27-22 victory over Birmingham of Lake Balboa. Once Forbath, who has committed to UCLA, finally attempted the kick, it landed eight yards short.

``Unfortunately, it was our worst nightmare come true,'' said Rooney, who fell to 4-3 in championship-game appearances in his 26-year career, with the last loss coming in the 1997 Div. III final against Arroyo Grande. ``We knew they were good and it was awfully hard to stop them. I don't think we played our best game, but that was in great part because they're a great team on both sides of the ball.''

Dominguez appeared on its way to a great season in 2003, but the Dons were forced to forfeit eight of their nine victories and wound up finishing 1-9 and missing the playoffs.

Things came full circle for 23rd-year coach Willie Donerson on Saturday, as Dominguez denied Notre Dame the opportunity to become only the fifth team in Southern Section history to win four consecutive titles.

Erik Boal, [phone]

erik.boal(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

3 photos, box

Photo:

(1 -- 2 -- color) It was a long day for Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks on Saturday. Top, Dustin Schaff shows frustration in a 41-14 loss in the Div. III title game to Dominguez. Quarterback Garrett Green tries to elude a defender.

(3) Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks receiver Shane Horton can't shake a Dominguez defensive back Marvin Johnson during Saturday's game.

Michael Owen Baker/Staff Photographer

Box:

CHAMPIONSHIP SCORES