Notre Dame (9-0) showed why it’s one of the top teams in the Colonial League on Friday night, scoring on its first four possessions and rolling to a 56-0 victory over Palmerton (3-6).

The Crusaders racked up 420 total yards, including 266 through the air. Matthew Bodnar completed 13-of-16 passes for 252 yards and four touchdowns. Andrew Boyd led the way for Notre Dame with 104 receiving yards and two scores.

“They’re as good as advertised,” Palmerton coach Chris Walkowiak said. “Their line was physical, their receivers are good, their backs are good, and their speed was better than what we had. We were trying to cover as many guys as we could, but if you don’t have that pass rush — and Bodnar is one of the best quarterbacks in the state — he’s going to make plays.”

Palmerton’s opening drive showed early promise. The Bombers picked up two of their seven first downs for the night before a holding penalty near midfield stalled the eight-play series, which had chewed up nearly half the first-quarter clock.

Notre Dame wasted no time answering. Bodnar led the Crusaders 69 yards in just four plays, capped by a six-yard touchdown run from Jonathan Striba to make it 7-0.

After forcing Palmerton into a three-and-out, the Crusaders struck again just two plays later when Bodnar connected with Striba for a 58-yard touchdown.

Palmerton’s next drive again came up short, and Notre Dame quickly made it 21-0 when Carlos Diaz hauled in a nine-yard touchdown pass from Bodnar to finish off a three-play drive.

Early in the second quarter, the Bombers tried to swing momentum their way. After what looked to be another three-and-out, Palmerton kept the drive alive when running back Michael Garey picked up eight yards on a fake punt. The series reached the Crusader 26-yard line, but a fourth down TJ Weller pass intended for Caleb Sagastume fell incomplete in the end zone.

With just over two minutes left in the half, Notre Dame extended its lead to 28-0 on a six-play, 74-yard drive capped by a 28-yard pass from Bodnar to Andrew Boyd.

Walkowiak said Notre Dame’s quickness and execution created problems his team couldn’t overcome.

“We missed a lot of tackles where they were short throws, but their kids just ran with it,” he said. “They were making plays, and once they get rolling like that, it’s tough to slow them down.”

The Crusaders didn’t slow down after halftime. Just 43 seconds into the third quarter, Bodnar and Boyd connected again, this time for a 58-yard touchdown that pushed the game into the mercy rule.

Less than a minute later, Notre Dame’s defense joined in on the scoring when Aaron Gordon intercepted a pass and returned it 45 yards for another touchdown to make it 42-0.

Palmerton’s defense stopped Notre Dame on downs with 3:55 remaining in the third quarter — the first time all night the Crusaders failed to score on a possession, not counting the drive halted by the halftime break.

Notre Dame tacked on two more touchdowns in the fourth quarter. Jason Frederick scored on a 26-yard run, and backup quarterback Tommy Murphy added a 68-yard dash down the sideline to finish the scoring.

Palmerton’s offense never found a rhythm, completing just 3-of-9 passes for 17 yards and averaging 1.4 yards per carry.

The Bombers also continued to deal with mounting injuries. Both Vincent Taglieri and Garey left the game at different points after taking hard hits. Taglieri would later return.

“First of all, we’ve got to get the health report,” Walkowiak said. “We got banged up, dinged up, and we already had a long list going into this one. Right now, the focus has to be on getting healthy and getting ready for this week. It’s Week 10, it’s Catasauqua, and we can still control where we fall in the seedings.”

Despite the lopsided result, Walkowiak said his team is still motivated heading into the regular-season finale.

“We’re going to go home as a staff, start looking at film, and see what our matchups are with Catty next week,” he said. “We’ll figure out what pieces we need to move, hopefully get some people back where we can. We just need to get back to playing fundamental football. Going to Catasauqua and fighting for where we finish — that’s exciting right now.”

PUNTING DISPARITY … Palmerton punter Devlin Moyzan got a workout, booting seven kicks for an average of 26 yards. Notre Dame, meanwhile, did not attempt a punt.

QUICK STRIKE OFFENSE … Notre Dame’s first-half touchdown drives came after just four, two, three and five plays, respectively. The Crusaders used just 18 plays from scrimmage to build a 42-0 lead after three quarters.

Notre Dame 56, Palmerton 0

Notre Dame 13 15 14 14 - 56

Palmerton 0 0 0 0 - 0

ND - Striba 6 run (Cintron kick)

ND - Striba 58 pass from Bodnar (kick failed)

ND - Diaz 9 pass from Bodnar (Cintron pass from Bodnar)

ND - Boyd 28 pass from Bodnar (Cintron kick)

ND - Boyd 58 pass from Bodnar (Cintron kick)

ND - Gordon 45 interception return (Cintron kick)

ND - Frederick 26 run (Perone kick)

ND - Murphy 68 run (Perone kick)