Mater Dei (8-0) had its way with St. John Bosco, building an insurmountable 45-0 lead at halftime that took the intrigue out of the second half and led to a running clock in the fourth quarter. The 59 points were the most scored by the Monarchs against their Trinity League rival in series history, which dates back to 1966.
The nation's No. 1-ranked team was led by quarterback
Dash Beierly, who threw four touchdowns, running back
Jordon Davison on the ground and a defense that forced four turnovers leading to 32 points.
If there is a silver lining for St. John Bosco (8-1), it's that the loser of the regular-season game has returned to win the postseason meeting five of six times since 2016. The only time a second matchup didn't materialize was 2021.
Mater Dei quarterback Dash Beierly threw four touchdowns and added another on the ground as the No. 1 Monarchs dominated No. 2 St. John Bosco 59-14 in the Trinity League showdown. (Photo: Rene Morales)
Mater Dei scored on its first offensive play from scrimmage — following a St. John Bosco turnover on the Braves' third play — as Beierly found
Kayden Dixon-Wyatt on a 35-yard strike on a flea flicker. A 23-yard field boosted the Mater Dei lead to 11-0 before Davison capped a 10-play, 65-yard scoring drive with a 2-yard plunge and a 17-0 lead just inside the second quarter.
On Bosco's first play after the touchdown, freshman quarterback
Koa Malau'ulu was intercepted by
C.J. Lavender Jr. on a tipped ball near midfield. It took Mater Dei four plays to score as Beierly, the Washington commit, scampered 40 yards up the near side for the 25-0 lead.
Mater Dei bumped the lead to 31-0 as
Aaryn Washington returned a 45-yard interception for a score on the ensuing Bosco possession.
Beierly added two more touchdown passes before half — a 19-yard fade to
Gavin Honore and a big-man score on a 1-yard pass to
Semi Taulanga, who had reported as tackle-eligible.
The Braves finally got on the board with a 71-yard
Maliq Allen run at 9:32 left in the third quarter, but it was more than academic even that early in the second half.
Mater Dei added two more scores — Beierly-to-
Mark Bowman connection and a 5-yard scoop-and-score by
Nasir Wyatt — to bump the score to 59-7.
St. John Bosco added a touchdown on a Malau'ulu pass to
Daniel Odom in the fourth quarter.
The league rivals have combined to win seven Open Division state
titles since 2016. The Monarchs won in 2017, 2018, 2021 and 2023. The
Braves did it in 2016, 2019 and 2022.
This was the 15th meeting between No. 1 and No. 2 in the MaxPreps Top 25
since 2000 and the sixth time featuring Mater Dei vs. St. John Bosco. The Monarchs hold a 4-2 edge in those meetings and a 10-5 edge overall over Bosco since 2016.
Mater Dei is 95-0 in that time against everyone not named St. John Bosco.
Mater Dei running back Jordon Davison ran for more than 100 yards and one touchdown as the top-ranked Monarchs moved to 8-0 on the season. (Photo: Rene Morales)
