High school football: No. 1 Mater Dei beats No. 8 Servite 46-37 in game of the year contender

The best high school football game of the weekend lived up to the billing late Saturday night as two Trinity League rivals went back-and-forth with No. 1 Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) holding on for a 46-37 win over No. 8 Servite (Anaheim, Calif.) before more than 9,000 fans at the jam-packed Santa Ana Bowl. The first two-score lead did not come until the Monarchs went up nine with 7:49 remaining in the fourth quarter.

The win extended Mater Dei's winning streak to 10 over the Friars but it was the toughest test of the year for the top-ranked team in the country. It also clinched the Trinity League title.

Both offenses were brilliant, moving the ball up-and-down the field.

The Monarchs (7-0, 4-0 Trinity League) displayed all their terrific balance, on the ground by Oklahoma-bound running back Raleek Brown (163 yards, one touchdowns) and four short TDs from Quincy Craig. The passing game clicked equally well, especially the combination of sophomore quarterback Elijah Brown (17 of 23, 247 yards) to Notre Dame-bound wide receiver and birthday boy C.J. Williams (eight catches, 135 yards, one TD). Those four helped offset the huge nights from Servite senior quarterback Noah Fifita (26-of-41, 306 yards), Oregon-bound receiver Tetairoa McMillan (15 catches, 163 yards, two touchdowns) and running back Houston Thomas (two touchdowns).

Defenses and special teams rose to the occasion also with Mater Dei defensive end David Bailey delivering three sacks, including a crucial one in the fourth quarter, and sophomore cornerback Zabien Brown sealing the win with a late interception.

For Servite, a blocked punt by Emmett Mosley was picked up and returned 30 yards for a touchdown by four-star linebacker Jacob Manu that helped give the Friars an lead early.

This one had a bit of everything, except for turnovers. The interception by Zabien Brown was the only one of the this highly entertaining and well-played contest.

Mater Dei set the tone from the start with an 8-play, 64-yard drive capped by a 23-yard touchdown pass from Elijah Brown to Williams.

Servite (8-1, 3-1) answered on its ensuing drive with a 37-yard field goal from David Lugo to cut the deficit to 7-3 and after the holding the Monarchs on their next drive, Mosley's blocked punt and Manu's touchdown gave the Friars a 10-7 lead with 3:42 remaining in the first quarter.

The Monarchs answered with a 22-yard field goal from Chase Meyer to tie the score at 10. After a huge roughing the passer penalty on the Monarchs, the Friars capitalized as senior running back Thomas scored the first of two touchdowns on a 23-yard run, making it 17-10 with 8:10 left in the second quarter.

It would be Servite's last lead.

Mater Dei responded with a 4-play, 61-yard drive that resulted in a two-yard touchdown run from Craig, the first of his four to tie things up at 17-17.

After the Monarch defense forced a turnover on downs they went on an 8-play, 65-yard scoring drive, keyed by a 36-yard pass from Brown to Williams. Craig rushed it in from 2 yards out on the next play to give Mater Dei a 24-17 lead with 2:18 left in the half.

Servite received the second half kickoff and went on an 11-play, 80-yard drive capped by a 1-yard touchdown run from Thomas to tie the score at 24 with 7:13 remaining in the third quarter.

Mater Dei didn't blink, driving 80 yards in six plays, capped with Craig's third touchdown, giving the Monarchs back the lead, 31-24, with 4:56 left in the third.

Servite didn't blink either. Less than three minutes later, Fifita connected on his first touchdown, a 22-yarder to McMillan, tying the game for the fourth time, 31-31. Like they did all night, the Monarchs responded immediately with Craig's fourth touchdown, a 5-yard run, with just over a minute left in the third.

In one of their first miscues of the night, the Monarchs had a bad center snap, but holder and senior punter Ryan Didodo turned it into gold. He picked up the ball, rolled to his left and found Malaki Te'o for an important two-point conversion, making it 39-31 with 1:04 left in the quarter.

After both defenses held, Fifita connected with McMillan for a 17-yard score with 10:18 remaining to close to 39-37. Mater Dei's defense came up big again as senior cornerback Cameron Sidney broke up a two-point conversion try, leaving the Monarchs in the lead. The California-bound defensive back made things tough for McMillan all night.

Mater Dei needed a touchdown to gain the elusive two-score lead and again the offense responded. Raleek Brown capped an impressive performance with a 22-yard touchdown run, capping a 6-play, 80-yard drive, giving the Monarchs a 46-37 edge with 7:49 remaining.

Undaunted, Servite drove it inside the red zone on its ensuing drive but a holding penalty followed by a Bailey sack ruined any chance of the Friars pulling off a comeback victory. Zabien Brown iced things with his interception with just over a minute remaining.

Mater Dei wraps up the regular season against JSerra Catholic (San Juan Capistrano) on Friday, the same night Servite finishes up at No. 5 St. John Bosco (Bellfower).