Friday night in the MaxPreps Game of the Week at the Santa Ana Bowl, Mater Dei's 10-9 win was improbable but the offensive fireworks were nowhere to be found.
Junior
Russell Sekona, one of three Mater Dei quarterbacks shuffled in all night, scored on a short sneak with just under seven minutes remaining and the extra point by
Jerry Shifman proved decisive as the No. 14 Monarchs, who gained less than 150 yards, improved to 4-0 on the season.
The Mater Dei defense stymied high-powered Centennial enough to give the offense a chance to win late Friday night in the MaxPreps Game of the Week. It hasn't been vintage Mater Dei thus far in 2026 but the Monarchs are 4-0. (PHOTO: Heston Quan)
The score was set up by Centennial's third turnover over the game when Hawaii-bound quarterback
Jaden Jefferson had a shovel pass intercepted off a tip by senior linebacker
Michael Davis deep in Huskies territory.
A third-down pass interference call extended the drive,
Asir Nembhard took the ball to the two-yard line with a six-yard run and Sekona powered his way into the end zone.
Centennial (1-2) moved down the field behind the fleet-footed Jefferson (209 yards passing, 63 yards rushing), driving to the Mater Dei 10. But a 27-yard field goal
Lucas Gallagher was no good with just over a minute to play.
Mater Dei ran out the clock from there.
Mater Dei head coach Raul Lara talks to his team after a gritty win over Centennial on Friday night at the Santa Ana Bowl. (PHOTO: Heston Quan)
Centennial led 9-3 at halftime even though it dominated most of the half.
A remarkable 22-yard catch by
Quentin Hale set up a 78-yard scoring drive to open the game. It was capped with a short reverse for a touchdown by
Kennie Leggett to give the Huskies a 7-0 lead and the game appeared to be following the trend of high-scoring affairs.
A bad punt snap went out of the end zone to give the Huskies a 9-0 lead before Mater Dei converted another Centennial turnover into a 34-yard field goal by Shifman just before the half, to make it 9-3.
A 48-yard bomb from Jefferson to
Jaden Bynum along the Mater Dei sideline on the last play before the half put the ball on the Mater Dei six-yard line. But referees ruled Bynum was tackled inbounds. With no timeouts, the clock ran out.
The play epitomized a frustrating night for the Huskies, who were playing their third straight Trinity League opponent. They lost a 21-20 game to defending California Open Division champion
Santa Margarita (Rancho Santa Margarita) two weeks ago before last week's bye.
In 2025, the Huskies handed Mater Dei two of its three losses, winning a 43-36 shootout Sept. 12 before knocking off the Monarchs 28-27 in the postseason. The victories snapped Mater Dei's seven-game winning streak in the series and helped Centennial finish ranked No. 8 nationally.
