Highlights, recap: No. 8 Mater Dei upends No. 2 Bishop Gorman, avoids first losing streak since 2013

No. 8 Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) rebounded from a rare loss by taking down No. 2 Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.) 27-24 on Friday in front of a sold out crowd at Fertitta Field in Las Vegas in the MaxPreps Game of the Week.

The Monarchs were coming off a stunning 43-36 loss to Centennial (Corona, Calif.) that dropped them from No. 1 to No. 8 in this week’s MaxPreps Top 25. Mater Dei improved to 5-0 against Bishop Gorman with all five meetings taking place since 2017. 

The Southern California dynasty also avoided losing in back-to-back weeks for the first time since 2013. In a game that featured 70 players with at least one collegiate offer, a pair of five-star commits for Mater Dei were on full display in Ohio State commit Chris Henry Jr. and USC commit Mark Bowman. Henry hauled in six passes for 116 yards and a score while Bowman caught five passes for 105 yards and two scores. Wisconsin commit Ryan Hopkins went 15 of 19 for 252 yards while also rushing for 60 yards for Mater Dei.

"What a game. Two great teams, great programs competing against each other," Mater Dei head coach Raul Lara told MaxPreps sideline reporter Chris Stonebraker after the game. "It was a fight today, which we knew. I'm proud of my guys. We were able to pull it out at the end."

Mater Dei answered when Hopkins hit Bowman for a 29-yard score at the 9:46 mark of the second and took an 8-7 lead on a two-point conversion from Mason Mejias. A key sequence came midway through the second when a 45-yard field goal attempt by Gorman kicker Hudson Borsari was blocked by Danny Lang and returned down to the Gaels’ 4-yard line by Aaryn Washington. Borsari hustled to chase him down for the touchdown-saving tackle. However, a penalty pushed the Monarchs’ drive to start back at the 19 and Mater Dei settled for a 35-yard field goal from Jerry Shifman to make it 11-7 at the 6:41 mark.

Gorman reclaimed a 14-11 lead after a 77-yard drive, capped by a 1-yard quarterback sneak from Eugenio at the 1:10 mark. The defense squandered an opportunity to pad its lead on the ensuing Mater Dei drive after a 25-yard fumble recovery for a score by Arizona commit Prince Williams was called back after a defensive holding flag.

That same Monarch drive came down to a 44-yard reception from Henry Jr. that put Mater Dei at the 1-yard line. The half ended with a 23-yard field goal from Shifman that knotted the score at 14 as the first-half clock expired.

Hopkins gave Mater Dei a strong drive to start the third, both rushing and throwing, as he finished the drive with a 36-yard strike to Bowman for a 21-14 lead at 8:42. 

Gorman responded just two plays later after Eugenio hit Massiah Mingo for a 62-yard gain, setting up a 5-yard connection from Eugenio to Kaina Watson to knot the score back at 21.

Borsari connected on a 19-yard field goal to open the fourth quarter, giving the Gaels a 24-21 lead. Hopkins then found Henry Jr. in double coverage for a 37-yard touchdown that gave Mater Dei a 27-24 lead at the 6:08 mark of the fourth.

A Borsari 47-yard field goal try to tie the score sailed wide and kept the Monarchs in front by three with 4:19 left. Gorman held Mater Dei on the ensuing drive and got the ball back with 2:22 to play but could not convert on fourth-and-3 with under a minute to play.

"That character of just getting it done at the end," Lara said. "There were some big plays. Gorman played their butts off too. It's too bad that somebody had to lose."

Eugenio completed 18 of 29 passes for 298 yards and two TDs. Mingo totalled 130 receiving yards on four catches while Watson collected five catches for 78 yards and a score to lead the Gaels.

Looking ahead, Mater Dei (3-1) has a bye next week before opening Trinity League play at Orange Lutheran (Orange, Calif.). Bishop Gorman (4-1), meanwhile, takes on another Trinity League member on the road at Santa Margarita (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.) on Sept. 27.