SANTA ANA, Calif. — It may have played out more like a flag football game with the amount of penalty flags thrown, but the Mater Dei, Servite matchup on Saturday night was every bit as entertaining as you might expect of two trinity league rivals.
The rivalry is widely considered one of the best in Southern California, with the two schools first meeting over 60 years ago.
And in this unique 2021 season matchup at the Santa Ana Bowl, the Monarchs did just enough to get the job done — notching their ninth straight victory against the Friars, with a score of 24-17.
While Mater Dei never trailed in the contest, Servite's defense held tough against freshman quarterback Elijah Brown and a string of talented receivers.
The Monarchs relied on a heavy ground attack, playing out a 1-2 rotation between senior running back Marceese Yetts and junior running back Raleek Brown, who together scored 14 of Mater Dei's 24 points.
Aside from a huge interception returned for a touchdown by junior corner Cameron Sidney on the first play from scrimmage, Mater Dei was led by linebackers David Bailey and Raesjon Davis.
In the backfield though, the Monarchs struggled to contain Servite's junior wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan, who drew six pass interference penalties. In all, Mater Dei gave up 12 penalties for over 200 yards.
With the win, the Monarchs move to 3-0 on the season, while the Friars are 2-2 with two games left in this abbreviated season.