Last year it was 7-6. This year Santa Margarita gave Mater Dei one more point and still never let the game get away.
No. 2 Santa Margarita beat No. 19 Mater Dei 14-7 on Friday night to open Trinity League play, and the Eagles did it the hard way: one touchdown allowed, early, and nothing after it.
Mater Dei struck first. By USA TODAY's account of the game, the Monarchs went ahead on a 6-yard touchdown run by Asir Nembhard. It was the last time Mater Dei scored.
The kick that kept it level. Santa Margarita answered to tie it, and the half ended 7-7 only because the Eagles blocked a Mater Dei field goal before the break. In a game decided by a touchdown, that block was worth exactly what it looked like.
Palmer to Van Raaphorst. The go-ahead score came through the air: quarterback Fletch Palmer found Grant Van Raaphorst for a 5-yard touchdown. Van Raaphorst was everywhere on the night, with a leaping catch and a 20-yard run off a double reverse, according to USA TODAY.
Then the defense finished it. Mater Dei had chances. A tipped pass helped force a turnover on downs with about six minutes left, and when the Monarchs got the ball back, Jayden Jack intercepted a pass to put it away. Ca'ron Williams, with his first sack of the season, and Isaia Vandermade both got to the quarterback.
Where that leaves both of them. Santa Margarita is 6-0. Mater Dei is 4-2, and USA TODAY notes the Monarchs have scored 15 points across their last two games, their lowest two-game total in 15 years. For a program built on offense, that is the number that will follow them into next week.
For Santa Margarita, the No. 2 team in our Power 100 and No. 1 Out West, the takeaway is simpler. Two straight years against Mater Dei, a combined 13 points allowed, and the Eagles are 1-0 in the toughest league in the West.
