Monarchs Pull Away With Defense

SANTA ANA — Mater Dei is respected for a prolific offense that averages 38 points a game. But if the Monarchs are to repeat as Division I champions, Coach Bruce Rollinson says their defense must play a major role.

The Monarchs understood the message too well for Bellflower St. John Bosco, coasting to a 42-8 victory in a first-round playoff game before an estimated 3,800 at Santa Ana Stadium.

The victory was the 25th in a row for the Monarchs (11-0), ranked No. 1 in Orange County. Mater Dei will play Los Alamitos, the last team to beat the Monarchs, in the second round next week.

Rollinson had hoped last week’s 35-28 victory against San Clemente had raised red flags for his team, which was facing a team it had defeated by 34 points in the season’s second week.

“We only ran 11 offensive plays in the second half last week--fortunately two of them were for touchdowns,” Rollinson said. “And I thought, even in the rainy conditions, our defense gave up too much. I told the kids if we did not improve this week we would get beat.

“Tonight we played well on defense. After we adjusted to some things, I thought we got exactly what we needed.”

That was a defense that gave up only 104 yards (16 rushing). The Monarch offense gained 388.

The Braves (4-7) tried everything, including three quarterbacks--one of them receiver Jamaul Montgomery, who only attempted rushing plays--but were smothered much of the night by Mater Dei. St. John Bosco’s only highlight was a 72-yard touchdown pass to Montgomery from reserve quarterback Joe Gutierrez with 8 minutes 20 seconds left to play.

Mater Dei tailback Mike McNair continued his robust season, scoring five touchdowns--one shy of the school record--and rushing for 232 yards in 23 carries.

In posting his second straight 200-plus yard game, McNair become the first Mater Dei player to run for more than 2,000 yards in a single season. He now has 2,117 yards and 27 touchdowns.

For the ninth time in 11 games, Mater Dei scored a touchdown on its opening possession, driving 63 yards in five plays. McNair had 45 of them, including 11 on the first of his three touchdowns in the half. The extra point kick was blocked.

In the second quarter, Mater Dei took command, scoring on a 75-yard touchdown pass play from John Leonard to Alex Romero and McNair runs on 20 and four yards for a 26-0 halftime lead.