Mater Dei football is heading into the playoffs with momentum, a national ranking and one of the most dramatic wins of the season behind them. The Monarchs of Santa Ana, California, finished the regular season 8-2 and are now chasing a CIF Southern Section Division 1 title. Here is the latest Mater Dei football news, results and what comes next.
Mater Dei 36, St. John Bosco 35: The Comeback Win
The headline result of Mater Dei’s season so far came on 30 October, when the Monarchs stunned rivals St. John Bosco 36-35 at Santa Ana Stadium in a Trinity League thriller. Mater Dei trailed by two touchdowns in the final four minutes, with a freshman quarterback under centre, and looked beaten. Then the Monarchs scored twice in the final 3 minutes and 26 seconds. With 7.5 seconds remaining, quarterback Russell Sekona found Tristan Brown for a 12-yard touchdown, and head coach Raul Lara chose to go for two points rather than kick for overtime. Sekona connected with Tyler Fritz on the two-point conversion, and Mater Dei escaped with a one-point win.
Freshman quarterback Paytyn Guess was the star of the night, throwing for 214 yards and three touchdowns while adding three rushing touchdowns — five total scores — and completing 73.3% of his passes. St. John Bosco actually outgained Mater Dei 490-315, but the Monarchs made the plays that mattered when it counted.
Regular Season Record and League Finish
The win over St. John Bosco took Mater Dei to 8-2 overall and 4-1 in Trinity League play, good for second place behind Santa Margarita, who clinched the outright league title. The Monarchs opened the season 4-0 before back-to-back losses to Bishop Gorman and Santa Margarita dropped them to 4-2. They responded with four straight wins to close the regular season, including victories over JSerra (41-7), Servite (38-15), Orange Lutheran (52-38) and St. John Bosco (36-35).
National Rankings: Mater Dei Back in the Top 25
The dramatic win over St. John Bosco put Mater Dei back in the national picture. The Monarchs returned to the High School On SI Power 25 at No. 21, and MaxPreps ranks them No. 13 nationally and No. 4 in the state of California. It is a reminder of the programme’s staying power — Mater Dei won the 2023 CIF Open Division state championship, beating Serra in December 2023.
Playoff Latest: CIF Quarter-Final Rematch with Centennial
Mater Dei’s next test is a CIF Southern Section Division 1 quarter-final against Corona Centennial, scheduled for Friday, 13 November at 7 p.m. at Santa Ana Stadium. It is a rematch of the two teams’ regular-season meeting on 11 September, which Mater Dei won 10-9 in a defensive battle — Centennial led 9-0 in the first quarter and 9-3 at half-time before Sekona’s two-yard run with 6:58 remaining gave the Monarchs their first lead.
Centennial arrive at 7-3 on a five-game winning streak, having scored at least 42 points in each of their last three games after managing just nine against Mater Dei in September. Mater Dei hold an 11-7 edge in the series since 2007, and the winner of Friday’s game advances to the Division 1 semi-finals.
What to Watch
Keep an eye on the quarterback play — Guess’s composure in the St. John Bosco comeback was remarkable for a freshman — and on whether Mater Dei’s defence can repeat its September performance, when it held Centennial to just 140 total yards. The Monarchs’ strength of schedule is rated the toughest in Southern California, which should stand them in good stead for a deep playoff run.
The Bottom Line
Mater Dei football’s latest news is all positive: an 8-2 record, a thrilling 36-35 comeback win over St. John Bosco, a return to the national top 25, and a home playoff quarter-final against Centennial. If the Monarchs keep playing with the nerve they showed in the final minutes against Bosco, a long postseason run is very much on. For more sports and celebrity news, visit our homepage.