Mater Dei cuts deficit to 24-12 at halftime
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Mater Dei finally got its offense untracked with a 79-yard, 10-play drive at the end of the second quarter, cutting its deficit to 24-6 against Crespi in this Pac-5 Division quarterfinal game at Santa Ana Stadium.
Quarterback Matt Barkley was seven of eight for 79 yards on the drive, a sign of hope for the Monarchs. Then Crespi started to self-destruct with a series of penalties, giving the Monarchs the ball back with 53 seconds left.
Barkley fired a 47-yard pass to Robbie Boyer down to the Crespi 10-yard line. Then Carlo Valdes caught a five-yard touchdown pass from Barkley with 11 seconds left. For the second time, the Monarchs failed on their attempt at a two-point conversion. It’s 24-12 Crespi at halftime.
About the only negative point in an otherwise magificient first-half performance by Crespi was seven penalties for 65 yards.
If Mater Dei intends to rally in the second half, its defense is going to have to do a better job stopping Crespi’s rushing attack. The Celts gained 114 yards on the ground, including 87 by Austin Shanks. That effective ground game took pressure off sophomore quarterback Bryan Bennett, who completed five of nine passes for 96 yards.
-- Eric Sondheimer