PREP FOOTBALL : Mater Dei, O’Neil Shut Down No. 2 Santa Ana, 17-10

Mater Dei Coach Chuck Gallo knew two things had to happen for his team to beat Santa Ana Friday night: The Monarchs’ defense had to shut down the Saints’ powerful running game, and Mater Dei quarterback Danny O’Neil had to show up before halftime.

Both happened, and Mater Dei upset Orange County’s No. 2-ranked Santa Ana, 17-10, before 7,000 at Santa Ana Stadium.

“It’s a great win for this bunch of kids,” Gallo said of his team’s first win of the year in 3 tries. “Santa Ana has great talent, great speed. But our kids knew what they had to do, and they did it.”

Mater Dei got an unexpected infusion of rushing offense from tailback Kealii Clifford, who rushed for 107 yards on 14 carries.

O’Neil, whose much-publicized transfer from Corona del Mar last year caused Mater Dei to be placed on probation by the Southern Section, did not have the kind of statistical nights of which dreams are made.

O’Neil, a junior, completed 7 of 10 passes for 91 yards--but 2 were for touchdowns.

Early in the Monarchs’ first 2 games, O’Neil had appeared tentative, making Mater Dei have to play catch-up. He had come on strong late in both games.

But against Santa Ana, O’Neil showed poise from the opening series.

In the second quarter, he threw touchdowns of 9 and 41 yards to wide receiver Tony Pena to give the Monarchs a 14-0 lead at the half.

“I thought Danny played well,” Gallo said. “Their defense was tough, but he got off to a good start, and that was one of the differences in this game.”

Another was the crushing play of the Mater Dei defensive front.

Coming into the game, Santa Ana’s running game was considered one of the best in Orange County in terms of speed and depth. But the Monarchs shut it down, holding Santa Ana to 5 yards rushing in the first half and 16 for the game.

When Santa Ana (2-1) found its running game stifled, quarterback Dan Tuioti, basically a running quarterback, was forced to put the ball in the air.

But more often that not, the Mater Dei rush--led by linebacker Jason Uhl, who recorded 3 sacks--took the air out of that idea. Tuioti completed 8 of 16 passes for 67 yards.

After Estrus Crayton returned a Mater Dei punt to the Monarchs’ 5-yard line early in the third quarter, Tuioti scored on a 5-yard run. Gustavo Placentia kicked the extra point and later kicked a 27-yard field goal.

“Our secondary played well, and that was one of the things that worried me coming in,” Gallo said. “I felt confident in our defense against the run. But the secondary is young, and it has been inconsistent. But they did the job tonight.”

Santa Ana had chances to win the game late. The Saints drove to the Monarchs’ 33 before turning the ball over on downs. And the game ended with Santa Ana on Mater Dei’s 38.