SOUTH COAST LEAGUE FOOTBALL : Mater Dei Completes Title Run With Rout of El Toro

Mater Dei used a swarming defense to stop El Toro’s bid for an at-large playoff berth, as the South Coast League champion Monarchs routed the Chargers, 42-0, Thursday in front of 3,500 at Santa Ana Stadium.

The Monarch defense, led by defensive end Derrick Ford, who had three sacks, limited the Chargers to nine yards in total offense. Mater Dei (9-1, 5-0 in the South Coast League) harassed El Toro quarterback Bryan Lefevers, sacking him six times for 52 yards.

El Toro finished 4-5 and 2-3.

While the defense was immediately hot, it took the Monarch offense a quarter to get on track. Mater Dei was unable to score after moving twice inside the Charger 20 in the first quarter.

However, Mater Dei did better in the second quarter. Michael-John Rzeznik caught a four-yard touchdown pass from John Flynn for the first score. Jason Lundstrom, replacing the injured Steve Bodnar, scored on runs of one and four yards to give the Monarchs a 21-0 halftime lead.

After halftime, Mater Dei came out firing. Rzeznik hooked up with Flynn on a four-yard touchdown pass midway through the third quarter.

Early in the fourth quarter, Joey Trampush took an inside handoff 42 yards for a touchdown. Trampush was the leading rusher, gaining 121 yards in nine carries. Lundstrom capped the scoring with his third touchdown, an eight-yard run.