PREP FOOTBALL ’94 / SOUTH COAST LEAGUE : 1993 IN REVIEW

Standings

League Overall School W L T W L T Mater Dei 5 0 0 12 2 0 Capistrano Valley 4 1 0 8 4 0 San Clemente 3 2 0 9 3 0 El Toro 2 3 0 4 5 0 Mission Viejo 1 4 0 4 6 0 Dana Hills 0 5 0 1 9 0

Highlights

Mater Dei went a long way, then ran into a wall. The Monarchs survived plenty of controversy early in the season. Tailback sensation Michael Graham left the team after three games, transferring to Edison. But the Monarchs still won the league title and then clawed their way to the Southern Section Division I final. They beat Santa Fe Springs St. Paul, 17-14, in the final minute when John Flynn completed two fourth-down passes to Michael-John Rzeznik, the last one an eight-yard touchdown pass with 1 minute 6 seconds left. Mater Dei then held on to beat Long Beach Poly, 17-14, when the Jackrabbits missed a field goal in the final seconds. Mater Dei then survived a cold night in Lancaster, beating Antelope Valley, 15-11. The bubble burst in the final, as the Monarchs were overwhelmed, 56-3, by Rialto Eisenhower. San Clemente had its finest season in more than a decade. The Tritons, league doormats throughout the 1980s, started stepping on people. They qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 1979. San Clemente beat Quartz Hill, 45-21, then lost to Encino Crespi, 24-21, in a tiebreaker in the quarterfinals. Second-place Capistrano Valley had another solid season. The Cougars nearly knocked off Mater Dei for the league title. They then defeated Los Angeles Loyola, 21-6, in the first round, then lost to Eisenhower, 37-19, in the quarterfinals.