Castleton Is Championship Material : Mater Dei: Junior has contributed to the success of Monarchs’ football and basketball programs.

David Castleton leaned back in his chair in a back room of the Mater Dei football offices and wondered how he could top his sophomore year.

After helping the Monarchs to a Southern Section Division I title and a mythical national championship in football and a State title in basketball, Castleton, a junior, figured his best year might be behind him.

“After we won that State championship [in basketball], I thought, ‘I’m going to look back and know this is the greatest year of my life,’ ” he said.

Castleton has been the only common denominator between Mater Dei’s successful football and basketball teams the last two seasons. He has played in four Southern Section finals.

Although he has not been the star on either team, his contributions have been critical. Consider:

--In football last season, when the Monarchs won their sixth section championship, Castleton provided a reliable second option for quarterback John Flynn when standout receiver Rod Perry was covered. Perry finished the season with 59 receptions for 1,159 yards and 14 touchdowns; Castleton finished with 28 receptions for 361 yards and three touchdowns.

--In the State basketball championship game against Oakland Fremont, Mater Dei stars Schea Cotton and Shaun Jackson went to the bench because of foul trouble at the beginning of the third quarter. Castleton, a guard, led Mater Dei’s reserves as they maintained the lead before Cotton and Jackson returned in the fourth quarter and the Monarchs won their third State title, 71-67, in overtime.

“I’ll tell you one thing, after both those seasons, I was extremely tired,” he said.

But after spending the last few months recovering, Castleton is back trying to work his way to another Southern Section trophy.

The Monarch football team is 6-0 and 1-0 in South Coast League heading into its league game against Trabuco Hills (1-5, 0-1) at 7:30 tonight at Santa Ana Stadium.

Castleton’s role on the football team has changed quite a bit over the last two years. After playing backup quarterback, wide receiver and defensive back the last two years, Castleton hoped to start at quarterback this year because Flynn graduated.

Over the summer, however, it became clear that the team needed him more at wide receiver. Castleton approached Coach Bruce Rollinson and told him that Nick Stremick, a standout quarterback on the junior varsity team last season, should get the position.

“I knew I had to make a big decision,” Castleton said. “With me at the receiver position, I thought that would be better for the team and with the combination of [Stremick and Castleton] I thought we could go a long way.”

The decision proved not only good but also lucky for the team.

Perry returned from a brief move to Sugar Land, Tex., and played in the Monarchs’ third game, against Hawthorne. But Perry suffered a season-ending knee injury two games later against Ramona.

With Perry on the sideline, Castleton has become the team’s primary receiver. He has caught 20 passes for 364 yards this season. He also plays defensive back and leads the team with three interceptions.

“He has a great knack for being able to see things develop very quickly and therefore [is usually] a couple of feet or inches ahead of things as they materialize, which puts him in the right place at the right time,” Rollinson said. “He has an excellent understanding of the overall scheme of both the offense and the defense.”

Perhaps just as important, however, is Castleton’s competitive spirit.

“I like that borderline cockiness and arrogance,” Rollinson said. “He is well liked by all of his teammates, but he is a fierce competitor. The bigger the game, the tougher the situation, the more he wants to be the guy.”

Rollinson said Castleton’s attitude is: “Throw me the pass on the crucial down. I’ll get it done.”

Castleton’s athletic prowess didn’t bloom until he was about 9 years old--”before that, he was kind of a couch potato,” said Stan Castleton, his father.

But what his parents might not have known is that during all that time watching television, Castleton was studying; Superman and Magic Johnson were his idols.

“We didn’t know how good of an athlete he was going to be but he sure had that [competitive spirit],” Stan said.

Castleton describes himself as a “family man” and seems to dote on his three younger sisters, Debbie, 16, Rachel, 14, and Mary, 7. He ascribes his success to his father, a real estate developer who played basketball at Inglewood Morningside before playing both basketball and football at Utah State and trying out for the Denver Broncos.

“He has been hard on me, but now I am starting to appreciate it,” Castleton said. “[My parents] have taught me discipline and responsibility and that just gives me a sense of maturity.”

Castleton attends Bible study every weekday morning at 6:45 at the Irvine Church of Latter Day Saints before going to Mater Dei at 7:45. After classes and practice, he often doesn’t arrive home until 8 p.m.

“He just comes in dragging,” said his mother, Linda.

When the stress becomes too much, Castleton heads for a private trainer in San Clemente, where he practices Tai chi exercises.

“It relaxes me and puts everything back in perspective,” he said.

That perspective will be important as the trophies begin to stack up in Castleton’s room.