Loyola Gets a Rude Greeting

Welcome to the Serra League, Los Angeles Loyola High.

Tailback Rafael Rice and the Santa Ana Mater Dei Monarchs might like you to stick around a while if you continue to sputter like you did in your league debut Friday, a 28-10 loss before about 4,000 at East L.A. College.

The Cubs, No. 2 in The Times’ rankings, struggled to move the ball and failed to contain Rice, who rushed for 151 yards and a touchdown against his former team.

“It meant a lot,” said Rice, a senior who left Loyola after his sophomore year. “It was a great feeling to come back and beat them. They were talking a lot about me after I left.”

Mater Dei sophomore quarterback Jason Forcier threw for two touchdowns and ran for another as the No. 14 Monarchs (5-1, 1-0) sprinted to a 21-0 lead midway through the second quarter and were never threatened. He completed nine of 14 passes for 174 yards.

Mater Dei controlled the line of scrimmage and made the big plays while easily withstanding the pressure of being an underdog.

“We were prepared to play,” Monarch Coach Bruce Rollinson said. “My coaching staff worked hours in preparation for this game. We had a shot if we eliminated mistakes, and that’s what we did.”

Mater Dei committed only one turnover--a Forcier pass was intercepted in the end zone late in the second quarter--while amassing 370 yards of offense.

After holding Loyola (5-1, 0-1) on its first possession, the Monarchs took over at their own 49-yard line and drove for a touchdown, capped by Forcier’s seven-yard run. Mater Dei got the ball at the 50 on its next possession and went ahead, 14-0, on the first play of the second quarter when Forcier connected with Nathan Gunderman on a seven-yard touchdown pass.

Forcier found Corey Boudreaux streaking toward the end zone for a 65-yard touchdown pass play midway through the second quarter as the Monarchs went ahead, 21-0.

Mater Dei appeared to be on the verge of a blowout when it drove to the Loyola 17 on its next possession, but Forcier overthrew Boudreaux in the end zone and the pass was intercepted by defensive back Quintin Daniels. The Cubs drove to the Mater Dei 31, where Andrew Kearney kicked a 49-yard field goal with two seconds left in the half.

Rice scored his touchdown after cutting outside on an 11-yard run late in the third quarter.

“We had to come back and prove to the people that we were for real,” said Rice, perhaps alluding to Mater Dei’s first two games, when it struggled to beat Orange Lutheran and lost to Mission Viejo.

Loyola scored its touchdown with three seconds left in the game, when reserve quarterback Scott Deke--who replaced ineffective starter Adam Gonzalez late in the second quarter--scored on a one-yard keeper.