Mater Dei goes for first win against Orange Lutheran in five years

No. 15 Santa Ana Mater Dei (3-2) vs. Orange Lutheran (2-3) at Orange Coast College, 7:30 p.m., Prime Ticket -- Mater Dei’s motto should be “Expect Mystery.” The Monarchs opened with a loss to Carson and upset Corona Centennial before nearly being upended by Los Angeles Jordan. Mater Dei then took Huntington Beach Edison to double overtime before losing. Orange Lutheran has defeated the Monarchs in four consecutive years, but Lancers Coach Jim Kunau said, “I don’t think the past is any sort of prelude to the future.” Lutheran quarterback Bobby Wheatley was sidelined last week by pneumonia and running back-linebacker Garret Gilliland has not played since the second game of the season because of an ankle injury.

The pick: Mater Dei.

No. 14 Sherman Oaks Notre Dame (4-1) at La Canada St. Francis (5-0), 7:30 p.m. -- St. Francis hasn’t faced anything like the Notre Dame offense it will be tested by. Notre Dame quarterback Ryan Kasdorf is the most prolific passer in school history and tailback Kenny Boggs is averaging 112 yards rushing a game. St. Francis leans heavily on quarterback Justin Posthuma and running back-receiver-safety Dietrich Riley, who has scored 11 touchdowns. “He plays all over the place and makes a lot of plays,” said Notre Dame Coach Kevin Rooney.

The pick: Notre Dame.

No. 17 Encino Crespi (3-2) at Mission Hills Alemany (3-2), 7:30 p.m. -- Alemany hopes to bounce back from what Coach Dean Herrington described as “an absolutely pathetic” 24-20 loss to North Hollywood Harvard-Westlake. Herrington said his players “got outplayed as far as playing hard, which we’re not going to stand for. . . . Hopefully it’s a wake-up call for our guys.” Crespi quarterback Bryan Bennett has completed 60% of his passes and has 16 touchdowns with four interceptions. Alemany’s Malcolm Marable had 170 yards rushing and 98 yards receiving against Harvard-Westlake.

The pick: Crespi.

Harbor City Narbonne (2-3) at San Pedro (4-1), 7 p.m. -- These Marine League rivals don’t seem quite as formidable as they did a year ago, when they tied for the City Section championship at the Coliseum. San Pedro lost to Palos Verdes, its only quality nonleague opponent, and Narbonne has not strung together consecutive victories. “Both of us are a little bit of an enigma,” said Narbonne Coach Manuel Douglas. “I don’t know if we know where we’re at or if they know where they’re at.” San Pedro relies on Cristian Farrow, who is averaging 114 yards rushing a game. Narbonne features a balanced attack led by quarterback Chad Dashnaw and running back Melvin Davis. The pick: San Pedro.

-- Ben Bolch