Mater Dei outduels Bishop Gorman: Score, results, highlights from battle of national football champions

Lance Smith

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Mater Dei outduels Bishop Gorman: Score, results, highlights from battle of national football champions image

File Photo, Lafayette Daily Advertiser / USA Today Network via Imagn

LAS VEGAS– In a game between national contenders that lived up to the hype, Mater Dei edged out Bishop Gorman 27-24 on the road on Friday.

Neither team ever led by more than one score. The Monarchs took a 27-24 lead on a Chris Henry touchdown from Ryan Hopkins halfway through the fourth quarter, and their defense held pat down the stretch.

 

Bishop Gorman got off to a convincing start with a touchdown less than two-and-a-half minutes into the game. Senior QB Maika Eugenio led a convincing touchdown drive highlighted by long completions to Kaina Watson and DaMari Hall, the latter of which was the game's first touchdown. Up 7-0, Bishop Gorman forced a punt without too much trouble and appeared ready to build on its lead. But both defenses stood firm for the rest of the quarter.

The Monarchs got on the board with 9:45 left in the second quarter after two big receptions from 5-star TE Mark Bowman resulted in a touchdown. They took an 8-7 lead when Mason Mejias ran in a two-point conversion and an 11-7 lead with 6:36 left in the half on a field goal. The field goal was set up by their block of a Bishop Gorman field goal attempt, which Aaryn Washington scooped up and returned to the red zone.

With a minute left in the first half, the momentum shifted slightly towards the Gaels and nearly shifted entirely their way before an apparent scoop-and-score was called back due to a penalty. They had just finished a long touchdown drive with a one-yard run from Eugenio to go up 14-11. Instead of a turnover and Bishop Gorman touchdown, Mater Dei retained possession and tied the game up on another field goal as the clock expired.

Mater Dei opened the second half with a touchdown on one of a few absolute bombs from Hopkins, a 3-star Wisconsin commit. He rolled towards the sideline and, before falling out of bounds, found Bowman in the corner of the end zone from upwards of 40 yards out. That gave Mater Dei a 21-14 lead after a PAT with 8:42 left in the quarter.

Bishop Gorman struck next in the back-and-forth affair. It tied the game up less than a minute later on a short pass from Eugenio to Watson set up by a long-range missile caught by Massiah Mingo. And the Gaels picked Hopkins off a couple minutes later. With the game tied at 21 after the teams traded punts, Bishop Gorman retook the lead on a field goal to open the fourth quarter.

But the Gaels wouldn't score again. Like most of the game's other scoring drives, what proved to be Mater Dei's game-winning touchdown drive came via two chunk passes, this time by 5-star Ohio State commit Chris Henry. The 6-foot-5 wideout hauled in a first down on 3-and-14 and scored the go-ahead touchdown on a long catch through double coverage to make it 27-24. Both defenses controlled the fourth quarter besides that drive, and Bishop Gorman ran out of time when Mater Dei forced a turnover on downs with 1:02 left after Bishop Gorman had a 3rd-and-3.

Scroll down for the pregame overview followed by results and highlights.

Pregame

Bishop Gorman versus Mater Dei, a battle between the two high school football teams that shared a national title in 2023, was supposed to be No. 1 versus No. 2 in the country.

Instead, Mater Dei will be fighting for any chance it has remaining at its third consecutive national championship after getting upset by Corona Centennial a week ago. Is it possible that this game is even more intriguing as a result?

It's hard to think of the last time that Mater Dei was widely considered the clear underdog in any football game. It was probably the 2023 CIF-SS D1 championship in which it routed St. John Bosco 35-7 after losing 28-0 to the Braves six weeks prior. But even then, there was no question that the Monarchs were set for a much more competitive performance. And before that, one would have to go back to the 2018 section finals in which they upset St. John Bosco 17-13 after losing 41-18 in Trinity League play.

But Mater Dei is officially the underdog on Friday at Bishop Gorman – the No. 1 team in the country alongside St. John Bosco – especially playing in another state. Will we see nearly a full game of the locked-in Monarchs who were untouchable in the second quarter of the St. Thomas Aquinas win and third quarter of the Corona Centennial loss? If so, Mater Dei fans would have to like their chances, but if not, back-to-back losses are probably in store.

Bishop Gorman vs. Mater Dei final score, results, highlights

Mater Dei wins 27-24.

FOURTH QUARTER:

1:02: Mater Dei turns Bishop Gorman over on downs on 4th-and-3 near midfield, and that's your ballgame!

6:06 – Mater Dei 27, Bishop Gorman 24: Back and forth we go. Hopkins and Henry connect twice and the second reception is a touchdown. Gaels stuff the two-point conversion.

11:56 – Bishop Gorman 24, Mater Dei 21: Eugenio finds Mingo open way downfield, and it results in a Bishop Gorman field goal.

THIRD QUARTER:

5:19: Interception Bishop Gorman. Gaels take over around midfield.

7:46 – Mater Dei 21, Bishop Gorman 21: After a lengthy pass from Eugenio to Massiah Mingo in tight coverage, Watson scores on a short pass to tie the game back up.

8:42 – Mater Dei 21, Bishop Gorman 14: Hopkins gives Mater Dei another lead on an exceptional pass to Bowman into the left corner while rolling to his left from close to midfield.

The game is tied at 14 at halftime.

SECOND QUARTER:

0:00 – Bishop Gorman 14, Mater Dei 14: After a long completion from Hopkins to Chris Henry, Mater Dei ends the half with a field goal to tie the game.

1:10 – Bishop Gorman 14, Mater Dei 11: The Gaels retake the lead as Eugenio sneaks it in to finish a patient touchdown drive.

6:36 – Mater Dei 11, Bishop Gorman 7: Mater Dei connects on a field goal to up its lead to four points.

7:38: Mater Dei blocks a 35-yard field goal attempt and Aaryn Washington returns it to Bishop Gorman's red zone.

9:45 – Mater Dei 8, Bishop Gorman 7: Mark Bowman gets yardage after contact on one catch and makes the next catch in the end zone for Mater Dei's first touchdown. Mason Mejias runs in a two-point conversion.

FIRST QUARTER:

9:39 – Bishop Gorman 7, Mater Dei 0: Maika Eugenio throws a 19-yard touchdown to DaMari Hall for the game's first score. It was set up by a long completion to Kaina Watson for a first down. Bishop Gorman follows it up by forcing a punt.

Bishop Gorman vs. Mater Dei start time

  • Date: Friday, Sep. 19
  • Time: 7:00 p.m. PT

The opening kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. PT on Friday, Sep. 19. The game will be played at Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas.

MORE: How to watch Bishop Gorman vs. Mater Dei

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Lance Smith

Lance has covered high school basketball, football and softball since 2019. A graduate of The USC Marshall School of Business, Smith dabbles in linear algebra and football and basketball computer rankings.