Mater Dei makes statement in season-opening win over Duncanville

Mater Dei made a major statement in its season-opener against Texas powerhouse Duncanville on Friday night, throttling the Panthers in a 45-3 win.

Elijah Brown spearheaded Mater Dei’s rout of Duncanville, as the sophomore quarterback went 17-22 for 281 yards and three touchdowns to help the Monarchs to a 31-3 halftime lead. Brown started for Mater Dei as a true freshman in last year’s COVID-19 spring season and picked up where he left off against Duncanville, pioneering Mater Dei’s offense with the efficiency of a veteran signal-caller.

Notre Dame commit C.J. Williams was on the receiving end of most of Brown’s passes, as he registered six catches for 99 yards and a touchdown. With Brown and Williams connecting early and often, Mater Dei racked up over 400 yards of total offense by the third quarter.

One of Mater Dei’s best players made it clear from the get-go that its trip to Texas to play in the sweltering heat was not going to be a disappointing one, as five-star cornerback and USC commit Domani Jackson returned an interception 38 yards for a touchdown to give the Monarchs an early 7-0 lead. Duncanville got on the board with a field goal — its lone points of the night — on its next drive, but Mater Dei answered right back on its next play from scrimmage with a 76-yard touchdown run by Oklahoma commit Raleek Brown.

Duncanville threatened on its next scoring drive, but a Josh Hunter interception of a Solomon James pass stymied the series. From that point on, it was all Mater Dei.

Next up on Mater Dei’s schedule is a bye week before Bruce Rollinson’s team travels to Nevada to take on Henderson High School. Duncanville, meanwhile, will look to get into the win column against South Oak Cliff High School next week.

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