Mayfair football handed first loss by Santa Margarita

LAGUNA HILLS >> Mayfair kept it close for as long as it could against Santa Margarita on Thursday night at Laguna Hills High. Eventually, the Eagles took over in the trenches and ran away for a 49-3 nonleague victory.

Santa Margarita (4-0) rushed for 328 yards and six touchdowns as a team. The Eagles are ranked No. 9 in CIF Southern Section Division 1, and No. 13 in California according to MaxPreps. Mayfair (3-1) is ranked No. 4 in Division 9 and starts Suburban League play next week at La Mirada.

After forcing a punt on the first drive and taking over on the Mayfair 44-yard line, Santa Margarita’s Chad Magyar carried the ball three times to open the scoring. The senior took it in from 24 yards out for the 7-0 lead and his first of three touchdown runs. Magyar rushed for 214 yards on 18 carries.

Mayfair answered with its most effective possession of the game. The Monsoons kept the ball for over six minutes thanks to three third-down conversions and a roughing the passer penalty. Monsoons quarterback Josh Calvin hit Chris Adimora down the sideline for a 31 yard gain that put Mayfair inside the Santa Margarita 5-yard line. The Monsoons settled for a 25-yard field goal from Christian Lemus. The score stayed 7-3 until early in the second quarter.

Santa Margarita scored on its next three possessions thanks to great field possession. The Eagles started all but one of their possessions on the other side of their own 40-yard line, and only needed one third down conversion to keep the four first-half drives alive. Santa Margarita senior Malone Mataele came into the game to run out of the wildcat set and scored two short touchdowns on the direct snap.

Mayfair only picked up only five first downs on offense after the first quarter. Running back Tray Anderson rushed for 51 yards on 18 carries. Calvin was sacked five times. The Monsoons defense had forced 13 turnovers in its first four games this season after forcing a fumble at the goal line in the third quarter.

Mayfair coach Derek Bedell has scheduled a Trinity League opponent on the road in each of the last two years, and his team showed massive improvement from its 63-0 loss to Mater Dei last season.

“These games are where we learn who we really are,” Bedell said. “We want to show our kids where we need to improve, and then use those lessons in league and playoffs.”

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