Eagles 27 - Servite 3
MISSION VIEJO, CA., October 9, 2026 – Santa Margarita once again employed its stingy defense and took advantage of big plays on offense and defense to defeat the Servite Friars 27-3 in a Trinity League matchup before a Homecoming crowd at Saddleback College. The win was the Eagles' 13th in a row - the second longest in school history behind the 28 in a row from 1996-98 - and improved their record to 7-0, 2-0 on the season. Servite fell to 3-4, 0-2.
Servite took the opening kickoff and using a mix of runs and short passes crossed into Eagle territory before the drive stalled forcing a Friars punt. Taking over at their 20, and after a ten-yard completion from junior quarterback Fletch Palmer to Ryan Clark (3 receptions for 49 yards), Palmer's next pass was deflected and intercepted setting up the visitors on the Eagles 35 with 5:45 left in the quarter. The Friars went on a ten-play 25-yard drive draining the clock to under 10 seconds, but on third down from the 10, the Eagle defense stiffened as sensational freshman safety Jayden Jack broke up a pass at the goalline. Eli Gonzalez then hit a 27-yard field goal giving Servite a 3-0 lead as the first quarter came to an end.
Taking over on their own 35, Adrian Petero broke off a 9-yard run, and on the next play the super sophomore, and the Trinity League's leading scorer, sprinted 56 yards to paydirt to give the Eagles a 7-3 lead at the 11:07 mark of the second quarter. The Friars once again used their ball control offense coupled with a facemask penalty to set up a third and ten from the Eagles 45, but junior safety Jake Martin (five tackles) broke up a pass forcing a punt. Starting at their own 17, Palmer hit junior Grant Mosley (three receptions for 23 yards) for five yards and Clark for 17 more. Two plays later Palmer (11 of 15 for 159 yards) threw a deep arching pass to Grant Van Paaphorst (five receptions for 87 yards) resulting in a 55-yard scoring toss giving the Eagles a 14-0 lead with 2:56 left in the half. On Servite's first play, Jaion "Deuce" Smith recovered a Friar fumble at the 2:45 mark. Four plays later Palmer found Clark for a sliding 22-yard catch at the Servite two where Petero (7 carries for 98 yards) punched it in for a 21-3 lead with 0:40 left on the clock.
The Eagles drove 58 yards on 10 plays to open the second half, but a Palmer pass to Mosley was intercepted at the Friar six at the 5:51 mark. Two tackles by freshman linebacker Aydan Steen, who registered a career-high 14 tackles on the night and picked up another sack, and a sack by senior defensive lineman Isaia Vandermade (four tackles, two sacks, a pass broken up and a forced fumble) on the next Servite drive led to another Friar punt with 0:16 left in the third quarter. The Eagles, led by receptions from Clark and runs by Petero and Smith (eight carries for 31 yards, three tackles and a fumble recovery), drove to the visitor's 32 in seven plays taking 3:52 off the clock where the drive stalled ending in a Palmer pooch punt to the Friar 11 with 8:24 left in the game. On third and nine from the Servite 32 Vandermade forced a fumble which was picked up by junior defensive tackle Ceejay Tuimauga (four tackles) with 3:24 left in the game who rumbled 24 yards to the Friar five. Three plays later Smith dove over a pile of bodies for a one-yard touchdown with 1:51 remaining in the game to close out the scoring.
On the night, the Friars dominated the time of possession (30:26 to 17:34), but they averaged only three yards per play including 40 yards rushing on 23 carries. Junior quarter back Gino Wang was 19 of 28 for just 122 yards with 15 of his completions being for less than ten yards as he opted for short underneath completions to keep drives alive. Linebackers Cruz Nuñez (seven tackles) and Dax Carney (six tackles) also helped spearhead Santa Margarita's defensive effort. On the season, the Eagles defense is on a record-breaking pace as they have allowed just 37 points and 186 yards rushing in seven games.
This week the Eagles travel to St. John Bosco to avenge their last loss which was to the Braves 14 games ago. Kickoff at Fr. Frank Ribotta Field is set for Friday, October 16th at 7 pm.
| Santa Margarita | 7 | 14 | 0 | 6 | 27 |
| Servite | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
SER – Gonzalez 27 FG
SM – Petero 56 run (Koga kick)
SM – Van Raaphorst 56 pass from F. Palmer (Koga kick)
SM – Petero 2 run (Koga kick)
SM – Smith 1 run (Kick failed)
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
Rushing: SM - Petero 7-98, Smith 8-31;
Passing: SM - F. Palmer 11-15-2-159;
Receiving: SM - Van Raaphorst 5-87, Clark 3-49;
Summary by Adrian Peters
Statistics by Shane Mielke
