HS FOOT: Notre Dame looking to rebound vs. Taft

Perhaps the biggest surprise last week was Moorpark's 27-14 victory Saturday over Notre Dame, the Knights' first regular season since 2007.

Or was it? Notre Dame did not have much time to prepare after playing its opener the previous Monday in Texas, while Moorpark had eight days of preparation.

"We just came out ready to play and we wanted revenge because Notre Dame had beat us one point the year before," Moorpark kicker Stephen Picchini said. "So we wanted to win that game pretty bad."

Notre Dame quarterback Ryan Kasdorf believes an early season loss might have been just what his team needed after going undefeated last season only to fall in the second round of the playoffs.

"It was a good experience because we can learn from that loss, figure out what we did wrong, and correct our mistakes," Kasdorf said. "Last year, we did not know how to deal with something like this until the end of season. Yes, it was disappointing, but I'm pretty sure we're going to bounce back from this and move on."

-- Gerry Gittelson