LAS FLORES – Tesoro’s Matt Poston found it hard to convey the scale of his team’s precision during the opening half of Friday night’s first-round playoff game.
“I wish I had a magic answer, but I don’t,” the second-year coach said. “We just started playing really well in all areas. When you’re clicking on all cylinders, in all three facets, that’s what leads to a game like this.”
Powered by Anthony Battista’s four touchdowns, the Titans consistently hit their mark in a 52-14 victory over visiting Newport Harbor in the CIF-Southern Section West Valley Division game.
Tesoro (9-2) will face Vista Murrieta in the second round next week.
Battista rushed for 132 yards and three touchdowns on eight carries – all in the first half.
“He was seeing the holes and he was exploding,” Poston said.
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VIDEO: Cox3 Post Game Show: Tesoro vs. Newport Harbor
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The junior hauled in two catches for 69 yards, including a 60-yard scoring grab in the waning seconds of the second quarter to give Tesoro a 52-7 halftime lead. Pushing his way into the end zone on runs of 11, 4 and 3 yards, it was Battista’s final jaunt that served as a microcosm of the offensive output.
Battista’s short scamper across the goal line on an impressive second effort during Tesoro’s first possession of the second quarter and Justin Matlin’s field goal 29-yard field goal pushed the lead to 31-0.
“We executed on every play and everything was just opening up for the offense,” Battista said. “Our coaches had a great game plan.”
Junior quarterback Devon Modster, who sat the entire second half, completed 10 of 14 passes for 130 yards and two touchdowns. He added a 4-yard scoring run as time expired in the first quarter.
Newport Harbor (5-6) failed to find much offense.
The Sailors benefited from a roughing-the-passer call on fourth-and-8 from Tesoro’s 28-yard line late in the second quarter. On their next play, Cole Norris found Jack Rapillo for a 14-yard score to trim the deficit to 31-7 with 2:17 left in the period.
But Tesoro wasted no time responding. In a matter of two minutes, the Titans scored 21 points.
It started when Tesoro’s Matt Buoncristiani ran the Sailors’ ensuing kickoff back 72 yards for a score. The Titans then recovered their own kickoff – the second of the game – on Newport Harbor’s 18, before Modster hit Carter Jaenichen on a 16-yard slant to push the lead to 45-7 with 1:55 remaining.
After the Sailors punted on their next possession, Modster found Battista on a screen pass for the long score.
