LAS FLORES – Division I-bound quarterbacks Devon Modster of Tesoro and Patrick O’Brien of San Juan Hills had their encounter Friday.
But the former youth football teammates’ memorable moment was a friendly chat afterward.
Tesoro turned the anticipated showdown between two of Orange County’s elite passers and teams into a one-sided affair, complete with a running clock in the fourth quarter and a female running back getting a standing ovation in the final minutes.
Modster passed for 390 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for another three other scores as No. 4 Tesoro defeated visiting No. 9 San Juan Hills, 66-27, to capture second place in the South Coast League.
POSTGAME TALK: How Tesoro dominated San Juan Hills
The Titans (8-2, 3-1), coming off a bye, excelled in most phases to secure an automatic playoff berth in the West Valley Division. O’Brien played well, avoiding steady pressure, but the Titans’ offense with Modster was only stopped once.
“No idea we’d (do that),” Tesoro coach Matt Poston said of the score. “We played really well tonight. I think we played all areas of football well.
“Our offense was clicking on all cylinders. Our defense, to hold them the way we did tonight, played really well and we made some good plays on special teams, too.”
San Juan Hills (8-2, 2-2) is a likely candidate to pick up an at-large entry to the playoffs when the pairings are announced Sunday.
The Stallions played standout linebacker Tim Newman at center for the first time and on defense. They also were without two two-way linemen because of injuries.
But Coach Aaron Flowers made no excuses.
“They kicked out butts. That’s all it was,” he said.
Modster, an Arizona commit, scored on two 1-yard touchdowns and a 6-yarder as Tesoro opened a 21-0 lead early in the second quarter. He then tossed a 19-yard touchdown to Shane Coleman and a 28-yard strike to Spencer Heinsius before halftime.
“I don’t know if I’ll ever coach a kid like that again,” Poston said of Modster. “There’s a lot of really good guys, but I think he’s the top guy.”
Heinsius added a 35-yard touchdown catch on a double-pass connection with Carter Jaenichen late in the second period as the Titans led, 42-13, at intermission.
In the third quarter, standout defensive lineman Chris Evagues blocked a punt that Michael Mansuette returned 15 yards for a touchdown. In the fourth quarter, Samantha Ho made the Tesoro faithful roar with a few solid runs.
O’Brien, a Nebraska commit, passed for 254 yards and two short touchdowns and also raced 48 yards for a score. He finished with 71 yards rushing and was elusive but sacked four times.
“He’s a tough quarterback to bring down,” Evagues said of O’Brien.
Contact the writer: dalbano@ocregister.com