Sports

Football: Tesoro Wins in a Rout Without Barnes

In its first game without Brian Barnes as coach, the Titans trail in the second quarter before rolling over the San Diego Section team and matching its season-high for points scored.

John Hall was on the sidelines instead of Brian Barnes. And though the coach may have been different, Matt Adam and Nate Tago still wear the uniform for Tesoro.

Playing in the San Diego Section against Chula Vista, Adam had a hand in four touchdowns and Tago rushed for three as Tesoro scored a 56-17 victory over the hosts in a nonleague game.

The 56 points matched a season-high; the Titans scored a 56-7 victory over Ontario Colony on Sept. 14. Tesoro is ranked No. 9 in the Orange County Top 10.

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Barnes was removed as head coach earlier this week, and defensive coordinator Hall was named the interim head coach. The Capistrano Unified School District did not give a reason why Barnes was dismissed, and did not specify that it was permanent. Barnes, in his sixth season as coach, had compiled a 47-23 record with the Titans.

Whether Barens is on the sideline or not, the Titans game plan still revolves around a ground-and-pound attack led by Tago, who rushed for 272 yards and Adam, who threw touchdown passes of 22 yards to Forrest Dunivin and 17 yards to Brett Perry.

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Adam, who passed for 154 yards, also scored on runs of 13 and 2 yards.

The Titans scored first on Michael Mackesy's 2-yard run, but trailed in the second quarter, 10-7, before scoring three unanswered touchdowns before the half ended. In a span of six minutes, Adam scored from 13, Tago from 7 and Dunivin from 22.

The victory didn't mean much for Tesoro except for pride. The Titans (7-3) had already completed their South Coast League schedule, and following Trabuco Hills' upset of San Clemente, the teams finish in a three-way tie for third place. Only the first- and second-place teams qualified automatically for the Southern Section Pac-5 playoffs.

Chula Vista is 6-4.

Tago, one of the county's outstanding backs, scored from 7, 36 and 50 yards.


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