MONTEREY >> Chasing perfection for a record seventh time in 15 years was not a topic of conversation this past week in practice or in the school hallways. Neither was the league title.

All that mattered to a group of teenagers playing football, some for the last time in a rivalry game, was keeping “The Shoe” — the trophy that goes to the team that wins the annual Carmel-Pacific Grove matchup — on the Carmel campus for another year.

“All that these kids have ever wanted to do since setting foot on campus was win The Shoe,” Carmel coach Golden Anderson said. “There were a lot of nerves, particularly for the seniors. These kids care a lot about this.”

Having been battled tested earlier in the season in coming back from deficits, the Padres found themselves trailing late in the third quarter Friday before rallying for a 44-41 win over Pacific Grove in the 77th meeting at Monterey Peninsula College.

“It was celebratory,” Anderson said. “It always is when you win this thing. Our student body was taking it on the chin most of the game. It means a lot to both schools, to the communities. We’re humbled to be here. These don’t happen every year.”

The Padres, however, have won the past 10 meetings between the two neighboring programs.

This was also Carmel’s second straight undefeated regular season, stretching its record-breaking winning streak to 22 straight wins in the regular season in capturing its ninth league title in the past 15 years.

“We didn’t look at it as our playoff game,” Pacific Grove coach Jeff Gray said. “We looked at it as The Shoe. We just didn’t have the depth. But our kids are warriors. Our guys wanted to compete.”

With the wild win, the Padres hold a 42-33-2 series lead. Prior to Anderson’s arrival at Carmel, Pacific Grove held a 32-28-2 series lead.

Ironically, the last time these teams faced each other at Monterey Peninsula College, it was the Breakers prevailing, albeit in a playoff game — the only loss of the season in 2012 for Carmel.

The Padres (10-0), who are expected to get the No. 1 seed in Sunday’s Central Coast Section seeding meeting in Division III, are averaging just under 47 points a game during their 22-game regular season winning streak.

Yet, for as dynamic as Carmel’s offense has been during this record stretch of wins, it was its ability to control the ball over the final six minutes, converting a pair of third downs to keep Pacific Grove from getting another possession in running out the clock.

“We practice for these scenarios,” Anderson said. “It might be something we don’t normally do. But you have be prepared for any type of situation.”

That includes punting, which Carmel did for just the third time in league play.

This wasn’t the first time Carmel found itself trailing in game in the second half, although it had been a while, going back 11 weeks to its season opener against Christopher, where it rallied for a 35-31 win.

“Part of that is it’s a rivalry game and playing a well-prepared opponent,” Anderson said. “We have been in these situations. We just wanted to be able to hang around and see what the game did.”

Pacific Grove opened the game with a more than five-minute drive — all on the ground behind Gideon Llantero, capped with Garret Kuska scoring from 3 yards out.

“I think we surprised them with some plays they had not seen on film,” Gray said. “Our game plan was to run heavy between the tackles with several blockers.”

When Llantero took off on a 69-yard touchdown run around the left corner — the first of his three touchdown runs, the Breakers had opened up a 13-0 lead in the second quarter.

For as much as Pacific Grove slowed the game down and controlled the clock with its ground game, it only baited Carmel into biting on the run, setting up Brody Edmonds’s 39-yard touchdown pass to Kuska in the second quarter.

“There was no secret adjustments or new game plan at halftime,” Anderson said. “We pointed out as sloppy as we were, it was still close. We had been in this position before. We liked that we were getting the ball to start the second half.”

With the aid of an unsportsmanlike penalty for coming out of the locker room late before the start of the second half, Carmel didn’t waste time as Hudson Rutherford connected with Ty Arnold on a 44-yard scoring strike.

Moments later after the Padres defense stopped Pacific Grove for the first time on the night, Ashton Rees produced the second of his three rushing touchdowns to put them in front for the first time.

“We go right down and score, get a stop and scored again,” Anderson said. “Then they ran back the kickoff for a touchdown and it was a game again.”

Anderson was referring to Ben Garry’s 80-yard kickoff return that put the Breakers back up 34-30 with three minutes left in the third quarter.

It would be the last time the Breakers would lead as Carmel answered with Rutherford finding Matt Maxon on 40-yard touchdown pass. Rees’ fourth touchdown of the game staked them to a 44-34 lead in the fourth.

“The biggest factor is we kind of wore down,” Gray said. “A lot of our players go both ways. The difference between the numbers is a factor. We just don’t have that depth. We got beat up a little bit in the end.”

The Breakers (6-4) defense spent a lot of time on the field in the second half, as Carmel controlled the tempo, limiting them seven plays on offense in the third quarter.