GREENFIELD >> The south Salinas Valley tour had a similar theme for Pacific Grove High’s football team, which made it 3-for-3 against teams in the southern part of Monterey County with a 21-6 over Greenfield Thursday.

Pacific Grove, which started last season 6-0, is off to a 5-1 overall start (2-0 in division play) after posting its fourth straight win. Three of its wins have come against teams in the Salinas Valley, including Gonzales and Mission Division South rivals King City and Greenfield.

During their four-game winning streak, the Breakers, who will host North Salinas next Friday, have outscored the opposition 58-7 in the first half.

Last year it was North Salinas that snapped the Breakers six-game winning streak with a 50-6 win.

“Can we stop their offensive line from moving us,” Pacific Grove coach Jeff Gray said. “You have to prepare for two different types of offenses North Salinas runs. It’s a challenge for us.”

Champions of the Santa Lucia Division last year, the Bruins (0-2, 2-4) have dropped four straight games since opening the season with a pair of wins — including their first two in the Mission Division South.

Their setbacks have included a loss to a program that’s undefeated in San Lorenzo Valley, and to St. Francis and Pacific Grove, who are a combined 9-2.

“We’re not getting blown out,” Greenfield coach Adam Barsenas said. “We’re competing. The frustrating part is trying to figure out what works on offense. The defense is playing well enough to win these games. We’ve put them in bad spots.”

Defense has been the glue to Pacific Grove’s success during its four-game winning streak, as it has held opponents to 13 points in the first half — all season.

A tenacious unit, anchored by Ryton Harrison, Ryder Gamecho and Isaac Sanchez, was on display just before halftime when the Breakers stopped Greenfield on four attempts inside the 1-yard line.

“That was a big momentum shift going into the second half,” Gray said. “It deflated them.”

An interception from Ben Garry in the second half led to a Brody Edmonds to Northrop Kirk touchdown pass to pad the Breakers lead to 15-0.

“Our defense has played really well in the first half in most games,” Gray said. “Sometimes we’ll slip a little bit in the second half. But tonight, we played strong defense, especially with our goal-line stand.”

The previous three meetings between the two old Mission Trail Athletic League rivals had been decided by a touchdown or less, with the Bruins’ only regular season loss last fall coming against Pacific Grove.

“Losing on homecoming stings a little more,” Barsenas said. “But these kids do well under adversity. Our culture is pretty solid, although they may not understand we have three losses to teams a combined 13-2. The kids have expectations, not hope.”

A pair of time-consuming methodical drives for Pacific Grove were capped by Gideon Llantero touchdown runs, as the senior has nine touchdowns on the season. Paul Ramirez added a 30-yard field goal.

Greenfield did snap a nine-quarter scoreless drought late in the game when Hector Garcia found the end zone from a yard out

“It’s about trying to find a rhythm on offense, what works best for us, what are we good at,” Barsenas said. “I thought we played well against North Salinas and Pacific Grove. It comes down to getting back to the basics.”

North Salinas 47, Rancho San Juan 0

Concerns about looking ahead to its matchup with Pacific Grove were squashed when the Vikings produced 21 points in the first six minutes of the game.

“I was worried about us being overconfident,” North Salinas coach Ben Ceralde said. “A lot of these kids played together, live down the street from each other. You can see their campus from ours. I was pleased with how well we performed.”

Posting back-to-back shutouts for the first time in 35 years, the Vikings tuned up for their first ever meeting in Pacific Grove next Friday, as both teams are 2-0 in the Mission Division South.

“I have not really looked at a lot of film of them,” Ceralde said. “I told the boys that Pacific Grove is a well-oiled machine. If we are undisciplined, they’ll take advantage of us.”

Last year North Salinas snapped the Breakers six-game winning streak to start the season with a 50-6 decision, enroute to returning to the playoffs.

The 47 points against Rancho San Juan was a season-high for North Salinas, who blanked Greenfield 20-0 last week.

“We had a lot of good energy tonight, good communication,” Ceralde said. “We executed very well. We had a good week of practice.”

Izaiah Gonzalez accounted for three touchdowns for North Salinas, throwing a pair of touchdown passes to RJ Leota, while catching a touchdown pass from Kai Ceralde.

Freshman Dylan Reynoso rushed for three of touchdowns, while Sean Nimuan returned a fumble for six.

Stevenson 24, Gonzales 21

Battled tested doesn’t begin to describe Stevenson School’s football team.

An overtime loss in its season opener. Staring at a 26-point deficit in the second half of a Week 3 battle before getting to within a possession of potentially winning the game. Four straight road games with four straight different kickoff starts.

So when the Pirates found themselves locked in a tie in the fourth quarter Saturday against Gonzales, it paled in comparison to the preseason bumps that prepared them for this moment.

“I asked the guys after the game how they felt,” Stevenson coach Kyle Cassamas said. “Have we played four quarters of football? The answer was ‘No.’ We still have room to grow and become the best version of ourselves.”

For now, perfection remains on the table in the Pacific Coast Athletic League’s Santa Lucia Division after the Pirates made a Jacob Forste 27-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter stand up in a 24-21 win over Gonzales at Monterey Peninsula College.

“This is why we played the teams we faced in the preseason,” Cassamas said. “The moment wasn’t too big. We’re chopping wood and carrying water.”

Stevenson is one of three teams that are still undefeated in the Santa Lucia Division, joining much improved Pajaro Valley and 5-0 San Lorenzo Valley.

“I feel good at where we are currently,” said Cassamas, who took Stevenson to a league title in 2022. “Some of what we have been forced to deal with is out of our hands. These kids handle adversity well.”

Over the past four years, the Pirates are 16-2 in league play, with the two setbacks coming against programs that won titles and are now in a higher division.

“I was never worried about our confidence,” Cassamas said. “A lot of these kids played in big games for us last fall as sophomores. We’ve learned how to play together. Now we’re growing on the field.”

Reggie Bell, one of a dozen sophomores brought up last year by Cassamas, compiled nearly 200 multi-purpose yards, including an 85-yard kickoff return to open the game, adding 85 yards and a 32-yard touchdown on the ground.

The Pirates built an early 14-0 lead when Caden Olson turned his only catch from quarterback Fin Mink into an 76-yard touchdown.

“We tried to get a big hit and didn’t wrap up,” Gonzales coach Eddy Ramirez said. “You take away those two plays in the first quarter and we played a solid game. We have to get our bearings right. It’s tough to come back from a 14-point deficit.”

Adjustments from Gonzales, however, got the Spartans back in the game as Ely Cisneros rushed for three touchdowns, tying the game in the third quarter from 2 yards out.

“We had a couple of chances in the fourth quarter to take the lead,” Ramirez said. “But we turned it over on one drive and had a big penalty on the other. We ran out of running backs. We’re limping along.”

Gonzales, which is essentially playing 10 road games this year while its field is being renovated, will have a bye week next week to heal up before facing undefeated San Lorenzo Valley at Alisal High on Oct. 19.

“It was good to see this young group stick together and push the needle forward,” Cassamas said. “We were up against it tonight. Our defense stood tall once we got everything to work with some adjustments.”

Tommy Dayton compiled 14 tackles for the Pirates, while Flint Dickson finished with seven tackles and an interception. Derek Diniz forced and recovered a fumble.

Scotts Valley 28, Seaside 7

Last year’s meeting between the two perennial playoff contenders was for a Mission Division North title.

This fall it was about salvaging a season at the mid-point of the year as the defending champion Falcons scored the game’s first 25 points to keep Seaside winless on the season.

Snapping a four-game losing streak, Scotts Valley puts itself back in the divisional title chase at 1-1 in the Mission Division North, while Seaside continues to struggle for an identity at 0-5.

Dating back to last year, the Spartans have dropped seven straight and eight of their last nine games as injuries have left them with a roster of 22 players.

A bright spot all season for the Spartans continues to be Julius Escort, who returned his third kickoff for a touchdown this year, and has produced seven of the team’s nine touchdowns.

Of the five opponents Seaside — which hosts Watsonville next Friday — has faced this year, three went to the postseason last year, with two of them winning league titles.

Alisal 24, Monte Vista 14

Not only did a week off enable the Trojans to get four starters back from injuries, but it also enabled them to refocus on the start of league play.

“The most important part is we got healthy,” first year Alisal coach Francisco Estrada said. “We got our running backs back. Both were huge in pounding the ball on offense. We got two guys back, who were big on defense.”

Special teams also answered the call as Gus Matias broke up 14-14 tie in the fourth quarter with a 34-yard field, enabling the Trojans to slip past Monte Vista.

“That was huge,” Estrada said. “It was one of those decisions where we were in no-man’s land. He’s worked hard on his craft. He sunk it right through the uprights.”

A three-point lead became a 10-point cushion with 4:56 remaining when Hector Politron connected with Jordan Lopez on a 38-yard touchdown pass.

“The good thing right know is we are 1-0 in league,” Estrada said. “We told the team we’ll enjoy the victory. Now it’s on to North County. Being in league means every game is the most important game and every game is a must win.”

Politron added a 15-yard touchdown run. while Nate Perra took a jet sweep 25 yards to give Alisal a 14-8 lead with 6:04 left in the third quarter.

The Trojans collected four turnovers to stall a potent Monte Vista offense, as Javier Estrada and Alex Gomez both had interceptions, while Carlos Zamora and Efren Posadas recovered fumbles.

“I can count on my fingers how many times they ran the ball,” Estrada said. “We knew Monte Vista had some big weapons. The quarterback is really good. The receiver is at a different level. The plan was to make somebody else beat us.”

Estrada was referring to quarterback Dominic Pierini and receiver Nico Downie, who hooked up eight times for 145 yards and a score. Downie has 51 catches for over 1,000 yards through six games this year.

The 14 points was a season-low for the Mustangs, who fell to 0-2 in the Mission Division North.

Crystal Springs Union 52, Trinity 0

Starting the game with just 10 players, the Warriors finished with nine in being blanked in 8-man football.

Eli Robertson had an interception for Trinity, which slipped to 2-2 overall. The Warriors will visit Pinewood of Los Altos Hills next Friday.