SOUTHERN SECTION FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS : Third Title in Row Perfect End for Irvine : Division IV: Second-seeded Vaqueros excel in every facet of game to rout Canyon Springs, 41-14.

COSTA MESA —  Irvine High School’s place in history is secure.

Thirty years after Brea-Olinda won three consecutive Southern Section championships, the Vaqueros joined an elite group with an effort that was worthy of the blowout witnessed by 3,500 Saturday at Orange Coast College.

Second-seeded Irvine excelled in every facet of its game and scored a 41-14 victory over top-seeded Moreno Valley Canyon Springs.

After a 30-year dry spell, the Vaqueros and Los Alamitos each won their third consecutive titles on the same night.

Irvine’s victory was complete in every way. With 2 minutes 24 seconds left in the third quarter, Irvine’s second-team offense went on to the field. The defensive starters, too, were finished for the night, with Irvine leading, 41-0.

Irvine Coach Terry Henigan had nothing but praise for his team.

“I was impressed,” said Henigan, who directed a team that lost 19 starters to graduation but still managed to win it all. “That’s the best we’ve played this year.

“Usually when teams win in high school, there are two reasons, I think: Great talent--and it goes in cycles--we’re in a good cycle, we’re in a hot streak. The other thing is coaches that have been together. We’ve been together about five years now. We don’t coach coaches anymore; we’re on the same wavelength.

And they successfully translate their wishes to their players, who executed to near perfection.

The starting defense limited the Cougar offense to 79 yards rushing, a 2.3 yards-per-carry average. Canyon Springs rushed for more than 3,900 yards this year and averaged seven yards per carry. Although the field was slippery, it had no effect on Irvine.

“We were scared of their speed,” said Chuck Gates, who recovered a fumble and intercepted a pass that led to two touchdowns in the first half. “We couldn’t let them get outside. If we got into a track meet, we’d lose. Coach Henigan kept telling us, this is football, not a track meet.”

George Linares and Jay Wojtkiewicz and Co. manhandled the Canyon Springs offense. And the offensive line did the same to the Cougar defense.

Tony Mathis showed no ill effects of a sprained ankle suffered in a semifinal victory over Glendora. He rushed 13 times for 107 yards and set the tone with his 48-yard score on Irvine’s second offensive play.

Irvine had tremendous field position in the first half, its worst being its own 47, to put the game away. And the Vaqueros knew how to finish when given the opportunity.

Mathis’ first score was set up by Geoff Noisy’s 19-yard punt return.

Dave Cook recovered quarterback Ryan Roques’ fumble at the Cougar 20, and Mathis scored three plays later from the five.

Gates recovered another of Roques’ fumbles at the Cougar 41. A play later, Phelps completed his first pass--after six incompletions--and the four-yard slant to Tommy Louie went 39 yards to make it 21-0.

Two plays later, Gates intercepted a Roques pass at the Canyon Springs 36. Mathis went 19 and Phelps overthrew Noisy in the end zone, but the receiver was able to leap high enough to pull it down for a five-yard scoring pass.

Phelps, who finished five of 13 for 150 yards and an interception, threw a 62-yard scoring pass to Sean Clark on the second play of the second half--giving him a school-record 25 for the season--and added a 27-yard scoring strike to Noisy with 3:36 left.

Louie missed the point after, ending his streak of 55 consecutive conversions.

It was Irvine’s only failure of the night.