BOUNTIFUL — Bountiful's boys soccer team is humming along the route that leads to Region 5 play.
The top-ranked Braves of Class 4A knocked off their third-straight 5A opponent Wednesday afternoon, which becomes much more impressive when you realize the teams they're beating aren't exactly pushovers.
Rather, the names of the three schools read more like a who's who list of dominant prep soccer teams in Utah.
Davis. Brighton. And now Viewmont.
All three were ranked when they faced Bountiful, and all three departed with defeats.
Viewmont, the No. 1 team in 5A, became the latest victim. Bountiful possessed the ball better than it had in previous wins, and its defense was solid — as usual — en route to a convincing 2-0 victory over its City of Bountiful neighbor.
"We were kind of unorganized a little bit, but we did the job," said senior captain Nick Martin, who helps anchor the defense. "It feels good to actually beat our rivals."
Bountiful will conclude its preseason slate against Taylorsville on Friday before getting into Region 5 action next week.
Possessing the ball was a challenge at times during wins over Davis and Brighton, but the Braves did a much better job of maintaining it Wednesday. That kept Viewmont frustrated and it eventually led to a Bountiful goal in each half.
"We had longer durations of possession and (more) tactical possession than in the other games we've had so far," said coach Lou Plank. "So, yeah, we're gettin' there. We're getting better."
Striker Mike Alexander scored his fourth goal of the preseason midway through the first half on a fabulous chip over Viewmont's onrushing 'keeper. Bountiful maintained relative control from there, though it didn't kill the game off until Jamie Rigby scored in the 72nd minute.
At the other end, Bountiful's defense was imperious. Martin and varsity newcomer Peter Barnett have quickly formed a solid partnership in the middle of the backline, which was on display Wednesday. Fullbacks Ryan Faber and Jim Allred also played well.
Afterward, Plank heaped praise on Barnett.
"The boy's come to play," he said. "He's just done everything right. He's got it all. He is the complete center back."
As good as Bountiful felt after beating its rival, things were starkly different for Viewmont. Coach Casey Layton was extremely disappointed with his team.
"They were horrible," he said. "It's the worst I've ever seen our squad play. Ever. Period. From the start, I don't know what the deal was. I think it was pretty blatant in the first two minutes that we didn't show up."
In other nonregion boys soccer games Wednesday:
CANYON VIEW 10, BEAVER 1:Casey Larson scored an amazing six goals to lead Canyon View over Beaver.
GRANTSVILLE 7, MILLARD 2:Russell Goodman and Galana Eshete each had a hat trick to lead Grantsville over Millard.
HUNTER 7, BEN LOMOND 1:Henry Lopez notched a hat trick of goals and teammate Dennis Sellis notched a hat trick of assists as Hunter won its third-straight match. Franchelli Albonoz added two goals, and Jessie Martinez and Jordan Goodman each added a goal.
ROY 2, WEBER 0:John Davis and Anthony Brown each had a goal to lead Roy over Weber. Jake Petersen got the shutout in goal for the Royals.
LONE PEAK 1, COPPER HILLS 0:Nate Fonbuena scored in the first half as the Knights collected the nonregion win. Brian Hale recorded the shutout.
TIMPANOGOS 4, DIXIE 1: Sophomore Parker Brown had a hat-trick to lead Timpanogos over Dixie.
WATERFORD 2, BEAR RIVER 2: Bear River came from behind when Derek Miller scored with under one minute remaining to get the tie at Waterford.
E-mail: drasmussen@desnews.com