Valencia’s Cesar Dominguez, Sean Kim and Josh Ferguson stood near the site of a soon-to-be free kick in the 27th minute Friday at Saugus.
Kim and Ferguson sprinted past the ball before Dominguez attempted a lateral pass.
The kick hit the referee.
Despite everything that went wrong in the first half — namely, numerous missed scoring chances — the Vikings kept streaking toward the Saugus net in the final 40 minutes, finally finishing not once, not twice, not three times.
Valencia scored all four of its goals after the break in a 4-0 win over the Centurions, solidifying the Vikings as the Foothill League’s frontrunner.
“We had them on their heels in the first half, too. It’s just the ball wasn’t hitting the back of the net,” said Valencia coach Tony Scalercio, whose team is 11-2-3 overall, 4-0-0 in league. “I was afraid that if we kept them in the game long enough, they’d get a break and get in behind us and score a goal.
“So at halftime, I really laid into the boys — pretty darn hard.”
Message received.
Tyler Traber scored in the 47th minute, lacing a line drive that Saugus’ Tanner Brown, standing along the goal line, swung his foot at but could only kick into the top of the net.
Then, 20 minutes later, the floodgates opened.
Dominguez swooped in to take the ball from a Saugus player just over midfield. Then he hurtled down the sideline, deploying consecutive step-over moves and kicking the ball into the net for a 2-0 lead.
“It’s fantastic,” Dominguez said of the win. “We’re going to rest this weekend, train hard Monday, and we’re going to give it everything we have Tuesday against Hart.”
Friday, Ferguson and Brennon Book each found the net to set the final score.
It was the second time in league play Valencia has had four different players score in a game.
It was also the second time two Foothill League contenders have faced off only for one to blowout the other.
Last time, it was Saugus (9-5-3, 3-1-0) routing Hart, 4-1, in the league opener. That win supplied buzz for Friday’s match, the Cents hoping to take a giant step toward their first Foothill title since 2008 by toppling the defending league champs.
“We came out flat and played that way for a good portion of the game,” said Saugus coach Seth Groller.
