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Highland • The Viewmont boys soccer team scored twice in the final 15 minutes of a toe-to-toe battle at Lone Peak to beat the Knights 2-0 in preseason action Tuesday afternoon.

Lone Peak dominated ball possession in the first half and outshot the Vikings 7-2 but failed to find the net.

That proved costly as the squads played much more evenly after the break. However, it wasn't until the 69th minute that junior Preston Pitt hit the target for the visitors.

"I saw the keeper was coming out and I just played the ball over the top of him," Pitt said. "It was a huge relief for us. Once we score our first goal our team clicks a lot more, and you could see that today."

Although the Knights continued to press to try to get the equalizer, Viewmont did in fact move the ball around better and kept it longer after the score.

Senior Marshall Johnson is a team captain and worked hard throughout the game to direct the ball for his team and to give leadership to his fellow Vikings.

Seven minutes after the first goal, Johnson found the ball at his feet in a crowd in front of the net and he sent a highlight-reel shot just under the crossbar to add an insurance goal for the victors.

"It doesn't get any prettier than that," said Viewmont head coach Spencer Keddington.

"I'd call it a one-hit wonder," Johnson said with a smile. He isn't the team's big gun, but he has contributed other goals in the past.

He was omnipresent throughout the flow of the contest though.

"As a captain, I try to uplift my teammates," he said. "We work hard in practice and I try to bring that intensity to the game and to encourage everyone to give their best."

Johnson added that he benefited from the team's improved passing in the second half.

"I was just in the right place at the right time," he said. "I hit it over the goalie's head and it went in."

The two Viking scorers share more than the same jersey – they're first cousins who live next door to each other, but they've only played soccer together in high school. Johnson's younger brother, sophomore Kymble, is also on the squad. —

Storylines

After a slow start, defending 5A state champion Viewmont (3-0) scored twice late in the second period to beat Lone Peak (3-1) on the road.

This game was a rematch of one of last year's semifinals. The teams tied in regulation and the Vikings eventually won in a shootout.

Lone Peak midfielder Kade Jorgensen gave an outstanding effort for the home team.