Quick hits on boys soccer

Here’s a smattering of boys soccer talking points as the 2A and 3A playoffs loom on next week’s horizon:

— First of all, kudos to the Delta Rabbits for securing their second Region 8 championship in as many seasons.
The Rabbits were written off by many people after enduring a 2-6 start in the preseason, but they’ve since bounced back to post an unblemished 6-0 record in league play, including an impressive 6-0 thrashing over Juan Diego Wednesday to clinch the outright region championship.
In hindsight, the teams that beat Delta at the beginning of the season ‘ Dixie, Hurricane, Judge, Wasatch, Lehi and Hunter ‘ have all had respectable seasons, and it’s not impossible to envision the Rabbits making another deep run at this year’s wide-open 3A tournament.
Talented stars Kurt Nielson (14 goals) and Curtis Eliason (11 goals) have led the way offensively for Delta, and the Rabbits only allowed four goals in six league contests.

— From the where-in-the-world-did-that-come-from? files, we present to you ALA’s 5-0 thrashing over top-ranked St. Joseph on Wednesday. Wow, just wow. The Eagles showed everyone they were for real in 2A when they beat Rowland Hall, last year’s 2A runner-up, a few weeks ago, but St. Jo subsequently beat them at home and then Rowland Hall upended them last Monday.
I haven’t had a chance to check in with St. Joseph coach Derek Tate about what happened, so I’m purely speculating when I say that I suppose there’s a chance Tate opted to rest his varsity players because his squad has endured an insane amount of injuries this season.
Still, it’s a stunning result, and it helps set up what should be a very intriguing 2A tournament. (Yes, if you’re wondering, I am geeked out about the 2A tournament! Get over it.)

— I wanted to get this in the paper a few weeks ago when I wrote a feature about Viewmont star midfielder Colton Cook, but I just couldn’t fit it in (among many other things I wanted to write, as it turned out).
But it’s worth noting that for all the talk about how good Viewmont has been offensively during Region 1 play, people often lose sight of how solid the Vikes have been at the back. Center back Tyson Matern is excellent, goalkeeper Josh Nordfelt is steady and reliable, and Viewmont’s defense as a unit has kept its opponents from scoring.
People ask me all the time about Viewmont and whether I think they’re legit, and I believe that the Vikings are the real deal. They have the players from top to bottom, they have the system, they have the coaching and they have really good team chemistry.
The two top seeds from Region 1 cross over with Region 2 in the quarterfinals ‘ like they did in 2006 when second-seeded Alta beat top-seeded Davis and top-seeded Brighton beat second-seeded Layton. Accordingly, it doesn’t take Columbo to figure out that the quarterfinal game of Region 2 No. 2 at Region 1 No. 1.

— Lastly, in case you’re wondering, Alta’s showdown at Brighton was postponed a day because of a gas leak ‘ yes, a gas leak ‘ at Alta High Tuesday morning. Now, you say to yourself, ‘Wait a minute, the leak’s at Alta and the game’s at Brighton, so who cares?’
Good point, except that school officials wouldn’t let ‘ nor should they have ‘ Alta’s soccer team to get its equipment from inside the building, nor would they allow a bus to be sent to the school.