And for the Mountain View Thunder, it was a most unsatisfying outcome.

Mountain View’s state quarterfinal match at Sparks Stadium on Friday was an exercise in frustration as the Thunder struggled to find their footing, and then saw one strong individual effort knock them out of the Class 4A state tournament.

Justin Veltung’s quality goal with 3:53 left in the match lifted the Puyallup Vikings to a 1-0 win and into the state semifinals. Mountain View saw its season end on a night the Thunder never found their game.

Though the worn carpet surface at Sparks Stadium was somewhat like the surface at McKenzie Stadium, the Thunder never seemed comfortable.

The skilled five-man midfield rarely had possession, and was unable to create either buildup attacks or quick-strike runs. Puyallup proved bigger, and faster, and the Vikings were aggressive to the ball. As a result, the Thunder mostly played one-touch balls for the forwards to chase.

And that surprised Mountain View coach Troy Sletten.

“In terms of not settling the ball and playing the way we played all year, I would not have expected it,” Sletten said. “But (the Vikings) did a good job of being disruptive. They were quick to the ball, and they were physical.”

The scoring play started with a long ball out of the back that sent the speedy Veltung up the right sideline with Mountain View’s James Partee shadowing him. Veltung was able to create a bit of space near the corner of the 18-yard box. The Viking junior feinted to his right, then went left and drove a low shot beyond the reach of Mountain View goalkeeper Kyle Humphrey.

“I just thought I would use my speed and get down the line, and either it’ll be one on one, or he’ll foul me,” Veltung said. “I just got that juke to the right and the push to the left and it was open."

“You win some, you lose some,” Partee said. “He’s a quick player, and he seemed like a technical guy.

“He just cut (the ball) back behind me and I lost my footing,” Partee added. “He caught me off guard and shot it in.”

Both coaches credited Veltung for making a play, and scoring a high-end goal in a high-stakes match.

“Partee is a phenomenal player, but Justin beat him and beat him big there,” Puyallup coach Mike White said.

“Great finish. He ripped the ball,” Sletten said.

The goal was the kind of quick attack that figured to work best on an old, hard, fast surface that made the ball bounce high and skip quickly away from players, making the possession game that has carried Mountain View this season difficult.

Mountain View’s only possible scoring chances came on long balls out of the back. In the 57th minute, Braden Berriman and Javier Macias broke loose on a semi-breakaway, but the Puyallup defense recovered before a true shot developed. In the 64th minute, Berriman had an opportunity from about 12 yards, but his running chip shot was off target.

Other than that, not much happened for the Thunder. The Vikings were bigger and more assertive to the ball, and while they too struggled to maintain possession, their aggressiveness pushed Mountain View off its game.

“It’s really hard to get a touch on this field,” said forward Trevor Tangen, one of 12 Mountain View seniors. “Our team thrives on technical work, so it’s really hard to get our game going on fields like this.”

And, it was a hard way to end a successful season.

“It’s kind of heartbreaking,” Tangen said.