PALO ALTO >> In soccer, a team can look great for a half.

But it must play two, and often, they both have to be good for a team to come out on top. Palo Alto found that out the hard way against visiting Mountain View on Wednesday.

The Vikings, despite not scoring, controlled the run of play in the first 40 minutes, remaining in a scoreless tie with the visiting Spartans deep into the second half.

But once Mountain View got on the scoreboard, things started to snowball. Aidan Wong broke the ice with a goal in the 60th minute, and the Spartans dominated the final quarter of play to cruise to a 4-0 win.

“Palo Alto was really good tonight,” Mountain View coach Jim McGuirk said. “To be honest, for 60 minutes, they were better than us, plain and simple. But our defense did a really nice job holding the score at 0-0, and everything changed once we scored that goal.”

Twelve minutes later, the Spartans (6-0-2) scored again when Caddell Heatley was fouled within the 18-yard box and converted the ensuing penalty kick.

Then in the 75th minute, Akshay Chugh took advantage of a misplay by the Palo Alto backline to convert a third.

In stoppage time, Cyrus Shafie finished scoring with an aerial strike that evaded the Palo Alto keeper.

“It was a good game for 60 minutes. And then mentally, we just went home,” first-year Vikings coach Luiz Lodino said.

Palo Alto (6-1-2) entered Wednesday’s match undefeated after a strong start to the season that included nonleague shutout wins over Woodside, Irvington, Santa Teresa, Monta Vista and Westmont. The Vikings had allowed just three goals all season and compiled six clean sheets in eight games.

But this was a different test, and the Vikings didn’t pass it this time. Mountain View, a perennial Bay Area power and the No. 2 team in the Bay Area News Group top 10, was a good measuring stick for Palo Alto.

The verdict? The No. 10 Vikings, who entered the rankings for the first time this week, still have a ways to go.

“We’ve been doing so well. This is because we were capitalizing,” Lodino said. “We didn’t let adversity take us down. Of course, this is the first time we started behind. There’s a lot of lessons. … We didn’t bounce back from a setback and let that adversity make us better.”

For Mountain View, it was a good chapter in what McGuirk hopes is the start of yet another great season.

“Everyone wants to beat us, and I think they thought they had us,” McGuirk said. “And as soon as that (first) ball went in, you could see that deflate them a little bit. It changed everything, for sure.”

Bellarmine 2, Sacred Heart Cathedral 0 >> Bellarmine managed a shutout of SHC up in San Francisco on Wednesday. Seniors Gregory Gutierrez and Aiden Dempsey scored for the Bells, with senior Thomas Dumont and junior Jason Gore picking up assists. Junior goalie Drew McClelland earned a shutout win.

Branham 3, Willow Glen 2 >> Willow Glen endured a close road loss to Branham in its second league game of the season. Captain Lawson Mettee scored on a set piece for the Rams, assisted by Kris Duran. Jason Gonzalez also scored, converting a penalty kick.

Moreau Catholic 4, Mission San Jose 0 >> Moreau earned a shutout win over MSJ thanks to goalkeeper Landon Nolasco, who secured a clean sheet by blocking a penalty kick.

Menlo School 5, Woodside Priory 0 >> Menlo opened its West Bay Athletic League campaign with a win at the Priory. Junior Kieran Vazquez scored first for Menlo, assisted by Charlie Allard, who finished with two helpers. Sophomore Rafe Weiden scored once in each half. Seniors Gabriel Gil and Cartel Techel each had a goal and an assist. Junior Dylan O’Malley took home a clean sheet, and Stevie Halprin pitched in an assist for the Knights.

St. Francis 3, Serra 2 >> St. Francis picked up a win in WCAL play thanks to a hat trick by Michael Scavotto.

Boys basketball

Acalanes 58, Ygnacio Valley 55 >> Gavin Dodge’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer propelled the Dons past Ygnacio Valley on the road. Acalanes made 13 3s as a team to top YV. Brady Quinn led all scorers with 18 points for Acalanes, and Dodge added 13.

Milpitas 56, Mountain View 49 >> Milpitas earned a close win down the stretch thanks to some late-game execution. Isaac Sisay led the Trojans with 16 points, and Jacob Wrencher stuffed the stat sheet with 8 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists. Dylan Nguyen went 5 of 6 from the free-throw line to help Milpitas put the victory on ice. Jaden Minor scored more than half the Spartans’ points (27).

Bellarmine 55, St. Francis 52 >> Bellarmine earned a close road win over St. Francis to open WCAL play on Tuesday night. JJ Barton led the way for the Bells with 13 points and seven assists, while Ethan Lyles added eight points and the go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:30 to go.

Girls basketball

Northgate 49, Benicia 34 >> Northgate pulled off a win at Benicia thanks in large part to Sam Myhr’s 17 points and seven rebounds. Jada Mayse added 10 points for the Broncos, and Maddison Sardelich contributed seven points to accompany a Herculean effort of 19 rebounds.

San Leandro 40, Hayward 28 >> San Leandro picked up a win over Hayward on Tuesday thanks to some stifling defense and balanced scoring. Ravyn Martin led the way for San Leandro with 18 points, 15 rebounds, 3 steals and 3 blocks. Alana Daly chipped in seven points, and Ava Musgrave added six.

Football

Monte Vista >> Johnny Millard is stepping down as Monte Vista’s coach after leading the Danville program for three seasons, he announced Wednesday on X.

“This decision was not easy,” Millard wrote, “as my time with this program has truly been one of the most rewarding and meaningful experiences of my life. … My decision comes from the need to focus more on my growing family, who have been my rock and my greatest source of joy.”

Monte Vista was 11-20 under Millard. The Mustangs finished 5-5 in the regular season last fall before losing an overtime thriller to Bishop O’Dowd 31-28 in the first round of the NCS Division II playoffs.

Bay Area News Group’s Darren Sabedra contributed to this report.