"We all kind of trust Colton because he's always been our playmaker on all the (club) teams that we've played on," said central defender Tyson Matern. "I think he's comfortable when he's comfortable with the people around him. We all just kind of feed off him, and I think that's given him a lot of success this year.

"And he's also comfortable with the new style of play that he's playing because that's what he's been taught in club ball."

From top to bottom Viewmont's team has talented players everywhere, but there's no question that Cook is at the heart of everything.

In trying to compliment his talented midfielder, Wigham told him he was like a stoker, the person who fed coal in old-style trains to keep them running. However, Cook just looked at him with a blank expression.

"He didn't have a clue what a stoker was," smiled Wigham. "I had to explain to him how the old trains worked, what makes them go. We're not a one-man show, but he's definitely the one that makes us go. When he dominates in midfield, we're pretty tough."

At the halfway point of Region 1, Viewmont has already scored more goals (30) in nine games than it managed in all of its games last season (16). Add to that the fact that Viewmont has been dominating opponents, and you could hardly blame Cook and Co. for feeling invincible.

But they don't.

Cook pointed out he won't overlook Viewmont's opponent today, Northridge, and that the Vikes have really been taking things "one game at a time."

That's how Cook plans to cap his prep career.

The senior will travel with his club team, Rush, to a tournament in Hawaii this summer, but his soccer career is much more uncertain after that because he plans to serve a two-year LDS mission.

Cook, who turns 19 in August, was in contact with a PAC-10 school that seemed interested until they found out about the mission.

"At first, they were like, 'Oh, that's cool, just go on a mission for a year and then we'll see.' And I'm like, 'That's not how it works.'

"They were like, 'You could try to walk-on in two years,' but it was kind of trying to cushion the blow of, 'Yeah, we'll see you later.'"

All in all, though, Cook said he's willing to make the sacrifice, even if he finds himself playing the what-if game later on.

"Some people are bummed, (but) I'm not," he said.