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For one night, at least, the Walter Johnson boys soccer team could score anywhere, anyhow.

Felipe Atunes scored twice, Mario Tafur struck on a ferocious volley from a sharp angle, and 10th-seeded Walter Johnson scored four goals after halftime to romp to a stylish 6-1 victory at No. 7 Richard Montgomery in Saturday's Class 4A West Region first-round match.

Nicolas Castro struck on a 35-yard free kick in the second half and added two corner-kick assists in the first to help the Wildcats (8-6-0) back from an early 1-0 deficit. Trevor Wilson headed home one of Castro's corner kicks before Michael Tillman side-footed in the other, after Fredis Mata redirected it on a clever backheel.

Tafur and Castro then scored before Felipe Atunes scored twice in 8 minutes to a fire warning shot in the direction of No. 2 Northwest, the Wildcats' quarterfinal opponents Tuesday.

"They're going to come out hard regardless," coach Mike Williams said of Northwest, which won the regular season 4A West Division crown at the Wildcats' expense. "I hope it does send a message to them that ‘Hey, we're coming to play.' But I know they'll be ready, too."

Richard Montgomery (5-7-2) took the lead 9 minutes in on its own corner-kick goal, when Robert Strand headed Alden Green's inswinging cross past an outstretched Liam Collins. But Walter Johnson had bossed the match even in those early stages. The Wildcats would outshoot the Rockets, 19-4, force seven saves out of keeper Graham Kinderman and eventually break through. Over and over.

Wilson tied it in the 29th minute with a thunderous header off Castro's inswinging corner. Then, 3 minutes before halftime on another corner, Castro found Mata on a near post run.

Mata flicked the ball low across the box with the back of his heel, and as it squeezed past defenders and attackers, Tillman reached it and thumped it into an empty net.

"I just played it [to Mata] because this turf is slippery," Castro said. "It was a smart play from him."

Tafur one-upped even that stylish goal shortly after halftime, reaching a ball on the right of the penalty area and unleashing a sublime, dipping half volley that curled over the reach of Kinderman and under the bar.

"It was just one of those moments when your instincts were telling you to shoot it," Tafur said. "It gave us time to breathe at 3-1."

Castro then struck on free kick from the same side that found its way to goal on a similar path under the crossbar. Atunes scored his first in the 60th minute by sending in his own rebound, then tucked in his second from inside the box to make it 6-1 in the 68th.

It was worse than Richard Montgomery deserved for a season in which its record betrayed the squad's serious improvement.

"I have some great seniors that have been with me through middle school and through high school," Rockets coach Chamy Wijernate said. "It's tough. I didn't want them to go out like that."