Dien Comeau has a knack for timing.

While opponents shift their focus on Santa Fe Preparatory's Sides brothers — McCall and Graham — Comeau knows how to find his place on the soccer pitch when the moment calls.

Comeau knocked in his first goal of the season on a header in a clogged penalty box that sandwiched a pair of McCall Sides goals in a 3-1 win over Portales in a District 2A-AAA boy soccer opener at Brennand Field on Friday. Santa Fe Prep improved to 3-0 overall.

Blue Griffins head coach Hersch Wilson called Comeau's contribution the highlight of the day.

"We were very excited for Dien," Wilson said. "He's a special player, and he just finds a way to be in the right place at the right time. He plays kind of a secret game."

McCall Sides' performance was no secret to anybody. He scored on a direct kick from just outside the penalty box in the 12th minute, then made it 3-0 in the 57th with his seventh goal of the season.

Wilson was equally pleased with the defensive backfield of Brian Lewis, Andrew Brown, Sam Cicci, Kevin Lowe and Warren Peterson, which kept the Rams off the scoreboard until a brief hiccup in the 75th minute.

That allowed Seth Christian to score for 3-1.

"Portales could not develop any kind of an attack," Wilson said. "We were winning balls in the air and even through balls. There's a lot of speed out back."

DESERT ACADEMY 5, SOUTH VALLEY ACADEMY 3

The Wildcats used the entire pitch to reach a semifinal of the Desert Academy Invitational at Alto Park.

"We were switching the field, opening up a lot of opportunities," said Rob Lochner, Desert Academy head coach.

The Wildcats amassed 34 shots, scoring in the 5th, 25th and 40th minutes of the first half for a 3-1 advantage.

Alex Kokesh got a head on Nick Gerber's free kick for 1-0. Kokesh untied a 1-1 knot, scoring from outside the 18. Forrest Sanchez doubled the advantage off a double assist from Kokesh and Ram Rattan-Khalsa.

Toby Berger volleyed Sudi Torres' corner kick and Rattan-Khalsa rebounded his own miss to widen the gap to 5-1.

Diego Rivaz scored twice inside 60 seconds for the Dragons for the final margin.

Alden Kokesh recorded five saves for the Wildcats (2-1), who face East Mountain at noon today at De Vargas Middle School in one semifinal. In the other, Moreno Valley meets Monte del Sol at noon at Salvador Perez. The championship is set for 4:30 p.m. at Salvador Perez.

Moreno Valley blanked the Desert Academy junior varsity 3-0 Friday, dropping the Wildcats to 0-3. Desert Academy JV was a late replacement for the Santa Fe Waldorf varsity.

MONTE DEL SOL 3, GALLUP CATHOLIC 0

The Dragons' advantage was in numbers, and they used it to their advantage in the opening round of the Desert Academy Invitational.

Facing a Panthers side that had no bench, Monte del Sol used its roster liberally. It helped that Matt McChesney scored on a direct kick in the 15th minute, and Shalto Dasher added another goal in the 30th.

"I think everybody played on the roster, even some eighth-graders that mostly will not see a lot of playing time," Dragons head coach Mazatl Galindo said. "It gave us a chance of getting these players a little bit of experience. And in all fairness, we were trying to be a little more even with Gallup Catholic because they were playing their hearts out. I admire the sportsmanship they showed."

Skye Dasher, brother to Shalto, added the final goal just before the half.

Monte del Sol plays Moreno Valley today at noon in a semifinal.