Mount Hebron scored four goals in the opening half and handed Glenelg its first loss of the season, 6-1, in Ellicott City.

“They’re learning and they’re listening, and they’re clearly putting that into practice on the field because they scored enough tonight to prove that point,” Deppen said.

Iva Damyanova started the Vikings’ first-half frenzy in the 14th minute with a strike from outside the penalty box that sailed over the goalkeeper’s head and into the back of the net.

No. 5 Mount Hebron then used its offensive speed to repeatedly get behind the defense. Maria Brogno latched onto a long pass from Ellie Fiedler and doubled the Vikings’ advantage in the 22nd minute.

“In the first couple of minutes, we saw that their back line was just going to let those direct balls go through, so I think that’s where we really exploited it,” Brogno said. “If we can keep capitalizing on those direct balls through the back line, like, we’re fast, we’re strong, we have the talent, we just got to finish them.”

Brogno found herself in behind the Gladiators’ defense again three minutes later and squared a pass to Ava Skaggs, who finished into an open net; Olivia Hoover then raced through and scored to give Mount Hebron a 4-0 lead at halftime. Brogno and the Vikings continued their scoring spree early in the second half — the junior drove at the net and smashed her second strike past the goalkeeper at the near post.

Even when No. 6 Glenelg (6-1-1) found the back of the net against a pesky Mount Hebron defense off a header by Aly Zulu in the 53rd minute, the Vikings immediately responded. Skaggs chased down Mount Hebron’s long pass from the ensuing kickoff and recorded her brace via a deflection to restore the Vikings’ five-goal advantage seconds later.

Mount Hebron (8-1) has won eight consecutive games, including three in four days this week, since narrowly dropping its season opener against the nationally ranked McDonogh School, 2-1. Deppen said the Vikings’ performance against the Owings Mills powerhouse gave them confidence, which has grown with each win since — especially Friday’s comprehensive victory.

“One of our goals this season was to rack up more goals and have higher-scoring games,” captain Ainsley Wilson said. “So to see that on paper and on the scoreboard is super rewarding, and it’s really helping us stay together.”