MACON, Ga. -- The three-peat is complete.
What a feat.
The Dalton High School boys' soccer team polished off Allatoona 4-0 on Friday night for its third consecutive state championship. This one capped the Catamounts' first season in Class AAAAA after winning back-to-back titles in AAAA.
They will begin the 2016 season on a 65-match non-loss streak, with 64 wins and a tie. They've outscored opponents 367-31 during that streak.
The Catamounts (20-0), who are the nation's top-ranked team in both the Maxpreps rankings and the National Soccer Coaches Association of America poll, outscored their five 2015 postseason opponents 32-0.
Kobe Perez scored two goals in the win -- one in each half.
"It's unbelievable. Words can't express how I feel about this win," he said. "One state championship is a dream. There's no way I could have imagined three."
Defender Kiko Rodriguez, though, said he could imagine three.
"When I was in middle school, I told (assistant coach Jim) Wickes that we would win three," Rodriguez said.
The Buccaneers decided to play with nine players back to begin the match, perfectly content letting the dangerous Catamounts who had scored 97 goals move the ball around and possess, without creating dangerous opportunities.
"The thing is, that's how we play," Rodriguez said. "We like to move the ball around, and when you bite, we go for the kill."
In the 12th minute, Perez took a free kick that deflected off an Allatoona defender from about 25 yards away and sailed the ball into the goal for the 1-0 edge. A few minutes later, Churrui Huitanda fired in a shot from about 20 yards out on the left side.
Allatoona (16-2-3) didn't have an attempt on goal until midway through the second half, on a header by Darnell Oliver. The Buccaneers had no dangerous attempts the entire match, despite adding another player into the attack in the second half in hopes of making a comeback and cutting into the lead.
Instead, the lead just grew. Huitanda made a cross to Jose Espino that the senior put away for the three-goal edge, and then Perez ended the scoring on a penalty kick after Huitanda was pulled down in the box in the 60th minute.
Dalton outscored its opponents 101-11 during the 2015 season. The defense was on par from the previous two seasons, but the depth in a higher classification made scoring slightly tougher than the previous two state-title runs.
"Top to bottom is a lot stronger," Dalton coach Matt Cheaves said. "The top teams in 5A could compete at any level, but the mid to bottom teams are a lot better. We didn't have nearly as many mercy-rule contests as we'd had in previous seasons."
The Catamounts lose six seniors wnho didn't lose a match in their careers: Perez, Rodriguez, Espino, Eder Mora, Antonio Martinez and Javier Rodriguez.
"I'm so blessed to have coached such talented players," Cheaves said. "They had the drive to get this done, and they made it happen."
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him at twitter.com/genehenleytfp.