Decatur boys soccer loses first round shocker to Bellarmine
Published 9:15 am Wednesday, May 13, 2026
It was deja vu all over again for Decatur High School’s boys soccer as they fell in the second round of the District 3 tournament for the second straight year, losing to No. 12 Bellarmine Prep, 4-1, on May 12.
Decatur entered the game as the No. 4 seed in the tournament, with a first round bye and a winner-to-state game as their first postseason contest. But all the anticipation and excitement quickly turned to frustration and disappointment as the Gators struggled against the Lions.
“We are disappointed,” head coach Dom Dismuke said. “I don’t care anything about seeding or record, this is the playoffs. Teams show up to play. You let the seed that was far lower come out here and out-work you.”
Bellarmine rode a three goal second half performance to cruise to a victory that few had in their bracket. But on the field, Bellarmine had more energy, more fight and more will to win this game.
To start, the first 15 minutes was where the chess match started. Neither side asked too many questions and there weren’t a ton of chances. Then out of nowhere, Bellarmine sophomore Jaxson Perez sniped a shot into the top right corner for the game’s first goal, a shock to the Decatur system.
“When we get in situations like this we got to be composed. Maybe that comes down to nerves before the game, I didn’t really feel too much of it to be honest. I felt a team that was confident, ready to go. But what I did see was a team that lost its composure when we gave up the first goal,” Dismuke said.
The Gator defense responded and really held Bellarmine in check the rest of the first half. But in the attacking third, Decatur just could not do enough to score coupled with Bellarmine goalkeeper Joey Masterson’s excellence between the posts.
In the 42nd minute right out of halftime, Decatur’s Shukri Shukerov committed a foul inside the penalty area. But after deliberation with the assistant referee, it was ruled offside before the foul was committed. Five minutes later, Sukerov committed another foul and this was deemed to be inside the penalty area.
Callum Lyons converted on the penalty shot and now Decatur trailed 2-0 to Bellarmine Prep.
“What I need to see going forward is the team I saw in the regular season. A team when you give up the first goal, you don’t quit,” Dismuke said.
Lyons scored another goal thanks to a truly great buildup to take a 3-0 lead in the 62nd minute, and four minutes later, Perez scored his second goal on a 30-yard cannon blast that ripped the back of the net.
The Gators were awarded a penalty kick around the 70 minute mark and Adrian Alonso converted on what came out to be a mere consolation goal.
At that point, it was a forgone conclusion that Decatur was done for. The Gators just could not out-run the giant boulder chasing them down, which eventually crushed them.
On May 14 (after press time), Decatur played NPSL rival White River, a team that up until its loss to Timberline had been playing its best soccer of the year. In their two prior meetings this season, Decatur is 1-0-1 against the Hornets. “The first thing we need to do is look in the mirror and ask what we could have done better and improve,” Dismuke said. “We told them in the locker room, I don’t want any poor attitudes or heads dropped. It is in the past.”
That game will be played at 7:30 p.m. May 14 at Mount Tahoma High School.
