BERLIN- Stephen Decatur’s boys’ varsity soccer team lost a heartbreaker this week, falling to Kent Island in a Bayside Conference championship game decided by penalty kicks, but bigger goals still remain on the team’s radar.
The Seahawks went unbeaten during the regular season, the only blemish on their schedule a 1-1 tie with Bennett back on October 5. With its 10-0-1 record, Decatur earned the Bayside South champion and the right to face Bayside North champion Kent Island in Snow Hill on Tuesday for the conference championship. Incidentally, the Seahawks beat the Buccaneers last Wednesday in a battle of unbeaten with a rematch already on the schedule less than a week away.
On Tuesday, however, Kent Island earned a measure of revenge, beating Decatur on penalty kicks after two knockdown, drag out halves in regulation and two overtime periods. Decatur got on the board shortly before the half to take a 1-0 lead into intermission. The Seahawks held Kent Island scoreless for the entire 40-minute first half and 16 minutes of the second before the Buccaneers finally broke through with just over 24 minutes left in the game.
After finally breaking the ice against the staunch Decatur defense, Kent Island scored again about two minutes later to take a 2-1 lead. With just over 20 minutes left, Decatur evened the score at 2-2, but with goals suddenly coming quickly, no one expected it would be the last score for a very long time.
The teams were tied at 2-2 at the end of regulation and the score remained the same through two white-knuckle overtime periods with both teams having opportunities to end it. In the end, it came down to penalty kicks and Kent Island outlasted the Seahawks to claim the Bayside Conference championship.
The conference title loss and the end of an unbeaten season was certainly deflating for the Seahawks, but loftier goals remain right in front of them. Decatur is the top seed in the state Class 3A-East Section II bracket and a clear path to a regional title and potential state championship are laid out in front of them. The Seahawks earned a first-round bye and will face either Hammond or Atholton in the second round at home next Tuesday.