The Capital boys soccer team fell short in a back-and-forth District 3 3A Tournament first-round matchup with Bellarmine, losing 3-2 Saturday at home following a lengthy penalty shootout.
Bellarmine scored first in the 27th minute to lead 1-0 at halftime. But the Cougars roared back early in the second half, as Jaden Annan’s goal in the 48th minute knotted the score before he took the lead in the 59th minute on his second goal of the day.
Capital sat in the driver’s seat with a 2-1 lead until the 72nd minute, when Bellarmine delivered the equalizer to send the match to overtime. Overtime was not enough, and the game came down to a penalty shootout, which went Bellarmine’s way as the Lions converted seven PKs to Capital’s six.
“We didn’t start the game the way we wanted to, and we found ourselves in a hole at halftime. However, I appreciated that the boys didn’t put their heads down when trailing at half,” Capital head coach Jeremy Richtmyre said. “Instead, they came out on the front foot in the second half. We just were unable to stop their forward in key moments this game. He fought and scrapped hard to get the first goal and then the equalizer later.”
Capital (13-4-2) has now lost three of its last four games after starting the season 12-1-2. The Cougars now need to win two games at districts to make the state tournament for the first time in 10 years. Capital will face the loser of Tuesday’s quarterfinal matchup between No. 10 Timberline and No. 2 Gig Harbor on Thursday at Roy Anderson Field in Gig Harbor.
“The boys have accomplished a lot this season. We will build on this and be stronger next week for round two,” Richtmyre said. “The boys aren’t done yet.”
