BOYS SOCCER: Bells Top Serra 3-0 in Round No. 1

The Score: Bellarmine 3, Serra 0.

The Star: Bellarmine College Prep found its hero in senior Nathan Shekita, who scored twice in the second half – once on a penalty kick and the other on a free kick – to send visiting Serra to the West Catholic Athletic League defeat.

The Turning Point: Serra never really got a consistent offensive rhythm going in either half. A hand-ball ruling within the goal box led to Shekita’s score on a penalty kick midway through the second half. The Padres simply couldn’t bounce back from the deficit. 

The Quote: “Offensive rhythm? I don’t think we had a shot on goal in the second half. So we gotta fix that.” – Padres head coach Jeff Panos, after his squad’s shutout loss to rival Bellarmine.

What’s Next? Panos wasn’t kidding when he said “no rest for the weary.” The Padres face tough St. Francis in Mountain View on Wednesday at 3:15 p.m. The Lancers toppled Serra 3-1 earlier this season.

The Bottom Line: Serra was forced on the defensive early but was able to withstand Bellarmine’s first-half attacks. But after the Bells’ penalty-kick score, the Padres lost their composure in a contact-riddled second half, rendering them unable to amount any significant offense.

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The Serra High soccer team might have entered Saturday morning’s match against rival Bellarmine as the defending West Catholic Athletic League champs, but the mighty Bells proved that they are once again the team to beat with a 3-0 league win over visiting Serra.

After fighting Bellarmine to a standstill in the first half, the Padres allowed three goals in a contact-riddled second period. Defensive breakdowns deep in Serra territory and the inability to muster any significant offense led to Bellarmine’s shutout win.

“It’s a real physical rivalry, especially after last year,” Serra head coach Jeff Panos said. “We were the team that ended their 18-year league title run … but regardless of our success last year, they’re still the team to beat.”

Serra withstood Bellarmine’s constant barrage in the first half, but a hand-ball call against the Padres inside their goal box seemingly took the wind out of the visitors’ sails in the second. Bellarmine’s Nathan Shekita booted the penalty kick perfectly for the Bellarmine score and eventual win.

“I feel like we came out and played well in the first half,” Serra keeper Alex Trulio said. “In the second half, after we had a goal go in on the PK, that was pretty much it. “After we went down a goal, we kind of lost our mentality.”

As time wound down, things only got worse for the Padres as Shekita notched a second goal off a free kick and Bellarmine’s Nick Butler in putted his own score at the finish. 

“We definitely didn’t have the ability to get back into it after that tough penalty kick. So that was a very key moment in the game,” Panos said. “The first two weren’t Alex’s fault. The PK was well taken and the free kick was extremely well taken. We haven’t seen a goal like that in a while. So credit to them for making the most of their opportunities. Once they have a lead, they’re very difficult to get back on top of.”

Though Serra bested Bellarmine three out of four times last season, Bells coach Patrick Lowney said he didn’t remind his players of last year’s losses.

“We knew they had a real strong team last year, it was a peaking year for them,” Lowney said. “We felt if we just came out and did what we needed to do, things would go well – usually it does. But they’re a good squad – similar to last year.”

Some on the Bellarmine bench however came into Saturday’s match seeking revenge.

“Last year we had four tough games against them, and they were all close,” Shekita said. “So it’s good to come back this year and show them who Bellarmine really is.”

Scoring wasn’t all that happened in the emotionally-charged second half. Bellarmine’s Butler momentarily left the game bleeding from his nose after colliding with Serra keeper Trulio.

“I was late getting (to the ball),” Trulio said. “So instead of the ball I got his head.”

Also, a total of three yellow cards were administered in the second half. Bellarmine coach Lowney was carded from the sidelines while the Bells’ Brandon Morales and Serra’s Matt Pastore were both flagged for rough play.

The teams are scheduled to meet again on Feb. 5 in San Mateo.

“We have the potential of playing them four times every year, so we kind of talked about this being chapter one,” Panos said. “And that goes to them.”

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Bellarmine 3, Serra 0

At Bellarmine

Scoring: B: Shekita 57:00, B: Shekita 70:00, B: Butler 80:00.

Records: Serra: 6-5-2, 4-2-1 WCAL. Bellarmine: 8-1-4, 5-0-2.