Pac-Five repeats as DII champ
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• Photo gallery: State soccer: Kailua vs. Pac-Five
By Leila Wai
Advertiser Staff Writer
After a false start to its celebration, the Pac-Five girls soccer team got to rejoice after winning its second straight state title.
The Wolfpack outshot Kailua, 3-1, in penalty kicks to capture the Hawai'i High School Athletic Association/JN Automotive Group Girls Division II State Soccer Championships last night at the Waipi'o Peninsula Soccer Stadium.
Officially, Pac-Five won, 1-0. It was the same score and same ending as last year, although the Wolfpack players seemed to initially forget the count of goals and celebrated prematurely.
"We just want to confuse everyone; we wanted to make it exciting," said Pac-Five coach Eddie Wong, who added that he knew the Wolfpack hadn't clinched when the players initially thought they did. "Yeah, but the girls ran out there and celebrated."
After Pac-Five goalkeeper Geena Fong made her kick, the third for the Wolfpack, and with the Surfriders making just one of their first three kicks, the Wolfpack charged Fong in celebration. Except, the best-of-five-kicks winner had yet to be determined. So both teams needed to regroup, line up again and continue kicking. When the fourth Kailua kicker missed, the Pac-Five celebration became official.
"We thought we were up, and best out of five, so we thought we already won," senior captain C'era Oliveira. "We had a dog pile (the first time) and no one got hurt, but we didn't want to do it again so it was like, 'OK, good job guys.' "
Pac-Five junior midfielder Ashley Haruki, junior midfielder Brooke Loveless and Fong made their kicks.
"It's exciting," said Fong, who also made her kick and was the goalkeeper for last year's championship team. "It still didn't feel the same. It's always a new thing, so you're not sure if you have it or not, but we had it."
Junior midfielder Cheyenne Kadooka was the only Surfrider to make her kick.
Both teams came in with different paths. The Surfriders won the O'ahu Interscholastic Association championship against an all-Division II, or White, competition. They outscored opponents, 55-1.
"It was a good experience. For a lot of them, it was their first time in shootout," Kailua coach Malu Afong said. "And Pac-Five was in the same situation last year. So it was a good experience.
"We tried to prepare, and our girls can do it in practice, so we prepared them as much as we could. We tried to tell them what to expect."
The Wolfpack, on the other hand, played against both Divisions I and II in the competitive Interscholastic League of Honolulu, finishing that part of the season 4-6-2.
"It helps us out during the year," Wong said. "If we can keep up with them, we can do well in DII. Again, Kailua held us all the way. Even with that (advantage), it came down to PKs."
The match was scoreless through the 80-minute regulation and two 10-minute overtime periods, although the Wolfpack had the offensive advantage, outshooting the Surfriders 28-5. But none of the shots was especially dangerous. In fact, for most of the game, the most threatening shot opportunities came off Oliveira's throw-ins.
"We have a lot of returnees and everyone knew how to handle PKs and overtime, and I think everyone did a really good job," Oliveira said.
Pac-Five is comprised of players from Hawai'i Baptist, Maryknoll, Lutheran High School, ASSETS, St. Andrew's, University High School and Word of Life Academy.
THIRD PLACE
Kapa'a 4, Kaua'i 2: Kapa'a scored two goals in each half to finish third in an all-Kaua'i Interscholastic Federation matchup.
Kapa'a sophomore forward Lily Fredericksen scored in the 13th minute, but Kaua'i sophomore forward Isabelle Curtis answered in the following minute to tie it. Curtis scored again in the 23rd minute to make it 2-1.
Kapa'a junior midfielder Kyara Bunao tied it in the 26th minute, and junior midfielder Laurie Anne Tamayo put the Warriors up for good one minute into the second half. Senior forward Barnett Dakota sealed the win with a goal in the 74th minute.
Kapa'a, the No. 2 seed and KIF champion, finished the season 10-1-0. Kaua'i finished 6-6-0.
ALSO
Fifth place: Hawai'i Prep 2, Kamehameha-Hawai'i 1. HPA — Lindsey Powers (1:00), Kuuipo Nakoa (62:00). KH—Shae Kanakaole (18:00).
Consolation final: Seabury Hall 0, Nānākuli 0.