KEALAKEKUA — Three players scored two goals apiece as Konawaena picked up back-to-back wins for the first time this season after defeating Ka’u Saturday afternoon at Julian Yates Field.
Led by sophomores Joseph Roback, Wyatt Savella and Travis Ichishita, the Wildcats overcame a slow start against the Trojans, scoring five goals in the second half of their BIIF Division II match on the way to an 8-0 victory.
“We were able to control the tempo, position and ball — all things we have been working on in practice,” said Konawaena head coach Tod Ichishita. “We had a few problems with this in the first half but managed to work through them in the second half.”
Savella put his team on the board first, scoring at the three-minute mark. From the left side of the box, he put the ball just inside the near post shortly after a shot by Roback was blocked by the diving Ka’u keeper.
“Wyatt plays left-mid and he has great speed and is very coachable,” Tod Ichishita said. “He is a great player.”
Savella also scored the final goal of the opening half, which was identical to his first goal, coming off a rebound when the Trojans’ keeper made another diving stop on a Roback shot.
Roback scored the second goal of the game with 13 minutes to play before the break. Savella picked up the assist when Roback turned, juked a defender, and then tapped the ball inside the left post from 10 yards out.
“Joseph is one of my captains and he could have had a hat trick today,” Tod Ichishita said. “He had a free kick and it would have been a hat trick, but I’m not 100 percent sure, but I think they called it an own goal.”
Roback scored the final goal of the game with four minutes to play.
Ichishita opened the second half with back-to-back goals. The first came in the 48th minute when he dribbled the ball to the right side of the six and put it inside the near post.
“Travis is a smart player and he is great with possession,” Tod Ichishita said. “He also made some really good passes and picked up a couple assists.”
Ichishita’s second goal came four minutes after his first.
Also scoring was senior captain Jacob Quanan. He added the seventh goal of the game in the 66th minute when a kick by Roback bounced off the keeper and out past the 18. Quanan fired the ball back in, finding the net just inside the top corner of the far post.
The Wildcats were also led to victory by captains Kalai Santiago (senior, center-back) and Rudy Huerta (junior, center-mid).
“Santiago is the backbone of our defense. He is the fastest guy on the team,” Tod Ichishita said. “Huerta is the engine of the offense. Everything starts with him.”
Junior Jose Medina started in goal for Konawaena. He did not see a lot of action in the game, but did come away with a save and the shutout.
“He has only been playing keeper for four months and he has come a long way,” Tod Ichishita said. “He did not make the varsity team last year, but came out this year and worked hard.”
Despite an easy win, the Konawaena coach saw a lot of talent in the Trojans’ squad.
“Ka’u has quite a few athletes on their team. They have a lot of football players out there,” Tod Ichishita said. “Their keeper made some good saves, but our team was able to find some moments and utilize them.”
Next up for the Wildcats is a match with Kamehameha-Hawaii on Saturday.
“We are hoping to take the progress we made in this game and use it to prep for Kamehameha next weekend,” Tod Ichishita said. “The boys are pumped for that game.”
Ka‘u will host Kealakehe on Saturday.