Kealakehe Waveriders head coach Hayato Fukumitsu knows in a game like soccer, it doesn’t take much for the tides to turn against even the best teams.
After watching the Waiakea Warriors celebrate on the Waveriders’ home pitch after their match Wednesday, the Kealakehe coach could feel the disappointment sinking in of coming so close to the team’s goal of reaching the BIIF championships and the state tournament.
“It’s a hard one for sure,” Fukumitsu said. “But that’s soccer. Soccer is cruel.”
After a seven-game winning streak and a 1-0 lead heading into the second half of their BIIF Division I boys soccer semifinal match, the Waveriders’ season ended abruptly as Waiakea walked away from Waverider Stadium with a 2-1 victory to advance to the championship game.
“They came together very well as a team. We were peaking, but again, soccer can be very, very favorable in your direction and it can be cruel at the same time, and today we had to live that cruelty,” Fukumitsu said. “It was unfortunate for the boys because they worked their butts off this season. They worked very hard to be here and they’re very deserving of that. It just didn’t bounce our way and the soccer gods were not in our favor today.”
Adam Foster scored the lone goal for the No. 2 Waveriders. In the second half, Waiakea senior Kai Biegler scored to tie the game, and a Kealakehe own goal secured the win for the Warriors.
No. 3 Waiakea will face No. 1 Hilo on Saturday at Hawaii Preparatory Academy in Waimea. With their win over Kealakehe, the Warriors also earned a spot in the state tournament on Oahu.
If Waiakea wins Saturday, it will be the program’s first BIIF title since 2006. The Warriors lost in the semifinals last season to the then-Division I Hawaii Prep.
“It’s awesome to return back to the championship,” Waiakea head coach David Urakami said. “We were counting on playing Hilo, so we’re just going to play hard and let the boys and their skill speak for themselves on Saturday.
“The Waveriders are an awesome team, and I’d like to thank them for an awesome season.”
The Waveriders, who defeated Waiakea in the regular season 2-1 on Jan. 11, haven’t won a semifinal match since the 2016-17 season.
“Last year we ended in third, away, this year we ended in second at home, so it’s a natural progression,” Fukumitsu said. “We will want to win that BIIF championship next year. That is the natural progression of this team, but to be successful takes time.”
The Kealakehe Waveriders left their loss Wednesday heartbroken, yet optimistic about the future of the program, which had previously won consecutive BIIF Division I titles from 2012-2017.
“It sucks and I feel bad for them. They deserved to be here, but it wasn’t their time,” Fukumitsu said. “It will definitely build some character. Champions must lose big games in order to become champions. It’s not like it’s over. We’ll come back next year.”
Hilo 12, Keaau 0: Kainalu Lewis recorded a hat trick and Kyler Rivera and Logan Mizuba each scored two goals at Hilo Bayfront as the Vikings rolled to their seventh championship game in the past eight seasons.
Haku Tolentino-Perry, Michael DeCoito and Jyson Breitbarth scored a goal apiece for Hilo, and Breitbarth and Tyson Kaniaupio each had a hand in the shutout of the Cougars.