KAILUA-KONA — The Central Pacific Bank/BIIF boys soccer Div.-I and Div.-II playoff semifinals kick off today.
Four closely matched DI teams will battle for the division title and a spot in the state playoffs, while defending DII state champion KS-Hawai‘i will look to make another run at the title — as No. 2 Hawaii Prep and No. 3 Honoka‘a fight for a berth in the title game.
DI: No. 4 Kea‘au at No. 1 Kealakehe
Kealakehe High (8-1-0) has been the dominant force in BIIF DI this season. The Waveriders have notched three shutouts, as well as gargantuan routs of 9-1 against rival Konawaena and 10-1 over Parker School.
After spending several years in BIIF DI’s lower standings, Kealakehe has found excellence thanks to a dedicated, mature and experienced roster.
“We really took a step forward in terms of our maturity as a program,” Kealakehe head coach Adrian Guillen said. “The past two years, we really haven’t had alot of upperclasmmen. Last year, we only had one senior, and this year we only have one senior again.
“It’s been a growing experience for our program — and a lot of growing pains along the way — but we’ve really come together and the players are starting to come into their own this season.”
The ‘Riders also spent several weeks in ScoringLive’s top ten power rankings, but fellow below the cut to No. 12 following their 5-0 loss to KS-Hawai‘i two weeks ago.
Kealakehe will enter BIIFs in the No. 1 seed, hosting No. 4 Kea‘au (4-5-1) at 3 p.m. today.
Despite the Waveriders having the edge, the Cougars are not pushovers. In the pair’s Jan 16. matchup, the ‘Riders got away with a 2-1 win — and were tied 1-1 with Kea‘au until late in the second half.
“They’re more technically and ball-skilled than us,” longtime Kea‘au head coach Richard Handy said. “(Kealakehe junior Aukele Paikuli-Campbell) is definitely dangerous, definitely a man to watch. They have (Duke ‘Kauka’ Kapuniai) in the back, who can run the defense. We just had to play harder, and they were a lot more physical. It was definitely close.
“I’m kinda nervous about the next one, they’re a good team and that’s why they’re on top right now. We had to fight hard just to tighten it up, and that was on a (penalty kick).”
It was also a tough match for Kealakehe.
“We felt pretty confident about the way we played, but we really struggled to score goals against (Kea‘au),” Guillen said. “They capitalized on the opportunities they had, and they scored one against us — so we’re really wary of that. We know Kea‘au has been a good team this year, and they’ve won some big games.
“We’re ready and we’re excited to play on our home field, it’s been a while since Kealakehe has hosted a home playoff game. We’re really excited to get one back there, and do everything we can to win that game.”
After years of being a whipping boy in DI and suffering many mercy-rule losses, this year’s Kea‘au team has turned the tide. Handy said that this season’s Cougar squad is the best Kea‘au soccer team that he can remember.
“Last year was the first time we first started showing something,” he said.
“We’ve always been getting beat a lot. This was probably the first year where we never got a TKO.”
Also, this is Kea‘au’s first-ever BIIF DI playoff appearance when the division has more than four teams. The Cougars ended up in the BIIFs in previous years, but only by default due to Konawaena playing in DII.
The underdog Cougars are led by top scorer sophomore Rayden Handy, son of the head coach and dual-sport athlete — also playing on Kea‘au’s varsity basketball team.
“Everyone knows his left foot,” coach Handy said.
Goalkeeper Luke La‘a and defenders Joziah Dillon and Dylan Vaughn lead the Cougars in the back.
DI: No. 3 Waiakea at No. 2 Hilo
The cross-town rivals will get straight to business, facing off at 3 p.m. today at UH-Hilo’s soccer field.
It will be the Vikings (7-2-0) and the Warriors’ (5-3-1) second matchup in the past two weeks, as they clashed on Jan. 19 and Hilo won 2-1. In a preseason tournament in November, Waiakea defeated Hilo 2-0.
Despite sporting a small roster — and being in a rebuilding phase after graduating numerous seniors last spring — the Vikings have had a strong season, suffering just two close losses, 1-0 to KS-Hawai‘i and 2-1 to Kealakehe.
“The biggest thing to understand for us is that anybody can be beaten on any given day,” Hilo head coach George Ichimaru said. “What matters is who performs best on that day against that specific team. As you see, each team in Division I had at least one loss.
“Now, it’s just a matter of who plays best on the right day.”
Even in the BIIF, cross-town rivals who are 1-1 against each other seldom find themselves paired up in the first round of playoffs. Additionally, Hilo’s home pitch — the Vulcan soccer field — is just a stone’s throw away from WHS. At the Vikings and Warriors’ last matchup, the stands were packed and the parking lot overflowed.
Suffice to say, this game will be a barn-burner. That’s not an easy thing to approach with so much at stake.
“Our approach will be similar to how we always have,” Ichimaru said. “We will focus on mental toughness — in order to make sure our emotions are in check, to make sure we execute exactly what we need to and — most importantly — minimize their goal-scoring opportunities and maximize ours.”
Waiakea’s coach did not respond to the Tribune-Herald’s interview request.
Division II
Also at 3 p.m. today, No. 1 KS-Hawai‘i (9-0-0) will host No. 4 Parker School (1-7-1) and No. 2 HPA (3-5-1) will host No. 3 Honoka‘a (2-3-2).
The juggernaut that is KSH has had little trouble dismembering nearly every other DII opponent this season — opening the season with a 9-0 TKO of Parker, then routing Honoka‘a 10-1 and winning by forfeit over Makua Lani Christian.
This was also the Warriors’ first undefeated season in as long as head coach Greg Minato can remember. One of Minato’s proudest accomplishments this season was KSH’s 2-1 victory over Waiakea last week — KSH’s first time in six years winning the ‘Battle of the Warriors.’
“I’m proud of the kids and how they played,” he said. “Especially my keeper and my back line, they did terrific this year. Awesome.”
On defense, KSH has surrendered a mere three goals on the season — never allowing any opponent more than one per match.
“I’ve gotta give credit to my keeper, Jacob Aiona, and my back line,” Minato said. “I’m pretty sure (Aiona) will make All-BIIF — and if we make states, I’m pretty sure all-state. He’s one of the best keepers I’ve seen in the state.”
The Warriors’ offense is led by William Henderson and Lucas Kay-Wong, who have respectively notched 13 and 12 goals.
“Will has a very strong kick,” Minato said, “a very, very strong kick. If he has the ball within 20-30 yards, he’ll get it in. He’s a distributor, distributes the ball good. Lucas is just a hard worker. He works hard to get the ball, he works hard to score, he’s the hustler of our team.”
If KSH were to win the BIIF DII championship, it would be a three-peat — and if HPA and KSH make it to the title round, it will also be Ka Makani and the Warriors’ third straight title matchup.
HPA was the only DII team to give KSH a run for its money this season — as the Warriors broke through a 1-1 tie in the second half to win 2-1 during a match on Jan. 10.
“We scored first in the first half,” Minato said. “In the second half they had a penalty kick, they scored for the tying goal. With about ten to 15 minutes left in the game, we had a direct kick from outside the box — William Henderson hit a nice bender in the corner.”
Based on this season’s scores and stats, the HPA versus Honoka‘a matchup is a toss-up. Ka Makani and the Dragons faced off two weeks ago, and tied 3-3.