Hurricane Attacker Named OIA Soccer Player Of The Year
Kapolei soccer standout Keo Ponce always was a point of emphasis for teams defending him in the ultra-competitive OIA West. That was never more evident than during this past winter, when the Hurricane attacker closed out his career.
As anticipated, Ponce delivered big for Kapolei, earning Player of the Year honors in a recent vote of league coaches. He tallied nine goals despite playing injured in several games. For his three-year varsity career, he scored 35 goals.
Ponce was one of four First Team selections from Kapolei, which finished its 2013-14 season with an 11-5 overall record (and an appearance in the Division I state soccer tournament). Also named to the First Team were attacker Marcelo Dadino, midfielder Shandon Hopeau and defender Clarence Wong.
Dadino scored a team-high 12 goals for Kapolei to finish as the state’s third-leading scorer behind Punahou’s Antonio Espinoza (17) and Kailua’s Naia Graham (13).
Hopeau, who had earned Second Team honors as a freshman, maintained his scoring pace this time with 11 goals despite missing the state tournament.
Kapolei, which lost only one regular-season game, also placed midfielder Lyric DeLeon on the West’s Second Team, and teammates Shay Akau, CJ Harvey and Aldo Ramirez-Hernandez earned Honorable Mentions.
* Defender Matthew Cabacungan was named to the First Team from Pearl City, which also earned one of the OIA’s six state tournament berths. The Chargers finished 11-5 on the year. Pearl City also had four players named to the Second Team: attacker Paul Enriquez, midfielders Jay Sato and Andrew Tanaka, and goalie Cedric Silva.
Earning Honorable Mention from Pearl City were Carter Casuga and Nathan Nazareno.
* Bryson Maximo was Campbell’s lone First Team pick. A sophomore attacker, Maximo scored five goals for the Sabers, who finished with a 6-5 overall record.
Teammates Reiny-Aloy Kamekona (attacker), midfielder Christian Tokunaga and defender Chay Mattos made the Second Team, while Franklin Calvo, Richard Orpilla, Jacob Mattos and Ikaika Wilkerson earned Honorable Mentions.
* Midfielder Kazu Shima was named to the First Team from Aiea, which was the West’s hard-luck team, as five of their eight defeats came by a single goal. Attacker Jae Won Huh and defender Brooks Tanaoka made the Second Team.
* Waipahu had five players earn Honorable Mentions: Kristian Alejo, Trevor Antolin, Jared Cabigas, Storm DeAsis and Desmond Mahor.
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