Season-end Games To Make Or Break West Soccer Teams
The OIA boys soccer season is nearly over, but there’s much to be decided Friday night for Aiea, Campbell, Kapolei, Pearl City and Waipahu. West Oahu Islander‘s preview of those games is below — all starting at 6 p.m.
Waianae at Pearl City
Pending the outcome of last Friday’s late game with Kapolei, the OIA West crown could be on the line for the Chargers in this matchup with the Seariders. Pearl City was the league’s last unbeaten and untied team, heading into that Kapolei game with a one-game lead over Mililani. Defense has been the team’s forte, as it took six shutout wins in a row into the game with the Hurricanes. You must go back to the Chargers’ 2-1 win over Radford Dec. 16 to find the last time a team scored against Pearl City.
The Seariders’ attack is led by Stanton Spencer, whose 10 goals through six games ranked second in the West in scoring and fourth overall in the OIA. Waianae was 3-3 before last weekend, making the outcome of this game huge for playoff seeding.
Campbell at Waipahu
The Sabers have remained in the mix for a playoff berth despite a trio of tough outings against the league elite in Kapolei (0-0), Mililani (a 1-0 loss) and Pearl City (3-0 loss). If they want to move into the postseason, this is the game to win. The outcome of Campbell’s recent games with Waianae and Radford also figure big. Goals have been hard to come by for Campbell of late, as it had scored just once in its last four games, heading into the weekend.
The Marauders have been playing their best soccer lately with a pair of great defensive efforts in ties with Leilehua (1-1) and Nanakuli (1-1). Waipahu also had a full week to get ready for this game, having been idle since Jan. 16.
Nanakuli at Kapolei
Offensive struggles had undermined Kapolei’s momentum in preseason and the early part of the regular season, but it has been cashing in on opportunities lately with a 13-1 win over Aiea and an 8-1 win over Waianae. Despite a pair of ties, the Hurricanes entered last weekend’s key
Pearl City game at 5-0-2 and still in the mix for a possible season crown. Defense has been crucial to Kapolei’s season so far, as its 1-0 win over Mililani Jan. 6 proved. Nanakuli entered last weekend at 1-6-1. The Golden Hawks’ lone win came over Aiea 2-0 Dec. 19.
Radford at Aiea
Na Ali‘i return home for their season finale against Radford. Aiea has had the toughest schedule of late with games against league-leaders Pearl City, Kapolei and Mililani. Radford can certainly relate, as no team had a more challenging schedule out of the gate in the West than Radford, which opened the season with three straight on the road against Kapolei (0-0 tie), Pearl City (2-1 loss) and Mililani (4-0 loss). The Rams rebounded from that stretch to post wins over Leilehua and Nanakuli and return to the mix for a playoff spot. With its playoff hopes on the line, Aiea can expect to receive Radford’s best effort in this one. Both Aiea and Radford have been mired in offensive slumps lately, having each tallied a single goal in their last four games.
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