West Teams Contending For OIA Girls Soccer Crown This Week
History has a way of repeating itself, which is a comforting thought for West Oahu girls high school soccer teams. Scan the time-line, and it will show that only one team from the East (Moanalua in 2012) has won the OIA Red soccer title since the state divided into two classes in 2006. Simply put, being best in the West in girls soccer has usually meant being best in the OIA, period.
With the 2014 league tournament opening this week, Aiea, Campbell, Pearl City and Kapolei are all in the title mix. (The top six finishers will earn the league’s berths for the upcoming state tournament.) A preview of each team’s prospects follows.
Aiea High
Season record: 8-2 (Tied for second with Mililani in OIA Red West, one game behind Campbell and Kapolei)
Signature wins: Over Pearl City 3-2 Dec. 6, over Mililani 2-1 on penalty kicks Jan. 7
Na Ali’i at a glance:
As the OIA tournament begins, perhaps no team has more momentum than Aiea, which won nine of its last 10 games after an opening-day loss to Campbell. Although Aiea dropped a 2-0 game to Kapolei in its season finale, it could stay in the race this week if it asserts itself, offensively. Aiea’s 41 season goals placed it fifth in the OIA overall in scoring and third in the Red West behind Mililani and Pearl City. Na
Ali’i have scored three goals or more in seven of their eight wins to date. Raisa Strom-Okimoto is a big reason why the offensive numbers are high. She enters this week as the second leading scorer in the state behind Waianae’s Sonest Furtado.
Campbell High
Season record: 9-1 (tied for first with Kapolei in the OIA Red West)
Signature wins: Over Aiea 5-1 Dec. 3, over Kapolei 1-0 Dec. 27, over Pearl City 2-1 Jan. 10
Sabers at a glance:
A loss to Mililani Jan. 3 is all that kept Campbell from going undefeated during its 10-game season. The Sabers took care of business largely on the strength of their offense, which produced two goals or more in eight games and three scores or more in six of their encounters. The team has relied on Kiley Haraguchi (8), Jaselyn Gonsalves (6) and Jaelynn Chargualaf (6), among others, for scoring. Defensively, it’s equally stellar, posting shutouts in nine of its 10 games. The four goals scored by Mililani in its win over Campbell were the only scores registered against the Saber defense.
Kapolei High
Season record: 9-1 (tied for first with Campbell in OIA Red West)
Signature wins: Over Mililani 1-0 Dec. 20, over Pearl City 1-0 Jan. 3, over Aiea 2-0 Jan. 14
Hurricanes at a glance:
Among head coach Brian Beck’s priorities is to increase offensive production after a subpar 2012-13 season on that end of the field. The Hurricanes have made great strides, but it’s defense that could enable them to go deep into the state tournament, if they take care of business this week. Kapolei gave up only one goal during its 10-game conference slate, the lone tally coming in its loss to Campbell Dec. 27. Senior goalkeeper Arielle Stoyanow is among the team’s defensive leaders. Offensively, freshman Alyssa Yoshida gave the team a big boost with a team-leading nine goals during the season, while teammate Paige Mahuka enters the post-season with five.
Pearl City High
Season record: 6-4 (fifth overall in OIA Red West)
Signature wins: Over Radford 9-0 Dec. 3, over Waipahu 5-1 Jan. 7
Chargers at a glance:
The Chargers qualify as the “hard luck” team of the 2013-14 season, having come up only a few plays short of producing a much better record. Pearl City suffered one-goal defeats to Aiea, Campbell and Kapolei for three of its losses, while a 5-0 setback to Mililani accounted for the fourth one. Offensively, it proved it can score goals with the best the OIA has to offer, having tallied five goals or more in all six of its wins so far. Pearl City enters the OIA Tournament with three of the league’s top scorers in Tasha Inong (16 goals), Randi Fontes (10) and Caila Fabro (7).
jackster.1969@yahoo.com
