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Saturday, February 12, 2000
Mililani and Iolani
By Dave Reardon
in state title game
Star-BulletinMililani and Iolani aren't traditionally rival schools. But they appear headed that way.
The Trojans and Red Raiders meet in a state final for the second time in a week tonight, as the schools square off for the Outrigger Hotels and Resorts Boys State Soccer championship at Aloha Stadium.
Iolani edged Mililani, 1-0, for the state softball crown last week. Both soccer teams won by the same score - Mililani over Pearl City and Iolani against Hilo - in boys' soccer semifinals last night.
"You can see that the seeding people did their job," Iolani coach Myles Arakawa said.
No. 1-seed Iolani (13-0-1) has won four state titles, the last in 1997. No. 2-seed Mililani (12-0-2) has never won the state championship.
The Red Raiders and Trojans met twice in the preseason with inconclusive results. They tied, 1-1, and Mililani won the other in a shootout.
There is some thought that Iolani will have an advantage tonight because the game is at Aloha Stadium's wide field; it is closer to the dimensions of Kapiolani Park (where the Red Raiders played their regular season games) than it is to the narrow school fields on which Mililani plays.
"It's different tactically," Mililani coach Jeff Yamamoto said. "Our game is real tight and it's a brawl. On that kind of wide-open field you can play a nice possession type of game. We like to feel we can, but we don't have the practice on it."
If Iolani does have an advantage because of the field, it might be negated by injuries to forward Mike Nishimoto (groin) and halfback/forward Blake Akimoto. Nishimoto is a starter and Akimoto a key reserve.
The Trojans struck early last night and played strong defense the rest of the way to beat the Chargers (11-2-1); Jon Stevens' goal, a 6-yard header off a free kick from the left, came at 7:00.
"I told the boys, we got the goal, hang on to that one goal like it's gold," Yamamoto said.
It almost became fool's gold, as Pearl City mounted a blitz late in the first half when Mililani goalkeeper Andrew Brown was forced out of the game with a yellow card. The Chargers' Reid Kobashigawa nearly scored on a free kick, but Mililani's David Miyamoto knocked the ball away from the goal.
That was Pearl City's most serious threat, and Mililani out-shot Pearl City, 14-5. Some nice saves by Brown and overall defense by the Trojans allowed Stevens' goal to stand up.
"We made one mistake in the first half and it cost us the game," Pearl City coach Frank Baumholtz III said.
In Iolani's win, Matt Alices scored on a deflection of a throw-in from Marc Contee just 2:20 into the game, played at Pearl City. The Red Raiders dominated with 16 shots to 5 for the Vikings, and 7-1 on corner kicks.
Arakawa said the game may have been close because of the narrowness of the field.
"It's like pinball on some of these fields," he said.
Semifinals
Iolani 1, Hilo 0
Iolani 1 0 - 1 Hilo 0 0 - 0 Iol: Matt Alices, 2:20
Mililani 1, Pearl City 0
Mililani 1 0 - 1 Pearl City 0 0 - 0 Mililani: Jon Stevens, 7:00
Consolation
Hawaii Prep 1, King Kekaulike 0 (OT, penalty kicks)
Hawaii Prep 0 0 (4) - 1 King Kekaulike 0 0 (3) - 0Aiea 2, Baldwin 0
Aiea 2 0 - 2 Baldwin 0 0 - 0 Aiea: Sean Sprinkel, 24:41
Aiea: Skip Saito, 36:58
At Aloha Stadium Today's games
1:30 p.m. Leilehua vs. Kauai (consolation)
