[ WAHINE SOCCER ]
Devitt scores twice
as Wahine beat Owls
HOUSTON -- The Hawaii Rainbow Wahine soccer team opened the Western Athletic Conference season last night with a 2-0 victory over Rice.
Arlene Devitt, Hawaii's all-time leading scorer, accounted for both goals to raise her career total to 34.
The first half was an even battle, with the Owls (2-5-1, 0-1) having a slight edge in shots, 7-4.
"Rice came out playing really, really strong, but we were just as adamant," said UH coach Pinsoom Tenzing. "But, we were not well-positioned and I wasn't able to make corrections until halftime, something I learned years ago."
The Owls play with a sweeper, a tactic the Rainbow Wahine (6-2-1, 1-0) expected. However, UH strikers Devitt and Natasha Kai were playing in front of the Rice defenders who were man marking them. This left too much space between those defenders, allowing the sweeper to easily clean up loose and through balls.
"At halftime I insisted our strikers stay behind the Rice defenders, but in front of the sweeper. I put our younger kids up front and they did a good job of putting themselves between the last defender and the sweeper," Tenzing said. "Natasha pounced on two loose balls and set Arlene up for both goals."
The first goal came at 68:31, and Devitt's second goal secured the match at 88:03. The senior striker turned in traffic and planted her shot into the left side of the net.
It was the first time this year Rice had allowed more than one goal in a game.
The shutout was the fifth of the season for UH. Sophomore goalkeeper Mahie Atay was credited with six saves and the Owls had one shot rebound off the crossbar.
"Rice took more shots, but they were mostly from long distance and were never a problem for Mahie," Tenzing said. "Our defense was a little shaky to start, but it was like concrete at the end."
Tenzing also was pleased with the way the Wahine handled the taunts of the home crowd.
"The hooligans came out and were yelling 'overrated' and Natasha never reacted. I lauded her for that. The kids are growing up," Tenzing said.
