[ HIGH SCHOOL SOCCER ]
GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM
The Iolani Raiders have scored four goals in two tournament games while only giving up a single score. The Raiders will play Mililani for the title today.
Mililani, Iolani in
boys soccer finalThe Trojans beat Kamehameha
1-0 and will play for their fourth
straight state championship
Jay Abrigo took the spotlight two nights in a row.
One evening after scoring a late goal to edge Pearl City, Abrigo was at it again for Mililani last night.
Abrigo scored on a header early in the second half to give the Trojans a 1-0 victory over Kamehameha in the late semifinal of the Ohana Hotels and Resorts Boys State Soccer Championships.
Three-time defending champion and top-seeded Mililani (14-0) tries for its fourth title in a row tonight at 8 against Interscholastic League of Honolulu champion Iolani, which eliminated Baldwin 3-1 earlier.
"We did it with stellar defense and we got what we needed on offense," Trojans co-head coach Steve McGehee said. "Early in the season, Jay showed that he has the ability to be a go-to guy, and he proved it again by winning it for us two nights in a row."
With 2,041 watching at Aloha Stadium, Trojans midfielder Justin Kim lined up on the right side for an 18-yard direct kick three minutes into the second half. He sailed one toward the goal, where Abrigo got his head on it and put it past stunned Warriors goalkeeper Nick Freitas.
Freitas kept the Trojans scoreless in the first half when he moved out to cut down the angle on Patrick Egloria's 12-yard blast and made the stop.
But Mililani keeper Darren Smith was also in game-saving mode in the first 40 minutes. Kamehameha's Logan Sauer beat a defender inside the 18 and let go a blazing attempt, but Smith was right there to grab the high shot.
"Darren is our equalizer," McGehee said. "He's done it all season -- actually for the last two years. When we make a mistake, he covers for us. He's such an intimidating force with gifted hands."
GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM
Braden Tada and Ehren Ching of Mililani ganged up to take the ball from Kamehameha's Ariel Kekoa Osorio yesterday in a state semifinal. The Trojans won 1-0.
Kamehameha (12-3-3) also threatened many times late in the game. David Gualdarama missed barely from 25 yards twice -- one to the right and one over the net. Randall Haraguchi's 18-yard direct kick sailed inches above the crossbar and Smith's outstretched hands.
"Mililani lives and dies with set plays and Justin Kim is the best set-up guy in the state," Kamehameha coach Andrew Ah New said. "They work to get those free kicks around the 18 and that's how they go after it. We had some set plays that we just couldn't convert late in the game."
Gualdarama, the Warriors' center halfback, agreed.
"We just couldn't finish our chances," he said. "Mililani is a good team. They move the ball well and they counter really quick. It's my senior year, but it just didn't happen for us."
Smith and McGehee are looking forward to their meeting with Iolani tonight and the chance for a fourth straight title.
"On defense, we always try to stay strong," Smith said. "We're structured and don't lose our composure. I haven't seen Iolani play yet, but we'll be ready."
"It will be like this (Kamehameha game), but 10 times faster. We've got to try and match their pace," McGehee said.
The Warriors play Baldwin in the third-place game tonight at 8.
Iolani 3, Baldwin 1: Dyrk Teramae may have found a permanent home as a striker.
The converted midfielder scored two goals and assisted on another as ILH champion and second-seeded Iolani (12-0-4) defeated Maui Interscholastic League champion Baldwin (11-1) in last night's early semifinal.
Teramae's assist was the back-breaker. He drove down the left wing all the way to the end line and fed Ryan Harada with a soft cross. All Harada had to do was redirect the ball into the net to give Iolani a 2-1 lead in the 62nd minute.
"Everybody was in the right place at the right time," Teramae said. "They hit me and I hit them. It worked."
Teramae put the game away in the 73rd minute on a play set up by Kurtis Adams, who took the ball away from the Bears' Kimo Ballesteros on a long run and dribbled the ball about 20 yards into Baldwin territory. He then fed Teramae, who unloaded a shot from the left side into the top right corner to make it 3-1.
"I'm so used to one-goal games that I don't know what to do when we have a two-goal lead," said Iolani coach Ric Miller, who teaches a defense-first philosophy. "Dyrk is one guy who can break you down one-on-one. After the midpoint of our season, we knew we needed some offensive punch and that's why we moved him up from the midfield."
Teramae broke a scoreless tie one minute before halftime. He got control of a high, bounding ball in the box, dribbled past a defender and deposited a low 15-yarder into the left corner.
The Bears got new life when Blake Nunes corralled a lead pass from Ballesteros and fired a shot into the low right corner for a 1-all tie in the 56th minute.
Looking to end it, Baldwin intensified its pressure, but the Raiders didn't budge.
Iolani goalkeeper Jason Keanini dove to stop Ian Pascua's 10-yard bullet, and then he used his fingertips while jumping to push Alejandro Garcia-Rosell's 20-yarder from the right corner over the net.
"Anger. And a kind of frustration that we didn't come out on top," was how Bears fullback Michael Fernandez described his immediate feeling after the final whistle. "But this was quite a privilege, playing at the stadium and we're really happy for that. After their third goal, we kind of went downhill."
Two consecutive yellow cards late in the game put a damper on Baldwin's otherwise good-sport report card. J.J. Eno got his yellow for talking back to a referee, and -- according to one of the officials -- for throwing the ball at an Iolani player. The team is on probation after an incident last year in which a Bears' player knocked a referee down from behind.
"It can happen when emotions get high," Baldwin coach Kaniela Palazzotto said. "It's the state championship tournament and we were trying to score to tie it up. Baldwin soccer is about going hard. We respect other teams and we hope they have the same respect for us.
"Dyrk played a helluva game. He was creating opportunities all night for them and I give my props to Iolani for putting him up front."
Keanini got defensive help from Dane McCleary and Adams, among others, all night to keep the Bears to one goal. Adams also commandeered Iolani's midfield flow.
"Kirtus is such an unsung hero for us," Miller said. "He's relentless. Nobody wants to go up against him in practice. If it's their turn, they'll go back to the end of the line."
Miller has one problem with tonight's final -- his daughter Jenni, 15, is a Mililani student.
"She told me that if we play them that she'll sit in the Mililani cheering section," the coach said.
Kealakehe 3, Pearl City 0: After losing a 1-0 heartbreaker to three-time defending champion Mililani on Thursday night, the Chargers (11-4) didn't have enough in the tank to compete with the Big Island Interscholastic Federation champion Waveriders.
Kealakehe (14-3) got three second-half goals from CJ Cintas, including one on a penalty kick and another off a corner kick by Taylor Backwalter, to advance to today's 4 p.m. fifth-place game against Kaiser.
Kaiser 2, Kalaheo 1: The Cougars moved on to the fifth-place game on first-half goals by Matthew Bush and Jeremy Patton in a matchup of Oahu Interscholastic Association East foes.
Bush's goal came on a penalty kick after a push by the Mustangs in the box. Patton scored after receiving a direct kick from Glenn Sadd.
Max Anton's penalty-kick goal in the 78th minute trimmed the Cougars' lead to one.
Kaiser improved to 13-3-1, while Kalaheo dropped to 9-6-2.
Waiakea 2, Hilo 1: The Warriors advanced in the consolation bracket as Chad Hanashiro scored the winning goal in the 46th minute in a clash between two BIIF teams.
Aaron Inouye gave Waiakea (15-3) a 1-0 lead in the 21st minute, but Bryan Straight of Hilo (10-8) tied it 1-all in the 33rd minute.
Today at 2 p.m., the Warriors meet the Kauai Interscholastic Federation champion Kauai Red Raiders (6-4) in the consolation final.
HHSAA boys soccer
At Aloha Stadium
Seeds: 1. Mililani (12-0-0). 2. Iolani (10-0-4). 3. Baldwin (10-0-0). 4. Kealakehe (13-2-0).Wednesday
Game 1: Kalaheo 2, Hilo 1
2: Kaiser 2, Waiakea 0
3: Pearl City 1, Kauai 0
4: Kamehameha 2, Castle 0Thursday
5: Kauai 1, Castle 0
6: Baldwin 4, Kalaheo 3
7: Kamehameha 2, Kealakehe 1, 2OT
8: Iolani 1, Kaiser 0, 2OT
9: Mililani 1, Pearl City 0Yesterday
10: Waiakea 2, Hilo 1
11: Kealakehe 3, Pearl City 0
12: Kaiser 2, Kalaheo 1
13: Iolani 3, Baldwin 1
14: Mililani 1, Kamehameha 0Today
Consolation final: Kauai vs. Waiakea, 2 p.m.
Fifth place: Kealakehe vs. Kaiser, 4 p.m.
Third place: Kamehameha vs. Baldwin, 6 p.m.
Championship: Mililani vs. Iolani, 8 p.m.
