Kaui Mau and Ikaia Chu came through in the clutch to lead Kamehameha to a 1-0 win over Baldwin on Saturday night in the final of the Moanalua High School Thanksgiving Classic preseason boys soccer tournament.
After regulation and overtime at the Mililani High School field ended in a scoreless tie, the two teams were deadlocked 4-4 on penalty kicks when Mau — the Warriors’ sixth shooter stepped up to the line and blasted a shot high into the middle of the net.
Chu, who had made one save earlier in PKs for Kamehameha, stopped Baldwin’s last chance.
“We’re banged up and down to 13 players,” Kamehameha coach Jorge Barbosa said. “So it would have been a bad feeling if we lost too.
“Baldwin is a good team. They move and pass well and are well-coached. We feel good about winning the tournament, but like I tell the boys, ‘We’re third in the ILH (behind ‘Iolani and Punahou) until we earn it.’ ”
The Bears came out firing in the overtime period, but couldn’t put it in. Kamehameha had a slight territorial edge during regulation.
“We’re a small team, so we have to play tenacious and win the 50-50 balls,” Baldwin coach Kane Palazzotto said.
After the miss by a freshman that ended the match, Palazzotto said, “You learn and grow.”
Midfielders Jaren Ariyoshi of Baldwin and Davin Garma of Kamehameha were rock-solid two-way performers in the match.
In the third-place match featuring OIA contenders, Mililani upended Kaiser 4-1.
COMMENTS