Unscored on, and winner of the Sportsmanship trophy, Ha‘aheo took Maui by storm. Under the coaching of Bobbie Rapozo, the pinkshirts, a Girls Under 12 team, captured the top trophy for the GU12 in the Hawai‘i Cup that was played
Unscored on, and winner of the Sportsmanship trophy, Ha‘aheo took Maui by storm.
Under the coaching of Bobbie Rapozo, the pinkshirts, a Girls Under 12 team, captured the top trophy for the GU12 in the Hawai‘i Cup that was played on Maui recently.
Additionally, Ha‘aheo was awarded the Sportsmanship award, a first-time feat at that tournament, said coach Bobbie in an e-mail.
“It took the efforts of every team member to carry us through the tournament and help win the championship,” said Bobbie. “Every player stepped up to the plate and did their job when they needed to.”
Facing Team Tropix II of Maui for the title, Ha‘aheo was not 100 percent.
Striker Caitlyn Rapozo and goalkeeper Malu Vegas nursed injuries, but subbing the injured players in and out of the game kept the pinkshirts focused while allowing the hurt players to rest.
One of the Ha‘aheo players who stepped up during the championship game was Mariah Pai who stepped into the goal, making a beautiful save.
When the whistle sounded, Ha‘aheo had taken a 2-0 victory over Team Tropix II for the championship.
Earlier, Ha‘aheo had blanked Team Tropix, 5-0 before advancing to shut down the Honolulu Storm, 4-0 on the opening day of the tournament.
Ha‘aheo continued their streak with a 1-0 edge over Excel of Maui to advance to the semifinals where they shut down Ka‘oi of O‘ahu, 1-0 to set the stage for the showdown with Team Tropix II.
Nicole Gardner, Jannin Hashizume, Caitlyn Rapozo, Machaele Rapozo, Malu Vegas and Maegan Wong notched scores for Ha‘aheo in the tournament.
“As a coach, a good defense is what wins games,” said Bobbie. “I take my hat off to my sweeper Mia Cabulisan who guided and took charge of the whole back line that included Wong, Kayla Chang and Keani Hawkins-Tabian.”
That defense kept other teams from scoring on the pinkshirts during the entire tournament, coach Bobbie said.
