The two teams representing the Kauai Interscholastic Federation will vie for a third-place finish at states.
Both Kapaa and Kauai high schools’ varsity girls soccer teams lost in the semifinals of the 2019 The Queen’s Medical Center Girls Soccer Championships–Division II state tournament Friday at the Waipio Peninsula Soccer Complex on Oahu.
No. 2 Kauai High School lost to defending Division II champion Hawaii Preparatory Academy of the Big Island Interscholastic Federation, 3-0, and Kapaa High School lost to No. 1 seed Kamehameha Schools-Hawaii of the BIIF, 2-0.
“I think it was a hard-fought game. The girls left everything they could on the field,” said Kauai head coach Auika Metcalfe. “Just very proud of their efforts.”
The tournament’s third place match is scheduled for 3 p.m. today at the Waipio Peninsula Soccer Complex.
Kauai bested Kapaa, 4-0, in head-to-head matches against Kapaa during the KIF regular season.
“Tomorrow is just another day. We take it as it comes,” Metcalfe said of playing against Kapaa. “We will put it on the field, and we’ll just try to finish strong in this tournament. Nothing has stopped us to get to this point. Everybody was able to put in enough for us to get where we are. From our entire season, everybody has put 110 percent of their efforts into the program. We’ll just try to finish as strong as we started.”
Kapaa head coach Andrea Alfiler said about playing Kauai for third place: “I’m really just proud of the neighbor islands. We got two teams from the Big Island playing for the championship and two Kauai teams playing for third place. It just goes to show. I just want to thank all the coaches at the youth level that helped prepare these players to compete at such a competitive level at high school. Kudos to all the volunteers and coaches that helped the Kauai players to compete and play for third place.”
Metcalfe said part of what makes Hawaii Prep tough is the fact that the school plays in a larger league.
“I think they have a really well-run program. They’re very seasoned. To them, this is nothing new. I also believe they’re competition also allows them the opportunity to play more teams, which is one of our disadvantages on Kauai where we only three other high schools to challenge,” she said.
When asked if she’d do anything differently, Metcalfe said the loss can serve as a “learning experience.”
”Everyone can run into that ‘what if’ scenario. Because we’re only human, we kind of naturally will do that,” Metcalfe said. “But I’m just very proud of the way the girls handled themselves. They did not back down. They continued to push each other forward, and everybody on the team was just as supportive from the beginning of the tournament up until now. We’ll learn from our experiences, and this is just another learning experience for us as a team. There’s nowhere to go but up.”
Alfiler said despite the result, her team matched up well against KS-Hawaii.
“Had a little defensive slip that gave them that first goal. And at the end there, down 1-nil, we pulled someone from our back line to give us more offensive numbers. And then they snuck one in there in the last couple of minutes,” Alfiler said. “Overall, the girls played absolutely fantastic. They really stepped it up a couple of notches in this tournament.
“They really showed grit, and they played with a fantastic mindset. They played with each other and for each other, and really upped their game and proved to themselves that they can always be better. Especially for our seniors, they played really great. Especially our goalkeeper, Malia Alonzo, she had a fantastic tournament. Made some exceptional saves and really helped us compete and get us to the semifinal game.”
Friday’s Division II results
Match 11 (consolation): Kalaheo (OIA) 5, Sacred Hearts (ILH) 1; Kalaheo: Shaelyn Kam 4 (2’, 16’, 20’, 44’), Hayley Johnson (31’); Sacred Hearts: Alena Schenk (75’)
Match 12 (consolation): Pac-Five (ILH) 5, Makua Lani (BIIF) 0; Pac-Five: Faith Lee (9’), Maia Santa Monica (36’), Riley Ng (38’), Fua Nasu (51’), Tare Rillon (76’)
Match 13 (semifinals): Hawaii Prep (BIIF) 3, Kauai (KIF) 0; Hawaii Prep: Bella Police (36’), Emi Higgins (56’), Malia Brost (78’)
Match 14 (semifinals): KS-Hawaii (BIIF) 2, Kapaa (KIF) 0; KS-Hawaii: Chenoa Frederick (34’), Nanea Wong Yuen (78’)
Information from Hawaii High School Athletic Association.
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Nick Celario, sports writer, can be reached at 245-0437 or ncelario@thegardenisland.com.
