KEALAKEKUA — Konawaena entered the eighth edition of the annual Guava Bowl on Saturday looking to tie the series with Kaiser. However, the quick striking Cougars offense proved to be too tough to overcome as the Wildcats dropped their match
KEALAKEKUA — Konawaena entered the eighth edition of the annual Guava Bowl on Saturday looking to tie the series with Kaiser. However, the quick striking Cougars offense proved to be too tough to overcome as the Wildcats dropped their match at Julian Yates Field 4-1.
Kaiser now leads the series 5-3 and will take the Guava Stick trophy back to Oahu.
“I always tell (Konawaena coach) Guy (Miranda) I come to the Big Island for two things: my Guava Stick and my Guava Jam and once I get that my trip is made,” Kaiser head coach Adolph Samuels said. “I am so happy that I get to take the Stick back with us.”
Thanks to a defensive miscue by a young Konawaena squad, it took the Cougars only 15 seconds to find the back of the net for the first score. Opening the game with possession, Kaiser quickly turned the ball over to the Wildcat defense. Konawaena then dropped the ball back but a cross from a Wildcat defender was picked off just inside the 18 by Cougar striker Kaile Halvorsen, who put the ball in the bottom right corner of the net.
Just under the three minute mark of the game, Kaiser found the net again when Halvorsen received a pass up the right side of the pitch, beat her defender in a 1-on-1 matchup, and put the ball in the far corner of the goal.
“Kaile is a transfer from Punahou and I am so happy she came to play at Kaiser because she is an awesome player,” Samuels said. “She is very fast with the ball at her feet and does a good job at spotting passes.”
The Cougars seemed to be the quicker of the two teams, and put a good foot on the ball on nearly every shot attempt. The Wildcats used finesse and timely passes to keep the game nearly even on time of possession. Konawaena had several opportunities to score in the first half but the ball would fly high or wide of the mark.
The Wildcats’ best opportunity to score in the opening half came with five minutes to go before the break. A handball gave Konawaena a free kick on the right side of the pitch, just outside the 18. The kick by Zane Garrigan sailed over the wall, but bounced off the near post.
Halvorsen continued to wreak havoc on the Wildcat defense, using her speed to provide herself and her teammates many opportunities to score. Kaiser just missed going up 3-0 in the final minute of the half off one of these opportunities when Halvorsen broke away from her defender with the ball and passed into the center of the 18 where her teammate, Tommi Hintnaus, was waiting. However, the kick went straight to Wildcat keeper Kyanah Blas.
Coming out in the second half with a two goal advantage, the Cougars found themselves on the defensive early. Konawaena put the ball in front of the Kaiser net on five straight possessions, two of which included corner kicks, but managed to get only one shot at the net.
The Cougars answered with four quick strikes in succession, finding the net on the fourth try at the 10 minute mark of the second half when Hintnaus took a pass out of the air with her right foot, and in one move, put the ball past a diving Blas and into the bottom right corner of the goal.
Kaiser subbed for its front line and went into defensive mode with about 20 minutes to play but it did not prevent the Wildcats from picking up a goal about seven minutes later when Karenza Chavez received a pass at the 18 and found the the top right corner of the net to cut into the deficit.
Halvorsen re-entered the game and put the Cougars back up by three at the 75 minute mark with her third goal of the game. She sent in a low laser that screamed past the diving Konawaena keeper, sealing her hat trick and, effectively, the game.
“We got jumped on fast and they wanted it more than us this year,” Wildcats coach Guy Miranda said. “For as young of a team as I have, I thought we did pretty well on the attack, we just could not get the finishes.”
The Guava Cup has become an annual match between Kaiser and Konawaena, but next year the Cougars are planning on taking a trip to Japan during the same time as the Konawaena Wahine Wildcats Soccer Tournament. Though Kaiser will not be making its normal trip to the Big Island, the Cougars coach had no problem throwing down a little challenge.
“If he wants the Guava Stick back he can come to Oahu and get it,” Samuels said with a laugh.
Konawaena and Kaiser will meet one more time for the tournament championship today at 2 p.m. If the Wildcats want to win, they will have to find a way to slow down Halvorsen.
“We will need to hold on to the ball and have a better first touch,” Miranda said. “Their forwards are just fantastic and they know how to finish.”
