Since Hilo High’s Riley Patterson was one of the most dangerous goal-scorers on the islands, and Hawaii Prep’s Sihkea Jim was the best defensive player on this island, it made sense that one shadowed the other every time they were adversaries on the soccer field.
When Patterson went down with a calf cramp last season during the Vikings’ first match, Jim, naturally, was standing right there, and only move made sense. He rushed to lift up Patterson’s leg and helped him stretch.
“He’s not just one of my friends, he’s another player, and I want to show respect for the game and every player,” Jim said.
Anyone who has ever seen Patterson run knows that a cramp to any part of his legs means a rather large muscle is being affected.
“Not just for soccer, I wanted him to be healthy for the rest of his life,” Jim said.
It’s easy to see why Patterson was more than happy to share BIIF Division I Player of the Year – as selected by the league’s coaches, the Hawaii Tribune-Herald and West Hawaii Today – with Jim, his Kona Crush club teammate.
“I was really happy and psyched, especially to be sharing it with someone like Sihkea,” Patterson said. “We’ve been friends for a long time. Just on and off the field, a really great guy. I’m really glad it went to both of us. This is a good year.”
Jim, a center back, respects the game, and seemingly everyone respects Jim.
“He doesn’t talk trash, he has really high character with a really high work rate,” Patterson said. “He’s always a beast on the field.”
On the goal-scoring front, he and Hawaii Prep’s Jake Schneider, the 2018 BIIF Player of the Year, engaged in a dizzying and entertaining season-long battle of oneupmanship, with each collecting 41 goals in BIIF play, as prolific a total as the league has seen recently.
Patterson scored two goals in a January regular season match in Waimea as Hilo dealt HPA its first league loss since 2016, but the well dried up for both forwards in the BIIF title game. Jim played a large part in keeping Patterson off the scoreboard, and he put home his penalty kick in the overtime shootout, a Ka Makani victory.
“We dropped the ball in defending Riley (in the first game),” Jim said, “and we didn’t want it to happen again.
“I started playing soccer (at age 5) to have fun,” he said, “and I still am.
“Playing soccer in Hawaii has been a great experience. Whether it be the club genre or high school, it’s been amazing.”
Patterson is all-BIIF for the third time, while Jim makes it for the fourth time, the first two years in Division II. A four-year starter if there ever was one, his senior year was his only season at HPA that didn’t end in a state championship.
“Going into high school as a freshman, I didn’t know if we were ever going to win, honestly, or if we were going to do very well,” Jim said. “Getting this (honor) makes everything come full circle.”
Ka Makani placed seven members on the all-BIIF team. Schneider makes it for the third time, and he’s joined by teammates Toby Balaam, and goalkeeper Stomer Horton, both repeat selections, as well as Riley Hiatt, Conor Hunt and Brendan Moynahan. Waiakea’s John Grover is a second-time honoree, as is Kealakehe’s Teddy Rubenstein. The Waveriders’ Eima Kozakai and Hilo’s Kainalu Lewis also were selected.
Jim will leave to play soccer at Colorado School of Mines later in the summer, and that will be sad day for Big Island coaches.
Just ask one, and they’ll likely rave about him.
Former HPA coach Richard Braithwaite heaped praise upon Jim’s leadership before he had ever played a BIIF match, successor James Berry used words such as “unbelievable” to describe him and Kona Crush Soccer Academy Director of Coaching Vinny La Porta spared no praise.
“Myself, all my staff, all the players, all the parents — we all know one fact which remains steady and true: Sihkea Jim is the most outstanding character in the soccer community,” La Porta told West Hawaii Today. “He is hands down the most honorable, responsible and respectful young leader I’ve ever coached.”
Prolific Patterson
Patterson was honored as a valedictorian during High Hilo’s commencement ceremony, and when he spoke to his class he told them to dream big.
But after a junior season that saw him receive limited playing time because of an injury, he entered his last season with smaller goals in mind.
“My No. 1 goal was not to get injured. Every single year before that I’d gotten some sort of little injury that kind of nagged on and prevented me from playing,” he said. “With all my training, I was pretty confident I would be able to take care of things.
“That and being a leader and taking my team through the season, showing them how to act and how we need to play, just being very supportive.”
Both of those goals were reached, along with a bevy of other ones through to the back of the net off the powerful foot of Patterson, who put forth a highlight-reel season – literally – in spurring the Vikings on a 13-game unbeaten streak.
As Patterson was recording one hat trick after another, his recruitment picked up after fizzling out his junior season. When he emailed a college and sent it tape of a match, a coach was sure to email back.
“Things started rolling and Seattle U. popped up,” Patterson said.
In May, he signed an athletic and academic scholarship to play for the Redhawks, fulfilling a long-time goal of finding his spot in Division I college soccer.
“A couple of other offers I was considering, some on the islands,” he said, “but I really wanted to get out, get my feet wet.”
Those feet move fast.
He ripped of a 10.91-second effort in the 100-meter dash in a preliminary of the HHSAA championships, one of the fastest times ever recorded by a BIIF athlete.
In high school it seemed every summer a friend or coach would try to recruit him to the football team – “We need you as a kicker, we need your speed,” they would say.
In the end, the only goal that eluded Patterson his season year was an elusive BIIF championship. The Vikings played in three BIIF finals during his career, the first two were decided by one goal, and each was more painful than the previous one.
“Oh my gosh, we would get a little bit closer, just biting my jaw, especially this last one,” he said. “We played our hearts out, though, and that’s the only thing I could have asked for.”
“I just want to thank the community for what they’ve done for me,and what they’ve shaped me to be,” he said.
First team
Jake Schneider HPA Forward
Riley Patterson Hilo Forward
Toby Balaam HPA MF
John Grover Waiakea MF
Riley Hiatt HPA MF
Conor Hunt HPA MF
Eima Kozakai, Kealakehe, MF
Kainalu Lewis Hilo Defense
Brendan Moynahan HPA Defense
Sihkea Jim HPA Defense
Teddy Ruebenstein Kealakehe Defense
Stomer Horton HPA Goalkeeper
Co-players of the year
Sihkea Jim, Hawaii Prep
Riley Patterson, Hilo
Coach of the year
James Berry, HPA
Honorable mention
HPA: Chris Chock
Hilo: Logan Mizuba, Josh Rosario, Urban Halpern
Waiakea: Aidan Santos, Kai Biegler, Riley Tamanaha, Chase Kotomori
Kealakehe: Zachary Aderinto, Kean Schutte
Keaau: Analu Kahihikolo, Iokepa Laa, Michael Lagorio
