KALUA-KONA — There was a feeling of deja vu at Kealakehe High School on Wednesday as the Waverider girls picked up their first win of the season on Senior Night with a 5-2 score against the Keaau Cougars.
But why did it feel like history was somehow repeating itself? Well, because it was. Nearly a year ago, Kealakehe picked up its first win of the 2015-16 season. That win also came against Keaau in the form of a 1-0 shutout.
“We knew this would be a good match for us,” said Kealakehe head coach Kim Evans. “Unfortunately for Keaau they were short a man, but they worked hard with no subs and gave us a good challenge.”
The Waveriders fell behind early despite the player advantage, but pulled away in the second half thanks to a Helen Remke hat-trick. Remke, a senior, had not scored a goal all season but came out and performed under the spotlight. She was also the hero in last season’s game against the Cougars, scoring the only goal on a second half penalty kick
“Being senior night, this game was really special, but I wish my fellow seniors could have scored too,” Remke said. “We played pretty well and I am glad we finally won a game, but I know we can do better and I hope we can show that in these final few games.”
Keaau controlled the pace early, jumping out to a 1-0 lead less than three minutes into the game when Keirstyn Yamamoto found the back of the net on a shot near the middle of the pitch.
The game then took a quick shift with the Waveriders gaining control of possession time. Kealakehe nearly tied the game at the 17 minute mark when Sanoe Garcia found open space outside the six on a cross, but her kick went high.
Seven minutes later it looked like the Waveriders would score again when Remke sent a pass inside the 18 to Garcia. Garcia bumped into a pair of defenders, but got enough touch on the ball to send it rolling to the net. However, the Keaau keeper turned around and managed to fall on the ball for the save.
With 14 minutes to play before the break, Kealakehe did finally manage to tie the game when a cross found Remke inside the 18. Remke turned and sent a soft touch shot into the top of the net.
In the second half it was the Waveriders who struck quickly, scoring three minutes after the break. A scramble for the ball inside the Keaau 18 produced several Waverider shot attempts. On the last try, the ball found the foot of Breanna Arakawa for the score.
Arakawa wasted little time picking up her second goal of the game, scoring nine minutes into the half to give Kealakehe a two goal advantage.
“Breanna has had some injuries so we have had to selectively player here, but when we do she always brings the intensity up,” Evans said. “She is very driven to score and loves to attack.”
The scoring continued for Kealakehe five minutes later as Remke picked up her second goal of the game. Remke took the ball out wide and sent a laser, on a narrow angle, into the far side of the net. The Waveriders now had complete control of the game up 4-1.
Keaau cut into the deficit at the midway point of the half. On a breakaway, Yamamoto outdistanced herself from the nearest Waverider defender as she broke on a bee line from the middle of the pitch. The Kealakehe keeper game out to try to cut her off, but despite deflecting the ball, Yamamoto picked up her second score of the game.
It didn’t take Kealakehe long to get the goal back. Less than two minutes later, Remke found the back of the net for her third goal, which gave her team a 5-2 lead in the afternoon game.
“Helen is a very versatile player, a good leader and she brings a calm to the team under pressure,” Evans said. “She is one of our captains and she, as well as our other captains, have really worked hard to bring this team together and to lead them and keep them focus, which is hard to do with a young group. Helen has been playing a long time, is very composed and a very solid player.”
Boys
Kealakehe 10, Keaau 1
The Waveriders jumped out to an 8-0 lead over the Cougars on Wednesday, led by two-time BIIF Player of the Year Laukoa Santos, who scored four goals. He also picked up an assist.
Keaau’s Daniel Vierra broke the Kealakehe scoring streak with a late first half goal, but the Waveriders added a ninth goal before the break and then ended the game early when Jon Takahashi scored off an assist by Iokepa Perez-Juarez-Aponte with 38:15 left on the clock.
Five other Kealakehe players scored in the game.
