By KEVIN JAKAHI Tribune-Herald sports writer ADVERTISING Johnathan Perez’s instinctive nose finds the ball and his happy feet finish the job, a nice pair of attributes that have served undefeated Hilo well with a looming showdown around the corner. The
By KEVIN JAKAHI
Tribune-Herald sports writer
Johnathan Perez’s instinctive nose finds the ball and his happy feet finish the job, a nice pair of attributes that have served undefeated Hilo well with a looming showdown around the corner.
The senior striker scored twice in the Vikings’ 2-1 victory over Waiakea in a key Big Island Interscholastic Federation Division I boys soccer match Thursday at the Warriors field, running his team’s record to 6-0.
In the first half, Perez was stuck in a crowd and backheeled the ball in for a score. He was again in the right place at the right time in the second half, when he slammed in a rebound for his 11th goal of the season.
Perez’ output was enough to hold off a late charge by the Warriors (3-3), who got their only score with 10 minutes left on Cameron Boucher’s penalty kick. Two minutes later, Nuu Aiava almost tied it, but his shot roared over the crossbar by roughly six feet, the last really good scoring chance.
Hilo plays at Kohala (1-6) on Saturday, at Makua Lani next Wednesday before a critical match at Kealakehe (5-0) on Jan. 14, potentially setting the matchups for the four-team BIIF Division I tournament.
The No. 1 seed will likely play No. 4 Keaau (2-4) for a Division I state tourney spot. It’s the same deal with Waiakea against either the defending BIIF champion Viks or the Waveriders, last season’s runner-up.
“There are three good Division I teams, us, Kealakehe and Waiakea. It’s a shame there are three and only two go to states,” said Hilo coach Don Memmer, booting the old “one-game-at-a-time” cliché. “I like the East-West schedule because we get to play everybody, which helps. The problem is we all go to Kealakehe, us, Keaau and Waiakea.”
Still, Hilo looked finely tuned, outshooting its opponent by a good 18-11 margin, despite engaging in a style of play that Memmer termed “physical” and Waiakea coach David Urakami called “a football game.”
“It turned into a football game instead of a soccer match. That’s because of our team,” said Urakami, whose team fell to Kealakehe 2-1. “We were too hyped up for the match and didn’t play our game of soccer.”
Whatever the case, the round ball didn’t roll well on Waiakea’s mud spots and high grass, turning a field-position battle of airballs into a bumper-car contest. And like football, the beauty of holding play in the other team’s half is more scoring opportunities.
That’s when Perez swooped in and made something happen.
“That backheel was lucky. I was in a little scrum, stayed on it, got the backheel to go in,” he said. “I never did that before. It’s a great feeling. The second one was a great shot by Mikah Hatcher. It was on frame and I was lucky to be on it and clean it up.”
Perez has worked his way into a new role as Hilo’s scoring ace. He saw spot duty as a freshman and sophomore, got increased playing last season and finished with nine goals.
His team-leading 11 goals haven’t come by accident, according to Memmer.
“He doesn’t have blazing speed, but he has nice control of the ball and he finishes,” Memmer said. “He’s got a nose for the goal and he finds a way to score.”
Nice attributes and all, but neither the defining one for Perez, whose humility highlights his every sentence while explaining his scoring ability.
“I do get a lot more playing time,” he said. “The team always helps me for goals. I can’t be anything without them.”
Kamehameha 1, Christian Liberty 1: At Paie’a Stadium, Chance Aguiar-Chartrand scored off an assist from Colton Hill in the first half for the Warriors (4-4-1).
Jairah Chun-Lai made his first start at goalie for Kamehameha and notched seven saves to earn the tie.
Caeden Cambra scored the Canefire (2-0-2) in the second half.
Girls
Waiakea 2, Hilo 2: In the first half, Rose Nakamura scored twice, once on a midfield breakaway, for the Vikings (4-2-2).
Tiani Teanio scored right before halftime, and Teisha Nacis scored on a direct kick from 25 yards out for the Warriors (4-1-2).
“It was a tough game,” Waiakea coach JoBette Nabarro said. “I’m glad we came back and tied it.”
Hawaii Prep 7, St. Joseph 0: Sophomore Nanea Tavares collected her eighth and ninth goals of the season, and senior Katie Case also scored twice for Ka Makani in its road victory.
Juniors Emily Evans and Jessica Benioni, and freshman Bri Vallente added a goal apiece for two-time defending BIIF Division II champion HPA (6-0).
Senior Hannah Unger and sophomore Morgan Monahan combined to blank the Cardinals (0-7) in goal.
Wednesday
* Kealakehe 9, Kohala 0: Junior Kari Van Mols and senior McKenna Davidson each scored their ninth and 10th goals of the season, and senior Brittany Denzer scored her first two goals for the host Waveriders in a match that ended at halftime because of the BIIF’s nine-goal mercy rule.
Senior Rachael Bianchi added her fourth goal, while senior Kyonna McDonald and junior Caili Ebaniz both found the net for the first time for Kealakehe (7-0).
Sophomore Sulley Schuster and freshman Lexie Cuaresma combined to blank the Cowgirls (1-7).
