To submit a BIIF student-athlete spotlight candidate, email kjakahi@hawaiitribune-herald.com or call 930-7331.
By KEVIN JAKAHI
Tribune-Herald sports writer
Hawaii Academy of Arts & Science junior Cassidy Dixon got a rare opportunity on Wednesday, scoring a goal and also stopping one.
The Na Naia goalie stopped a penalty kick, and later scored on a penalty kick in a 3-1 loss to Kohala in a Big Island Interscholastic Federation Division II boys soccer match in Kapaau.
The goal scorers for the Cowboys (2-7) were not reported.
It’s the second year in the BIIF for HAAS (0-5-1), which tied winless Ka’u earlier in the season.
HAAS, a charter school in Pahoa with about 100 high school students, is less than a mile away from the Daggers. Last season, the roster was 19 strong, including seven girls.
The loss to Kohala was rather damaging, keeping the Na Naia ninth in the Division II standings. The BIIF Division II tourney takes the top eight.
At least Na Naia can take comfort in Dixon’s determination to sharpen his game, playing for club teams and attending camps during the offseason.
He played on a Hawaii Youth Soccer Association team that competed in the State Cup on Oahu, where he was spotted by the Kaoi Cyclones, who invited him to be a guest player.
Dixon has spent his past three summers with the Cyclones, traveling last March to a showcase in Las Vegas, where the team finished fifth out of 22 clubs.
He also works out with a personal goalie coach and has received instruction from former UH-Hilo assistant Brian Suskiewicz and Vulcan goalkeepers. Dixon recently attended a soccer camp in Honokaa, where well-known local coach Bob Barry was the guest clinician.
Dixon is also holding a 4.0 grade-point average. His hard work in the classroom and field have not gone unnoticed.
He was recently sent a recruitment email from Husson University, a Division III school in Bangor, Maine, where the Hilo All-Stars won the Senior League World Series this past summer.
“That was awesome to get that recognition,” said his father Corey Dixon.
To submit a BIIF student-athlete spotlight candidate, email kjakahi@hawaiitribune-herald.com or call 930-7331.