KAILUA-KONA – Their practice shirt says “Never be satisfied,” but on Saturday night the Hilo Vikings were over the moon.
KAILUA-KONA – Their practice shirt says “Never be satisfied,” but on Saturday night the Hilo Vikings were over the moon.
One could tell by the multiple and loud screams echoing around Waverider Stadium as the Vikings celebrated Saturday night after the BIIF girls soccer championships.
In retrospect, it was probably someone else who should have been screaming. Hilo looks to have scary potential.
“At the beginning of the year, everyone underestimated us,” Haley Miyasato said.
Back then, first-year coach Skee Saplan wasn’t sure what his expectation level should be for the Vikings’ freshman-laden bunch.
He does now, and the rest of BIIF got a good idea of what it’s up against the next three seasons.
There were no growing pains for the Vikings. They got it right and went undefeated on their first try, edging Waiakea 2-1 in the Division I final, giving Hilo its first BIIF title since 2011 — back when the nucleus of the present day Vikings was in the fourth grade.
“I didn’t expect this,” Saplan said. “The girls just practice hard, they play hard for me and whatever I ask they do, and that’s why we end up where we are.
“I knew it was going to be battle. Waiakea and us played with a lot of heart.”
Of course, Hilo (11-0-0) got its goals from freshmen, Miya Clarke and Miyasato, who scored the go-ahead goal in the 62nd minute.
Saplan regularly trots out eight freshman starters, with more coming off the bench for support. If Clarke and Miyasato aren’t the ones creating scoring chances, then freshman Jordyn Pacheco is. If an opponent breaks through the defense, then Saydee Bacdad is about as stellar a goalkeeper as you could hope for when dealing with a freshman.
“This season we’ve been building up,” Bacdad said. “The closer we got to here, the better we played.”
Most of the ninth-graders are familiar with each other having played together and made trips to the mainland on Saplan’s club team.
“I think we were able to adapt to each other,” Bacdad said. “We’ve been building a really good friendship.”
It was the second consecutive heartbreaking one-goal loss in finals for the Warriors (7-3-1) and their four seniors – Starcia-Lee DePonte, Tori Teanio, Kadara Marshall and Cierra Toledo-Muragin. Last season, Jason Nakayama’s team lost in penalty kicks to Konawaena on the same field. Waiakea is still without a girl soccer title.
“It really is a tough loss,” Nakayama said. “I just hope they can hold their heads high and continue to play hard. We fell short again. Hopefully, we can rebuild again and come back.”
The match was evenly played, with each team taking six shots.
Kiana Corpuz scored for the Warriors to tie the game in the 60th minute, and though Saplan saw some of his players’ heads drop, his young bunch quickly responded.
“I just saw an opening,” said Miyasato, who broke in alone on Waiakea’s goalkeeper and slotted a shot into the net.
It didn’t escape her attention that next season the Vikings will face the burden of heightened expectations.
“Our team likes to better ourselves with hard challenges and do better,” she said.
Hilo will take that philosophy to HHSAA Division I tournament, which is annually a tough road to hoe for BIIF teams. Waiakea will make is second consecutive appearance at a tournament that runs Feb. 17-20 at Oahu’s Waipio Peninsula Soccer Complex.
“I never want to think that we really belong,” Saplan said. “We’ve still got so much room to grow.
“The girls are humble and grounded. I don’t think they now what they are capable of. The potential is crazy.”