When Nanea Wong Yuen was younger, there were whispers that she, athletically speaking, was the chosen one in her family.
She tried other sports growing up, but none stuck other than soccer.
As a sixth-grader, Wong Yuen was on a family trip to Japan when the ohana learned her older sister, Kekai, was honored as BIIF Division II girls player of the year.
“She was definitely a role model for me, on and off the field,” she said. “That was definitely a goal. Seeing her accomplishments made me want to work up to that.”
Minus the international backdrop and roughly six years later, the Kamehameha senior was at club soccer practice earlier this week when she was informed that she had.
A Wong Yuen is the one again in BIIF D-II.
“I have no words, honestly, my (club) coach told me in front of my whole team,” Wong Yuen said. “Just proud.
“I’m proud of every single player on (Kamehameha). This wouldn’t have been possible without them.”
And it’s almost scary to think where the Warriors would have been without her.
In specializing in one sport — unlike Kekai, who also was a softball standout — Nanea carved out a multifaceted role all her own as the backbone of the defense at center back.
“Because I was a senior and captain and I was looked up to, I definitely put a lot of pressure on my back,” she said.
Her form was fine, even as she was trying to be two places at once.
It wasn’t just that Wong Yuen was trying to prevent goals, it’s that she was doing so for a team that was somewhat offensively challenged. Oh, by the way, she also had to lend a hand if the Warriors were going to score, often on set pieces.
Under her leadership, she scored more goals, two, than the Warriors allowed, one, in finishing 3-0-3 and beating longtime nemesis Hawaii Prep for the league title. That gave her a bookend crown. She was a freshman starter on the 2019 championship team.
At February’s state tournament, where the Warriors lost in the semifinals, Wong Yuen tallied a team-high third goal.
First-year coach Steven Cootey’s first priority was defense all season.
“I think she made everybody confident, including myself, in the back, because she was able to defend so well,” said Cootey, the league’s coach of the year. “She saved us in some big moments. She’s definitely a competitor and doesn’t like to lose, and she brought that to training, which improved our practices and helped the entire team.”
Her three older siblings, all of whom also went to Kamehameha, only served to fuel her competitiveness.
“Growing up, my family was athletic, and they said I’d be the better athlete. Putting me on the spot,” Wong Yuen said.
She never left a Warrior teammate in a bad spot, her coach said.
“I’m most proud of the person she is and the teammate she was,” Cootey said. “She did well to include everyone on the team.”
In a return-to-play season, Kamehameha and HPA were the only D-II teams. The Warriors garnered seven first-team selections, including Sophia Wilson, Teija Moses, Raeshalyn Respicio, Jane-Grace Cootey, Kehaunani Yamanoha and goalkeeper Kaylia Galindo, who collected five shutouts. From HPA, Jordan Perry, Catie Moynahan, Emily Thompson and Dani Rojas Castelblanco were honored.
Wong Yuen has no doubts Kamehameha’s returning talent can lead the Warriors to a state championship next season, but she’s off to play in NCAA Division II at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. The campus is a stone’s throw away from Colorado College, where Kekai attended before enrolling at UH-Manoa’s law school. Nanea plans to study criminal justice and eventually go into law enforcement.
“We visited (the area) a few times and I loved it,” she said. “I’ve done tournaments there, I and I just like the environment. When I got the (scholarship) offer to play and visited, I loved the school and the campus, and the team, especially. It’s just a great fit for me.”
All-BIIF soccer, Division II girls
Player of the year: Nanea Wong Yuen, Kamehameha
Coach of the year: Steven Cootey, Kamehameha
First team
Dani Rojas Castelblanco Hawaii Prep 10 Forward
Sophia Wilson Kamehameha 11 Forward
Teija Moses Kamehameha 10 Midfield
Catie Moynahan Hawaii Prep 12 Midfield
Raeshalyn Respicio Kamehameha 12 Midfield
Jane-Grace Cootey Kamehameha 11 Midfield
Emily Thompson Hawaii Prep 12 Defender
Kehaunani Yamanoha Kamehameha 11 Defender
Jordan Perry Hawaii Prep 12 Defender
Nanea Wong Yuen Kamehameha 12 Defender
Kaylia Galindo Kamehameha 12 Goalkeeper
Honorable mention
Hawaii Prep: Sarah Kiernan, senior; Caroline Betlach, sophomore; Nohea Lansdale, freshman
Kamehameha: Tabitha Pacheco, Kamehameha; Kelcie Aniu, senior
