By KEVIN JAKAHI Tribune-Herald sports writer ADVERTISING HONOKAA — Part-time senior striker Katie Aguilar made the most of her opportunities, relying on her speed to get Honokaa off to a good start before moving back to her old job, where
By KEVIN JAKAHI
Tribune-Herald sports writer
HONOKAA — Part-time senior striker Katie Aguilar made the most of her opportunities, relying on her speed to get Honokaa off to a good start before moving back to her old job, where she’s just as dangerous.
On Senior Day, Aguilar made herself a good memory in her last home game Tuesday, scoring two early goals to spark the Dragons over Parker 6-0 in a Big Island Interscholastic Federation Division II girls soccer playoff match, clinching a state tournament berth.
Honokaa (8-5) advances to the BIIF semifinals against Kamehameha (7-3-2), which beat the Dragons 1-0 earlier in the season. The Dragons have finished BIIF Division II runner-up to Hawaii Preparatory Academy the last two years.
It’s no surprise the home team is going to states. Honokaa has been to the Division II state tournament all six years since statewide classification in 2007.
The Dragons have never won the BIIF title, but are built for the long haul with a lot of underclassmen. Aguilar, Jadelyn Halican, Danielle Warren and Cydne Correia are the only seniors.
After Aguilar’s seventh goal of the year, sophomore midfielder Allie Shiraki scored three straight goals, giving her 11 for the season. Sophomore striker Elizabeth Aguirre capped the scoring with seven minutes left with her fourth goal of the year.
“I thought we played OK. We need to play better on Thursday (against Kamehameha),” Honokaa coach Gerald Shiraki said. “We played hard, but we need to improve our passing. We tried to pass out of the back and lost a lot of possessions that way. We have to improve in holding the ball and working our way down the field. We need to pass better and possess more.”
Honokaa junior Kaiu Freitas-Lau recorded three saves to post the shutout against the Bulls (2-10-1), who have only one senior, Marit Winborne, on their 14-player roster. The small private school from Waimea was outshot 26-3.
“Their speed gave us trouble. They spread us out on offense. That’s what you want to do. On defense you want to do the opposite,” Parker coach Kapono Pieper said. “We’re a young team. Hopefully we grow in a few years, and can compete a little stronger.
“Aolani (Pieper) is the player with the most control for us, and Marie Jobes is our strongest on defense. She’s about 6 feet and has got physicality. We need a few more girls like that.”
On both scores, Aguilar outraced the defense down the left flank, dribbled briefly to get herself into good shooting position and fired away.
“I couldn’t have done it without my teammates,” she said. “I do it for them. I’m ready to go to states. I felt really good today. Usually I play defense. But coach (Gerald Shiraki) decided to put me atop. It was a good opportunity for me and great way to end my senior year at home.
“I run cross country and do track but soccer is my favorite sport. We lost 1-0 to Kamehameha. They got by us. It’ll be a good game. I think it’ll be up and up.”
With five minutes left in the first half, Shiraki dribbled past two defenders, but was tripped in the penalty box. Her shot was a rocket to the upper corner for a 3-0 lead.
Four minutes into the second half, Shiraki showed good shooting touch, chipping a ball 25 yards out that went over the goalie’s head and curled right inside of the crossbar. About 25 minutes later, Shiraki displayed her trapping skills, settling the ball before sticking in her third goal.
“I’m happy for us,” she said. “We’ve worked hard the whole season. We’ll try our best to get that BIIF championship. We’ve got to work hard and push 110 percent.”
In the second half, Aguilar moved to sweeper, replacing Aguirre, who’s just as fast and exhibited the same offensive skill set. Aguirre dribbled from the top of the penalty box, took a right turn, stopped the ball on a dime and negotiated a tough angle that went in.
“We mixed it up. Both give different looks and are fast,” Honokaa first-year coach Shiraki said. “Offensively we got the job done. A lot of the year we had difficulty finishing. It’s nice to see us finish.”
