By KEVIN JAKAHI Tribune-Herald sports writer ADVERTISING Nakaya Kerr’s relentless energy and Kekoa Mundo’s marking prowess proved to be valuable weapons for Christian Liberty in a boys playoff soccer match against Hawaii Prep that tilted back and forth for 80
By KEVIN JAKAHI
Tribune-Herald sports writer
Nakaya Kerr’s relentless energy and Kekoa Mundo’s marking prowess proved to be valuable weapons for Christian Liberty in a boys playoff soccer match against Hawaii Prep that tilted back and forth for 80 exhausting minutes.
Kerr scored one goal and set up another while Mundo shut down one of the league’s most prolific scorers in the Canefire’s 2-1 victory over HPA in the Big Island Interscholastic Federation Division II semifinals on Thursday at Amauulu Field, earning them a state berth.
Christian Liberty (9-3-3) plays Honokaa (15-0) at 5 p.m. Friday at Keaau High’s stadium for the BIIF championship.
HPA (9-6) plays Makua Lani (7-7-1) at 3 p.m. Friday at Keaau for the league’s third berth to the Division II state tournament.
The Canefire continued their cycle of going to states every other year. They first went in 2008, next appeared in 2010 and qualified for the third time behind an aggressive defensive effort that neutralized Ka Makani junior Martynas Golubovskis, who entered the game with 19 goals.
“That was Kekoa’s job today,” Christian Liberty coach Troy Rimel said. “Kekoa’s a big kid and he’s really strong. He and Keenan Freitas anchored the middle well.”
HPA coach Rich Braithwaite was impressed with the lockdown job on his ace scorer. His team took 13 shots, but just five were on goal against Christian Liberty’s keeper, Taylor Benevente. The Canefire fired away far more frequently, shooting 23 times, 12 on goal — a dozen balls testing goalie John Pezzuto.
“I don’t think Martynas turned even once,” Braithwaite said. “Once he turns and gets a head of steam, he’s really dangerous. I think he’s the most dangerous scorer in the league. Their midfielders tracked back consistently, so we were going five against eight.
“I thought it was gutty performance by us to get a goal at the end. It was pretty much a back-and-forth game.”
Kerr got things started early. Five minutes in, the sophomore striker outhustled a defender to the ball near the goal’s mouth on the left sideline, got himself into good shooting position, and pushed his 15th score on a sharp angle past Pezzuto with the outside of his right foot — a gem of equal parts technical soccer skill and accuracy.
“Most of my goals come from being persistent,” said Kerr, standing 5 feet 6, shorter than all the HPA defenders. “That’s how I play. I keep the pressure on, even if they’re bigger than me. I take them on the best I can.
“I liked how we controlled the ball. We hustled to everything and didn’t give up until the end.”
Kerr can thank the tree in his family’s front yard for his accuracy and the power behind his shots. Despite his size, he puts a wallop on the ball, causing Pezzuto to block and not cleanly catch Kerr’s rockets more than once.
“I aim for a tree in our front yard from 50 to 60 yards out. Out of 20 kicks, I’ll hit it 10 to 15 times,” Kerr said. “That’s how I develop my aim and power. I work on my legs a lot.”
In the second half with seven minutes left, Kerr dribbled past a defender and was ready to unleash another point-blank fastball when he was tripped in the penalty box. He let his brother, freshman Seqouya Kerr, take the penalty kick, which was converted for a 2-0 lead.
Mac Yagi knocked in a rebound shot with less than a minute left for the Ka Makani, who fed Golubovskis opportunities but every time the 6-foot-6 striker turned Mundo, a 6-2 sophomore, was in his face, ready to swat away a scoring opportunity.
“When he got the ball, I didn’t want to let him turn and distribute the balls to the corners,” Mundo said. “He was a tough matchup. He’s strong and he has really good footwork. Honestly, he’s better with his feet than me. On the blocked shots, we were bodying him off the ball.
“We’re the youngest Christian Liberty team to make states and get into the BIIF championship. It feels really good.”
Rimel’s theory on the unusual state appearance cycle is it takes a season to rebuild after losing a bunch of seniors. But this squad is different. There are only five seniors, including just three starters in Benevente, defender Preston Cawagas and midfielder Ian Clark.
“We’re a young team, mostly sophomore and juniors. We hope to do well again next year,” Rimel said.
There’s still unfinished business for both teams on Saturday. Both have something important to play for.
A state berth is on the line for HPA, which has been to states three of the past four years since statewide classification started in 2008. Christian Liberty has its second shot at a BIIF title, losing to Honokaa in 2010.
Kerr knows it won’t be easy against the defending Division II state champion Dragons, who beat the Canefire 4-0 in the regular season.
“We have a chance, as long as we play our game,” he said.
