St. Louis Boys Varsity Soccer Notches 3-2 Win
by Al Linsky
There are two HHSAA championship berths available for boys soccer in the ILH plus the chance to get in on a playoff. St. Louis is not usually considered as a "good chance" to get one of these coveted berths, but with a strong performance on Tuesday at Iolani field, this may change.
The weather couldn't have been any better for soccer. It was a bit cool, but sunny with a slight breeze.
Perfect!
It was the Crusaders of St. Louis vs. the Raiders of 'Iolani. The Crusaders are always a tough team. Big and fast. With that football heritage, would you expect anything different? The Raiders typically try to win with finesse and speed. It shaped up to be a good match.
For the first 35 minutes there was no scoring. The Raiders had the field position advantage and outshot the Crusaders, with some of those shots being very close, but just missing doesn't work in soccer.
At 35 minutes, Nick Goo got the Raiders on the board, 1-0.
The pattern then returned, with the Raiders remaining mostly in control, but no more scoring until about 24 minutes of the second half. St. Louis was awarded a penalty shot. Raider goalie, Chris Otani, made a strong move to try to save it anticipating which way it would go, but guessed wrong on the strong, accurate shot. 1-1.
The Raiders continued to control the game until 12 minutes later when the Crusaders put together a nice rush on a two on one that resulted in a pretty goal. 2-1, Crusaders.
A hand ball penalty five minutes later set up the Crusaders for a direct kick from about 35 yards. The shot had eyes and curved into the right side of the net. It was 3-1 for the Crusaders and time running out.
At the finish, Kevin Fung was able to get one back for the Raiders. The final score was 3-2 for a big Crusader win. Crusader goal scorers were Keenan Ho (he had two) and Sade Spencer.
It was a great win for the Crusaders and hopefully only a bump in the road to the HHSAA Championship Tournament for the Raiders.
JV Girls Soccer Falls To Punahou, 4-1
by Al Linsky
The rain just couldn't stay away for more than a couple of days, but at least it didn't rain the whole game, just a few showers, some pretty hard though.
The JV team has been plagued by rainouts, so it was good to finally get in a real game.
The first 14 minutes saw no scoring, but play was mostly in the Raiders' end which wasn't a good sign.
At 14 minutes, the Punahou right forward made a nice move to get around the 'Iolani defense and made it all the way to the goal. 1-0, Punahou.
At 25 minutes, Punahou was called for a penalty that resulted in a penalty shot for the Raiders. Jen Kiyotoki took the shot and easily scored to the right side. 1-1.
Play continued mostly in the Raider end but there was no more scoring until 12 minutes of the second when the Puns got right in front. 2-1, Puns.
Four minutes later, the Puns scored of a nicely placed corner kick, 3-1.
With only a few minutes left, the Puns were able to get a breakaway as the Raiders had pressed up trying frantically to get back in the game. 4-1, Puns.
To see more photos, please visit iolani-events.org.
