Early goal gives Kamehameha first win over Iolani since 2012

The Warriors celebrate after Tatum Kauka's goal in the sixth minute. Michael Lasquero | SL

At least Kamehameha's class of 2018 will know how it feels to beat Iolani on the soccer field.

Senior Tatum Kauka scored off a corner kick in the sixth minute and the Warriors beat the host Raiders, 1-0, Friday in Interscholastic League of Honolulu girls' soccer at Kozuki Stadium.

The Warriors improved to 4-0 in handing the Raiders (2-1-1) their first loss of the season. It was the second goal allowed by Iolani this season.

D'awncey Jones-Black's corner kick was first hit by another Warriors player, but was deflected by an Iolani defender. Kauka made the goal from about six yards off the deflection.

The win was Kamehameha's first against Iolani since the Feb. 4, 2012, when the Warriors won, 1-0, for the state title. There have been eight ties along the way during a 14-game stretch, but the Warriors finally snapped the winless streak.

"I think it's been five years since we beat them," Kauka said. "So this was a big one for us. It feels so great."

"Getting a win during the ILH season against them is huge," Warriors coach Missy Moore said. "It's good because the ILH is so competitive. Any time you can get a win against a great team — and they're a great team — you got to be happy with that."

The lone goal came early against an Iolani team that has been struggling to score. With the graduation of last year's All-Hawaii Offensive Player of the Year Kylee Kim-Bustillos, the young Raiders — the 21-player roster has 13 sophomores and five juniors — are looking for someone to find the back of the net consistently.

"The whole preseason we've been struggling," Raiders coach Kristin Masunaga said. "We just can't seem to find a way to score or even get good chances, really. We struggled against Punahou, zero, zero. We struggled against Mililani in preseason. Everybody. Even against Mid-Pac, we didn't score that many goals."

The Raiders beat MPI, 4-1, and Sacred Hearts, 5-0.

The early lead was big for Kamehameha, which has recorded shutouts in all four games.

"It was very important for us to get on them early," Moore said. "That sometimes sets the pace of the game. We wanted to get a jump start on them, get a lead early and hopefully maintain that. We would had like to try to put some more away, but we're very happy with what we got."

Kauka's goal marked the first time Iolani had trailed this season.

"I thought we played harder once they scored," Masunaga said. "But we have a lot to work on. I think they're far from their potential. They're very young. Thirteen sophomores, five juniors, three seniors. The majority of our starters are sophomores."

While the Raiders defense kept the Warriors off the board the last 74 minutes, Iolani's offensive attack was stymied by Kamehameha's defense. Jones-Black, an offensive weapon who does the Warriors' corner kicks, made some nice plays on the defensive side. Just before the half, an Iolani player was trying to set up a cross, but Jones-Black came sliding in the break up the play. It was one example of how Kamehameha stopped Iolani from setting up its attacks.

"I just play for the girls and protect the house," Jones-Black said.

Added Moore: "Offensively, she adds that scary factor to the opposing defense. She's not just an offensive player for us. She's also a very good defensive player for us, so we have to utilize her in multiple positions and we will continue to do that the rest of the year."

Up next for the Warriors is Punahou (2-0-1), while Iolani will play Pac-Five (1-2), both on Dec. 14.

Reach Stacy Kaneshiro at [email protected].