Kalani shuts down previously unbeaten Moanalua

Ten Kurokawa celebrates wtith teammates Lucas Wright and Maka Monaghan after scoring a first half goal in a win over Moanalua. Brien Ing | SL

Kalani knocked off Moanalua from the ranks of the unbeatens with a resounding 7-0 home win on Saturday afternoon.

"It always comes down to who wanted it more, and this time we wanted it and it showed," said defender Jensen Fuse.

Ten Kurokawa scored twice in the first half, part of four goal outburst, and the Falcons defense did the rest, keeping a clean sheet for the fifth straight game.

"I think we were strong in the back, we were confident too. We play as a team and I think that helped us keep the clean sheet," remarked Fuse.

Na Menehune, which had outscored its opponents by a 27-0 margin so far this season, gave up the most goals since surrendering eight against the Falcons back on Dec. 29, 2018.

Speed was the name of the game for Kalani, particularly on the wings, as the Falcons' midfielders consistently put their wings, who seemed a touch faster than the Na Moanalua defense, in favorable spots in the attacking half.

The good news for Kalani, but maybe bad for its opponents, this output was enjoyed with the continued absence of MF Ethan Senter.

"Missing Senter is a big problem for us, since he is our goal scorer but other players like Ten (Kurokawa) and Lucas (Wright) stepped up. We were pretty good attacking-wise without Senter but when he comes back we'll be way better," said Fuse.

Fuse kept his scoring streak alive with an indirect free kick that bounded over the leaping keeper and bounced in for a score midway through the second half.

"My job is to defend, but helping the team to score is also my job so I was pretty happy with that," laughed Fuse. "I'll keep trying to score goals going forward."

Maka Monaghan scored his first two goals of the season and the Falcons also got scores from Lucas Wright and Taiki Kobayashi in the win.

The win by Kalani sets up a dream matchup with unbeaten rival Kaiser on Jan. 22 at Kaiser Stadium.