HHSAA Boys Soccer
Punahou, Kalani cruise in quarters, will meet in D1 semis


  



Thu, Feb 13, 2020 @ Waipio


Final 1st 2nd OT 2OT PK Tot
Kalani (13-4-1) 2 2 - - - 4
Kekaulike (8-3-1) 0 0 - - - 0
K. Oka (28’ 46’)   M. Monaghan (64’)   T. Brubaker (23’)

WAIPAHU — The nightcap of Friday's semifinal doubleheader of The Queen's Medical Center/HHSAA Division I Boys Soccer State Championships will feature two team ranked in the top three of the ScoringLive/Hawaiian Electric Power Rankings.

No. 2 Punahou will look to take another step toward a second straight state title, but standing in its way will be No. 3 Kalani.

The Interscholastic League of Honolulu champion Buffanblu (9-1-1) and Oahu Interscholastic Association runner-up Falcons (13-2-1) play at 7 p.m. Friday and will follow the early semifinal between No. 7 Mililani and No. 9 Waiakea at the Waipio Peninsula Soccer Complex main stadium.

Kalani and Punahou provided bookends to Thursday's quarterfinal round with lopsided wins over Kekaulike and Kaiser, respectively.

Kanta Oka scored a goal in each half to lift the Falcons over Na Alii in the 1 p.m. quarterfinal.

Oka, a senior midfielder, gave his team a 2-0 lead in the 28th minute and stretched it to a 3-0 cushion in the 46th minute. It was his sixth and seventh goals of the season and his first multi-goal game.

Junior midfielder Travis Brubaker netted his team-leading 12th goal in the 23rd minute to open the scoring. Sophomore forward Makahekili Monaghan provided the final goal — his first of the season — in the 64th minute.

The Falcons turned in their sixth clean sheet on defense this year. They were coming off of a 6-1 win over Pearl City Monday.

Kalani will be making its first semifinal appearance since 2016. It had lost in the quarterfinal round in each of the past two seasons.

Maui Interscholastic League runner-up Kekaulike (8-2-1) dropped its first game since Jan. 8 — the only other time it had been shut out this year.

It was the second straight time Na Alii lost in the quarterfinal round; they fell to Mililani, 2-0, in the 2019 tournament. They were seeking their first semifinal appearance since 2018, when it finished fourth overall.

Kekaulike will play Kaiser in a 3 p.m. consolation match Friday at field No. 8.


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Final

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Punahou's Nathan Daehler battles with Kaiser's Sean Caires for possession of the ball during a quarterfinal match of the HHSAA Division I tournament. Daehler scored a goal in the 50th minute for the Buffanblu in the win. Michael Lasquero | SL    Purchase image

Buffanblu cruise past Cougars to reach D1 semis

Four different players scored a goal as the Buffanblu cruised past the Cougars in the late quarterfinal.

Senior midfielder Cole Kawakami got the scoring started with his goal in the 24th minute that was assisted by Dominic Gusman.

Punahou build upon its lead after halftime, but not before an own goal equalized the score just four minutes into the second half. Just two minutes later, however, Treyden Buder-Nakasone gave the Buffanblu the lead for good. The senior defender's third goal of the year was assisted by Jacob Moore.

Sophomore forward Nathan Daehler made it a two-goal lead with his goal in the 50th minute on a breakaway run down the right flank. It was his sixth goal this season, second most of the team.

Senior forward Liam Nichols-Shipley closed out the scoring with an insurance goal in the 58th minute, his third on the year.

Punahou, the tournament's top seed, had not played since Jan. 29, when it lost to Kamehameha — its only defeat this year — and was coming off of a first-round bye Monday.

The Buffanblu have reached the semifinal round of the state tournament every year since 2013. They have won a record 21 state championships in the 46-year history of the tournament.

Kaiser, the third-place team out of the OIA, was seeking its first semifinal appearance since 2017, when it reached the title game but lost to Punahou.

The Cougars (12-2-1) were coming off of a 2-0 win over Hilo in Monday's play-in round.





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