Hawai'i goalies proliferate in West Coast Conference

By Dennis Anderson
Advertiser Staff Writer

For the final month of the season, three starting goalkeepers on the West Coast Conference's seven men's soccer teams were from Hawai'i.

Gonzaga goalkeeper Mike McCarthy was chosen all-conference. Photo courtesy Zero Gravity Photography

And St. Mary's junior Keali'i Kuehu (Castle '00) was kind of surprised to be on the field.

After an outstanding two years at Yuba (community) College, Kuehu signed with St. Mary's last spring even though the Gaels already had two journeymen keepers on their roster.

"The keepers that were going to be in front of me were great keepers and I wanted to learn from them," Kuehu explained.

But projected starting keeper Kellan Wilson blew out his knee last summer and backup Dave Wilkinson broke his wrist on the second day of camp.

Kuehu might have been elevated to starter right then, but he, too, was injured. He tore his right groin and was sidelined until late October.

When Kuehu returned, he was the starter, not the understudy, despite a shoulder injury. "Instead of learning by watching, I learned by playing," Kuehu said.

That can be an uphill battle. St. Mary's was 1-4 with Kuehu in goal and 3-9-3 with others, which included a field player for a while.

"Every day he improved; every day he worked harder," coach Stephan Rammel said of Kuehu. "The pace of Division I is a lot faster than junior college. The players are bigger, stronger and faster."

McCarthy led the WCC in saves with 6.07 per game and allowed 1.43 goals per game. Sthay was second in goals allowed at 0.81 and had five shutouts in 15 games. Kuehu allowed 2.22 goals per game.

In the Hawai'i round-robin, Sthay beat McCarthy, 1-0, McCarthy and Kuehu tied 1-1, and Sthay beat Kuehu, 2-1.

St. Mary's two hotshot keepers return next season, but that doesn't bother Kuehu. "If I train with the best, I can become one of the best," he said.

MORE SOCCER

• Southern Methodist

Freshman Duke Hashimoto (Iolani 2002, of Kapolei) was named a 2002 high school All-American and 2002 boys High School Player of the Year for Hawai'i by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America after he graduated from high school and finished his freshman college season.

The reason for that, explained Craig Bohnert, assistant executive director of the NSCAA, is that the team is announced each December because more than 40 states play high school soccer in the fall, ending their seasons in November.

But the Hawai'i season, and a handful of others, runs from November to February and ends after the All-America teams are announced. Players from those states are honored on the following year's team.

• York (Neb.)

Sophomore forward Bobby Shinn (Pearl City '01) was chosen first-team all-region in the National Christian Colleges Athletic Association and second-team All-Midlands Conference in the NAIA. Shinn was York's leading scorer with 10 goals, 10 assists and 30 points in the regular season. York finished 13-8-2.