Mililani beats Kamehameha, 1-0, to win state boys soccer

By Wes Nakama
Advertiser Staff Writer

WAILUKU, Maui — Whitney Shimatsu scored on a header in the 68th minute last night to lift the Mililani High School boys soccer team to a 1-0 victory over Kamehameha and its second straight state championship at War Memorial Stadium.

Shimatsu's goal came off a corner kick from Ryan Kau.

"Every time we get a corner kick, we think we're gonna score," Shimatsu said. "Ryan served it up perfect, right over their defense. That was the plan."

On the previous play, a Kamehameha defender had chased down a ball that was bouncing toward goalkeeper Zach McAngus and kicked it past the end line to give the Trojans (15-0) their corner opportunity. Two Mililani forwards were nearby.

"Having been a former defender, I think that was the smart play," Warriors coach Andrew Ah New said. "When there's any uncertainty, you should just kick it out."

That set up the winning play, which Trojans coach Jeff Yamamoto said was drawn up by assistant Steve McGehee.

"Any set play — corner kick, throw-in, direct kick — I rely on him," Yamamoto said. "He's the mastermind of it."

Said Ah New: "(Kau) hit it to the right spot, because we had all our tall guys in front and he served it over them to the middle. It was an excellent play."

The rest of the game was a see-saw struggle in which Mililani outshot Kamehameha 4-1 in the first half, with the Warriors coming back to record seven shots in the second half. Trojans goalkeeper Tommy Brown, however, made three second-half saves and Kamehameha (12-2-2) managed only two shots after Shimatsu's goal.

The Warriors had outshot Baldwin 19-7 in Friday night's semifinals, but found it tough to execute with the same efficiency against Mililani.

"We were looking for the 'A' game we had last night, but it looked like (the Trojans) brought their 'A' game," Ah New said. "The way they played tonight, they closed off all our lanes. It was like a semi-man (defense), and we couldn't get the ball going wide. They intercepted a lot of balls. We also didn't take advantage of the wind in the first half, which they were able to do in the second."

Yamamoto said much of the defensive credit should go to sophomore Justin Kim, who drew the assignment of neutralizing the Warriors' stellar midfielder, sophomore David Gualdarama.

"I played with David on (Olympic Development) and HYSA teams, and he's a great player," Kim said. "We're real good friends, so it's special to play against him. My task was to try to shut him down and help take control of the middle. Our outside halfbacks are hard workers and are quick, and they played a big role in this, too. And we always know we can count on Tommy back there. That's how we got the 'W.' "

Brown, who was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, posted shutouts in each of Mililani's three games.

THIRD PLACE

• Baldwin 1, Hilo 0: Keola Nobriga scored from 25 yards out a minute into the second half as Baldwin defeated Hilo.

Bears goalkeeper Shen Deshayne made several saves to secure the win.

FIFTH PLACE

• Kaiser 2, Campbell 1: Chad Jamieson and Landon Beers scored goals as Kaiser edged Campbell.

Beers finished the tournament with five goals.

Rocky Otsuka Jr. scored Campbell's goal in the 79th minute.

CONSOLATION FINAL

• Seabury Hall 0, Moanalua 0: Seabury Hall and Moanalua played to a scoreless tie at the end of regulation, and ended that way because of time restrictions.