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The Honolulu Advertiser

Posted on: Saturday, October 18, 2003

Kai's hat trick leads UH over Fresno St.

By Kyle Sakamoto
Advertiser Staff Writer

NATASHA KAI

University of Hawai'i women's soccer coach Pinsoom Tenzing has his team right where he wants it for this season and for next.

Meanwhile, Fresno State coach Stacy Welp thinks the Rainbow Wahine are "classless."

Natasha Kai scored a hat trick as Hawai'i beat Fresno State, 3-0, in a Western Athletic Conference match last night at Waipi'o Peninsula Soccer Stadium.

The win guarantees Hawai'i (12-4-1, 6-1) will finish among the top two in the nine-team conference and receive a first-round bye in the WAC Tournament, Nov. 6-8 in Dallas.

"I can't overemphasize how important it is to get the bye," Tenzing said. "It's hard to win three games in three days (in the WAC Tournament)."

Hawai'i also will host next year's WAC Tournament by virtue of finishing among the top two in the conference this season.

After the match Welp accused Kai of spitting on Regina Esparza toward the end of the match.

Kai confirmed a Fresno State player was spat on, but added: "That wasn't me. I'm not going to say anything."

A reporter later approached Esparza to confirm if she had been spat on, and she said "it was (Hawai'i forward) Arlene Devitt, I don't know what number she is."

Esparza said she was spat on "15 times" during the match.

"That's just classless and it's unfortunate because they have a very talented club," Welp said.

No player was reprimanded by the referees for spitting.

"It's unfortunate the referees didn't call it," Welp said.

Devitt was unavailable for comment after the match.

Kai's first goal came at 2:28 when Bulldogs goalkeeper Jeannette Paine missed played a long shot by kicking the ball straight up in the air off her knee. Kai one-timed the ball into the net from 23 yards with her left foot.

"She mishandled the ball and I was there to pick it up and put it away," Kai said.

Kai's second goal came at 14:43 when defender Kristyn Kellogg's header back to Paine was too short and intercepted by Kai, who scored into an open net.

"We certainly had two defensive miscues on the first two goals," Welp said. "You can't give up mistakes like that and expect to stay in the game."

Kai scored her final goal at 76:30 off assists from Liz Lusk and Kalena Eaton.

Fresno State (6-7-2, 3-3) had 11 shots on goal, while Hawai'i managed only five. UH goalkeeper Mahie Atay made nine saves.

"Mahie did a tremendous job, she had a monster game," Tenzing said. "Part of that was we got easy goals in the beginning and we were a little looser in the middle of the field and they were taking long shots."

The Rainbows matched the 1999 squad (12-7-1) for the most wins in a season.

Reach Kyle Sakamoto at ksakamoto@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8041.