When the Santa Cruz County Breakers 88 soccer team won its third consecutive California state championship on May 3, players, parents and coaches reveled in their advancement to the U.S. Youth Soccer Far West Regionals.

Woo, hoo! We're going to Hawai'i!

That celebration lasted only as long as it took team officials to pay their first online visit to Expedia.

Oh, no! We're going to Hawai'i!

Like every other Far West Region club outside of the Aloha State, the Breakers found the joy of advancement greatly tempered by the reality of skyrocketing air fares.

The tournament, which features 248 teams from 12 states competing for berths in the USYS National Championships in Arkansas, concludes today with many wondering whether the financial burdens shouldered by the participating clubs have damaged Hawai'i's hopes of hosting the tournament again in the near future.

"On one hand, people realize that we submitted the bid (to host the tournament) three years ago and nobody had any idea that Aloha (Airlines) and ATA would go out of business and that gas prices would go over $4 a gallon," said Scott Keopuhiwa, president of the Hawai'i Youth Soccer Association. "On the other hand, some people don't really care. They want to be able to get in their car and drive to Las Vegas or Los Angeles.

"Realistically, it will probably be four or five years before the tournament comes back," Keopuhiwa said. "The expense is so great and (organizers) don't want to burden families too much with the travel expenses."

While HYSA does not financially benefit from hosting the tournament — Keopuhiwa hopes robust concession and souvenir sales will cover the estimated $75,000 to $100,000 the organization will spend to stage the mammoth event — the Far West Regionals is expected to pump roughly $14 million into the local economy.

HYSA does not receive financial support from the state to host the event.

"It's unfortunate that Hawai'i is going to probably suffer some of the pain caused by the economy — which it had nothing to do with," Region IV Cup chairman Tom Mendoth said.

"Bottom line is, it was the economy that caused the problem, not Hawai'i. It's unfortunate that the combination of the two puts a little bad light on having this tournament in Hawai'i."

Hosting privileges are awarded via a bidding process. Mendoth said the two main criteria for selection are having at least 23 soccer fields in no more than two locations, and the ability to provide at least 4,000 hotel rooms for teams and administrators.

The Waipi'o Peninsula Soccer Complex, where this week's games are being played, has 23 fields plus a 4,000-seat stadium.

Based on these criteria, Mendoth said Hawai'i is still a very viable candidate to host the tournament again.

"The positive side is this is the second time in Hawai'i and this tournament is going very well because (HYSA) does a great job hosting this. Once they got here, people (had) a great time and they'll forget about the trouble of getting here."

For some other teams, like the Westside Metro Barca Under-14s of Beaverton, Ore., planning ahead made all the difference.

By the time their season came to a close, Barca parents and coaches knew they were a virtual lock to earn a berth in the regionals either by winning the state championship or earning a wildcard berth. Anticipating rising air fares due to gasoline costs, they made arrangements with a travel agency to reserve round-trip tickets for as low as $500.

"All we had to do was put a deposit down," said Yolanda Coleman, mother of Barca player Ian Coleman. "If we didn't make it, all we'd lose was the deposit."

To cover the expense of the trip, Barca players and parents washed cars, sold entertainment books and held an auction.

"It's a nice way to plan for a family vacation and it's a great opportunity to be with the kids," Coleman said. "Having this tournament in Hawai'i again wouldn't deter us from coming."

The tournament was originally supposed to include 250 girls and boys teams from a dozen states. However, four Nevada teams had to cancel when their deal with a charter company fell through; two teams from Washington withdrew due to cost concerns. Tournament officials were only able to replace four of the teams.

The Santa Cruz Breakers were happy to make it to Hawai'i, though their coaches may yet suffer the financial hangover.

With just six weeks between the state championship and the start of the regionals, and with air fares increasing almost by the day, the Breakers were forced to scramble before the fares rose beyond their financial reach.

Coaches Bob Poser and Bob Evans wound up charging tickets for 19 team members (at a cost of $800 to $1,100 each) on their personal credit cards just to ensure that the team could make the trip.

The team has undertaken a variety of fundraising efforts — from car washes to raffles to concessions — in an effort to cover the debt, but they may well end up short.

"We relied on the generous support of our friends and neighbors — one of them gave us $60 for a car wash just to support the team — but we won't know if it was enough until we get back home," said Dianne Evans, Bob Evans' wife.

She said many of the players work to help support their families.

"It's not easy to ask these guys to pay for all of this," she said.

As it was for most of the participating teams, the Breakers' state association provided limited funding to defray costs, but not nearly enough to cover the team's total expenses.

Dianne Evans stood next to head coach Bob Poser's wife, Elizabeth, as the Breakers fell to Hawai'i's Real Copa, 4-2, on Friday, effectively eliminating the Breakers from contention after just two games (they lost to Arizona's Sereno 89 White the day before).

The two friends applauded as they walked onto the field to greet the dejected players.

"I don't know if we can even afford what it cost to play two games," Dianne Evans said.