During a typical Waiakea High girls soccer game the past three seasons, coach Jason Nakayama preferred to let assistant coach Sage Van Kralingen handle some if not of most of the interviews during postgame talks with the media.
During a typical Waiakea High girls soccer game the past three seasons, coach Jason Nakayama preferred to let assistant coach Sage Van Kralingen handle some if not of most of the interviews during postgame talks with the media.
Now it’s official: Van Kralingen can do all the talking.
Van Kralingen is taking the helm of a program that Nakayama leaves on solid ground, and she got a running head start on her new duties Saturday coaching a Waiakea squad at the Volcano International Soccer Tournament.
Trailing by four goals at halftime to the Maui Strikers in an under-19 match at Amauulu Field, the speech to the players emphasized the importance of winning balls in the air.
The message was well-received for the most part. Cecilia Jeschke scored twice in the second half as Waiakea lost 4-2.
“I think they are trying,” said Van Kralingen, a 2009 St. Joseph graduate. “I think they were exhausted from this tournament and limited subs.
“It’s a young team. They put in the effort.”
Waiakea went undefeated at Volcano last season in winning the girls title. This year’s team was 2-2 with a different makeup. Many primetime players weren’t on the field Saturday, including Warriors leading scorer Ki Serrao.
Prior to the 2013-14 season, Nakayama took over a Waiakea program that had missed the HHSAA Division I tournament for three consecutive seasons. Nakayama, who was on Waiakea’s sideline Saturday, departs after guiding Waiakea to three state tournaments in a row.
“It’s going to be different for the girls,” Van Kralingen said. “More simple playing for the girls. Keeping it small, simple and organized for them.”
She’s also coaching Waiakea during the high school summer season, which ends next weekend.
“This is about getting to know the girls and having them get to know each other and getting them into the program we want to develop during the high school year,” she said.
In each of Van Kralingen’s three years as an assistant, the Warriors reached the BIIF championship match and came tantalizing close to capturing the school’s first girls soccer title. They lost twice in shootouts, and the past two losses in the finals were against Hilo, which will enter the next season as the favorite to claim a threepeat.
There’s no secret formula to breaking, Van Kralingen said.
“We have things we can work on,” she said. “Only time will tell.”
The tournament wraps up Sunday with semifinals and championship matches in four age divisions, beginning at 9 a.m. The U19 girls final is at 2:15 p.m. followed by the boys at 4 p.m. at Hilo Bayfront.