KEALAKEKUA — There is now only one team that can claim to be unbeaten in the BIIF.
Behind an early strike from Emi Higgins and a late tally from Teah Van Bergen, Hawaii Preparatory Academy (7-0) held off a scrappy Konawaena (5-1-1) squad 2-1 on Wednesday night at Julian Yates field.
Hawaii Prep, the four-time defending D-II state champions, had been downright dominant during their opening six games of league play, outscoring BIIF opponents by a combined score of 40-2. Ka Makani’s last BIIF game was on Dec. 20, and their last competitive game was a 2-0 win over Waiakea nearly a month ago, which could be a cause of concern for some teams.
But there was no holiday rust holding back the well-oiled Ka Makani machine, evident by Higgins’ goal less than five minutes into the contest.
Head coach Steve Perry credited a competitive trip to Oahu over the break with games against Kaiser and Punahou — which resulted in a tie and close loss — as a catalyst for his squad staying sharp.
“We have been practicing and the girls have been working hard,” Perry said. “We played a couple of good games on Oahu last week, which helped in this one. We knew Konawaena was going to play us tough. I still don’t think we showed the best composure in the back and started playing a little frantic, but that’s part of the process and we will learn from it.”
The trip also improved the team chemistry, which was already close to hitting on all cylinders according to Van Bergen, a senior captain.
“We are literally like family. We connect on more than just a soccer level,” Van Bergen said. “Those games on Oahu really prepared us for this and brought us together even more. I think we could have came out flat if it was not for that.”
Hawaii Prep is locked into the top seed in Division II, but a strong schedule down the stretch is something the team has been looking forward to in preparation for the BIIF playoffs, including a matchup against two-time defending D-I champion Hilo on Saturday on the east side of the island.
“Before the game, we had a good chat about January finally being here,” Perry said. “I love the schedule. We have Hilo next and we know they want to get back at us for the game we played earlier this season. I like where we are at.”
Despite the loss, Konawaena can’t complain about the effort against the powerhouse Ka Makani and made a statement as a team that can compete for a D-I title in the BIIF. Nalani Wall netted the 1-1 equalizer on a penalty kick for the Wildcats in the second half, and Konawaena had its chances late to come away with a tie.
“Nalani is a force in there,” Perry said with a laugh. “You let her go too many times and she will make you pay.”
Wall’s goal ignited what was already a vocal Kealakekua crowd, which came out in force for the weekday evening start time. But under pressure, and with a little different look than normal, Hawaii Prep responded.
Julia Perry went down with an injury in the first half, so Steve Perry was forced to move some pieces around, which included sending Van Bergen from the midfield to outside back — a position she played her freshman and sophomore years.
She found her comfort zone in the second half, executing a beautiful play with Higgins on an overlap run for the eventual winning goal.
“To be honest, I had the most hardcore prayer of my life like two seconds before that goal happened,” Van Bergen said. “The moment I passed to Emi, I knew I was going to get it back, so I knew I just had to make my run.”