Girls Soccer Team Plans Recovery In Summer League Play

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Kailua girls soccer head coach Wil Kimura found himself in unfamiliar territory during the so-called off-season. For the first time in his 16-year tenure, he experienced a losing season last winter when the youthful Surfriders finished 0-9-3.

“It was an eye-opener,” admitted Kimura, who has led the Surfriders to nine state tournament appearances. “I expected a tough season because we were so young, but I thought we’d win a couple of games.”

The road to recovery begins this week when they start play in the Pearl City Summer League. Although Pearl City is the host school, Kailua will play all of its games (at 6:30 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays) at home. Their 10-game schedule was still being finalized last week, but the league will feature some of the top programs in the state, including Pearl City, Aiea, Mililani, Pac-Five, St. Francis, Kalani and Kalaheo, among others.

Stellar competition can only benefit the Surfriders, who will see the same balance next winter in their Oahu Interscholastic Association Eastern Division encounters.

“Summer league gives us a good measure of where we’re at and how competitive we can be,” Kimura said.“During the season, every team in the East is tough. There are no games that are easy. Our team is so young that summer should be important. Because the league is open only to ninth-, 10th- and 11th-graders, it makes a big difference for a team.”

It will also give Kimura a glimpse of his incoming freshman class. The team will again be young next season with only four seniors expected back. The majority of the roster will likely be sophomores and freshmen.

“It’s really good for the young kids to have a chance to mix with the older kids, and you can see how much they can handle. We also have a core of players with a lot of high school experience. They didn’t just play a little - they played a lot. That will help, although we’re still young.”

Kimura will count on seniors-to-be Melanie Yoshida, Pumehanaaloha KanoaDoctorello, Liane Harada and Keriane Kubota for leadership.

In Kanoa-Doctorello, Kailua figures to have one of the better goalkeepers in the East. She missed part of last season with a knee injury, but has been a steady performer in her three years in the program.

“We’ll count on her to keep us in games,” Kimura said. “She did a lot to keep us in games last year. She’s a very athletic goalie.

“Our strength will be mid-field,” he added. “Melanie is very skilled and very knowledgeable. She’s started a lot since her freshman year, and she’s coachable. She’s a leader type.”

Harada and Kubota are also mid-fielders, although both figure to play other positions as well.

“Liane is pretty fast, and I don’t think there’s a tougher kid around. She played against Castle last year with stomach flu.

Keriane is a good kid with a strong leg and good skills.”

With the girls basketball season being moved from spring to winter during the coming academic year, Kimura said it is possible the Surfriders could lose a few members to the basketball team, as kids will no longer have the option of playing both sports.

“We’ll have to wait and see.” Summer League play runs through mid-July. The Surfriders begin practice for the 2007-08 regular season in November.