Hawai’i Hilo Men’s Soccer Kicks Off Season With Win

The new era in Hawai’i Hilo men’s soccer is off to a great start as first-year head coach Garrett Estrin and the Vulcans won game No. 1 on the new on-campus turf field with a 2-1 victory over Cal Poly Humboldt in a non-conference matchup Sunday afternoon, the team’s athletic department reported.

With time winding down and the Lumberjacks on the cusp of starting 2022 with four-straight draws, UH Hilo’s Koki Hamada (Kita, Tokyo, Japan/High Mowing School) came through for the game winner.

The freshman first booted a long-ball clea-out with Alexander Hernandez-Herbach (Pasadena, Calif./Pasadena HS) down the field fighting for position and getting a Cal Poly Humboldt player to have last touch to set up the corner kick. Wataru Muto (Chiba, Japan/Yachiyo HS) sent the ball down the line connecting with Herenandez-Herbach on the header to find Hamada in front of the goal to tap it in for the score.

“We showed our moxie and came back and put one in to equalize before half,” Estrin said in an article the department reported. “Overall I thought there was some really positive moments in the game and I think all the weeks that have been leading up to this; these guys were ready to face competition and they came out on the positive end so now we enjoy it for today and get ready for Westminster.”

Hernandez-Herbach assisted on both of the Vulcans goals, getting the earlier one in the 31st minute on a header via corner kick from Aidan Santos (Hilo, Hawai’i/Hawai’i Prep Academy). Andrew Rehedul (El Paso, Texas/Chapin HS) found himself on the receiving end of Hernandez-Herbach’s header — with a touch from Gabriel Gallardo (Anaheim Hills, Calif./Canyon HS) in between — and hit the ball in for the equalizer.

The Lumberjacks got on the scoreboard first in the 18th minute.

Tom Vorkastner (Tangstedt, Germany/Gymnasium Heidberg) took a lined-shot deep from the right side but was blocked by the head of a Humboldt defender. Juan Perez took the deflection and reversed field to dump it off to Daniel Adeyeye, who ping-ponged the ball to Devi Hauenstein down the middle, to Ramiro Rosas near the goal line, back out to Perez, then off Vulcans goalkeeper Christian Souza (Kapolei, Hawai’i/Damien Memorial School) and scrubbed in by Rosas for the cleanup.

Souza made two saves in his first start and first win since Sept. 26, 2021 against Western Washington.

The Vulcans managed six shots on goal as Lumberjacks goalkeeper Adrian Gallardo came up with four saves.

Hawai’i Hilo improved to 1-0-0 on the season as Cal Poly Humboldt suffered their first loss in dropping to 0-1-3.

The Vulcans will return home next Friday to play Westminster College (1-2-0) of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference.

The Griffins opened their season with a 4-3 loss to Azusa Pacific.

Cal Poly Humboldt will have three remaining non-conference games, including a matchup with the Academy of Art.