MIL Boys Soccer: LAHAINALUNA 2, Maui High 4 - January 7, 2012

In a pivotal match, Maui High defeated Lahainaluna 4-2 to knock the Lunas out of 1st place in the tight boys' MIL standings.

I missed most of the first half because I was attending a funeral. I got there just after 2pm, but being my first time to watch a soccer match at Maui High, I had no idea where to go or where to park. First, I parked out on the side street, thinking maybe I could shoot it from outside the fence or sneak in somewhere. I didn't realize they charged admission to these things so I was surprised to see all the usually access points blocked off.  Then I decided to park by the Jodo Mission and walk across the field to the soccer field. I got to the tennis courts when I realized I had to pay to get in. Of course, my MIL pass was back in the truck!

At that point, I decided to just go all the way to Lono and park in the Maui High School parking lot. So much time wasted. By the time I got to the soccer match, I was exhausted. I got there in time to see #11 of Maui High roll into our goalie and take out his knees. Our goalie was down . . . and out. The Maui High guy got red-carded and kicked out. And I missed it.

Shortly thereafter, the halftime whistle went off. Geez, I had no idea what the score was. There is no scoreboard at this facility. I went to shoot some softball and returned in time for the second half. It was a brutal match. Maui High was playing very well. The Lunas seemed out of it, especially after losing their beloved goalie and leader. Later, I got the scoops from my friend Fred Sinenci. Maui High took advantage of some early penalty kicks and got ahead early. Reece got a yellow. It was very chippy. I also missed what would've been a spectacular shot of Rhys Lendio getting upended by the goalie . . . cuz I was talkin' to Freddy.

At the end, Maui High won. I didn't appreciate the manner in which they got into the faces of some of the Lunas' players, but hey, this is soccer.

On the bright side, I submitted some photos to the Maui News and one of them got published! Sorry Micah Tateishi! I tried to get you on the Maui News, but they chose Rhys Lendio instead!

For more photos, click here.

MIL Boys Soccer: LAHAINALUNA 1, Maui High 0 - December 10, 2011

Windy! The fierce winds of Kauaula were definitely blowing this afternoon. For a while there, I thought the match would be cancelled. No rain. Just freakishly windy. Dirt devils. Balls flying over the fence and down Lahainaluna Road. Dark and gloomy - at 4:00pm on a Saturday afternoon.

The match was pretty evenly played. Lahainaluna had some opportunities on goal but could not score. Lahainaluna's goalkeeper is a fearless dude. He's not afraid to get out there and mix it up. I like that!

I left after the first half. Later I learned that the Lunas had won 1-0 on a penalty kick in the 79th minute.

My Two Cents

Coach Sam was late. He had the balls so the guys couldn't really warm up with drills. I had gone early to get shots of the players during warm-ups, because that's a good time to get individual shots of buys kicking the ball etc. But without the balls, there was a lot of standing around and waiting. Or in Jorge Hernandez' case, getting his hair just right.

My friend's son plays for Maui High so I made it a point to get shots of him during warm up and in action. Luckily it was still daytime so I could take advantage of the reach of my Bigma 50-500mm lens. I heard he got a yellow card from Kevin Yuen! Man, I wish I got a shot of that! Classic!

My plan was only to stay for the first half. Then I would drop in on the JV girls, take a few shots then head off to Wailuku to get pictures of the boys basketball game. Then come back to Lahaina to catch the second half of their match. Like I said before - crazy.

For the Maui News article, click here.
For more photos, click here.