HONOLULU, Hawai'i - Hawai'i Pacific clinched a share of the PacWest regular season title on Saturday afternoon at Saint Louis Field, scoring twice in 78 seconds early in the second half to beat the Chaminade Silverswords 2-0. The win is the Sharks' fourth in a row and lifts them to 8-5-3 overall and 6-2-1 in conference play, matching Vanguard atop the standings with 19 points.
Hawai'i Pacific controlled the first half but could not break through. The Sharks outshot Chaminade 7-2, yet Silverswords goalkeeper Jonah Valmonte turned aside every attempt, denying
Jackson Palladino in the ninth minute and
Kilika Hasegawa in the 13th. Chaminade's best look came in the 10th minute, when Chance Therrien's shot was saved by Sharks goalkeeper
Eduardo Marin. It was the only shot on target the Silverswords managed all afternoon. Valmonte stopped Hasegawa again in the 24th minute and then denied
Olle Ridelius in both the 37th and 40th, and the teams went to halftime scoreless with Valmonte credited with five saves.
The Sharks picked up where they left off after the break. They earned a corner kick 92 seconds into the second half, and
Kelly Takara put shots on goal in the 49th and 50th minutes, with Valmonte saving the second. Hawai'i Pacific finally broke through in the 59th minute. Following a
Yony Avelar throw-in, the ball bounced to Takara, who tapped in a short finish for the 1-0 lead, with
Paul Norberg credited with the assist. Takara added a second 78 seconds later, in the 60th minute, finishing a Norberg cross with another tap-in for his 10th goal of the season.
Chaminade had no answer. Hasegawa forced another save from Valmonte in the 67th minute and was shown a yellow card in the 70th, while the Silverswords' only second-half attempts came from Oliver Horgan in the 71st minute and Santiago Fernandez in the 76th, neither on target. Michael Oelberger picked up a yellow card for Chaminade in the 78th. The Sharks closed with a late push, as
Tyson Norr (82nd),
Bernardo Araujo (87th) and
Danny Pascanu (88th) each tested Valmonte, who finished with 11 saves. Marin recorded the shutout with one save.
Hawai'i Pacific outshot Chaminade 20-4 and held a 13-1 edge in shots on goal, including 13 shots in the second half alone. The Sharks also won the corner kick battle 10-3, with eight of those coming after halftime. Takara led the team with five shots, and Hasegawa and Ridelius each added three. Chaminade was whistled for 13 fouls to Hawai'i Pacific's five.
The result completes a strong close to the regular season for the Sharks, who finished 6-2-1 in PacWest play and outscored opponents 12-2 during their four-match winning streak. Their signature result came in the conference opener on Sept. 26, a 2-1 road win over reigning PacWest champion Point Loma. Hawai'i Pacific's other league wins came against Vanguard, UH Hilo, Dominican and Jessup, along with a draw at Biola and losses to Concordia Irvine and Westmont. The Sharks also went 3-0 against Chaminade this season. Takara finished the year with 10 goals, and Ridelius added five.
Hawai'i Pacific has clinched a berth in the PacWest Championship, which will be played Thursday, Nov. 5, at Dominican University of California. The opponent and game time will be announced soon.
