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Hawaii invited some notable guests for its welcome-back party at Waipio Peninsula Soccer Stadium.
UH, which played its first four home matches on campus this season due to chemical-caused damage to the WPSS field, hosts ranked Pac-12 foes Washington State (No. 24) and UCLA (No. 5) in the Rainbow Wahine Shootout today and Sunday on the repaired pitch. Pepperdine of the West Coast Conference is also in the field.
In late June, a contractor sprayed a chemical resin on the WPSS concrete bleacher seating but heavy rains washed it onto the field before it could properly set. It browned or killed the grass along the sidelines of the pitch.
But after some emergency repair work over the last several weeks, the field was made playable to UH’s satisfaction. Coach Michele Nagamine expressed thanks to UH and WPSS grounds crews for a return to normalcy after the Wahine got through makeshift games on their practice field in their first prolonged absence from WPSS since it opened in 2000.
“We’re excited to be back out at the Waipio Stadium and can’t wait to show our fans how much we’ve progressed as a team. Having the opportunity to showcase our team against national powerhouses UCLA and Washington State is very special for the Hawaii soccer community and we hope to see big crowds out this week,” Nagamine messaged the Star-Advertiser.
Sophomore holding midfielder Morgan Meza looks forward to making her way out to the west side — far less of a journey than UH’s three-game swing through North and South Dakota over the last two weeks.
“It definitely is a different atmosphere. It’s been nice being on campus, but under the lights, it’s just a way different experience,” Meza said. “I’m really excited for the freshmen who haven’t been able to experience it at all.”
The Wahine (2-4-1) have hung within a goal of all of their opponents this season, save USC in a 3-0 loss in the season opener. The Trojans are now No. 2 in the country.
It should go without saying, but goal scoring has been UH’s biggest obstacle to success; it has netted just three in the last five matches, over which it is 2-2-1.
WSU and UCLA recently took their first losses, to Michigan and Santa Clara, respectively.
One-time UH commit Sunshine Fontes, a Pearl City alumna, is now a freshman at UCLA, but the all-time leading scorer for the U.S. U-17 national team is missing the season as she recovers from a knee injury.
WSU and UCLA are a combined 12-0 against UH all-time. UH is 2-29-2 all-time against ranked teams, including 2-17-2 at home.
HAWAII SOCCER RAINBOW WAHINE SHOOTOUT
At Waipio Peninsula Soccer Stadium
>> Today: Pepperdine (3-3-1) vs. No. 5 UCLA (5-1), 4:30 p.m.; No. 24 Washington State (5-1) at Hawaii (2-4-1), 7 p.m.
>> Sunday: Pepperdine vs. Washington State, 1 p.m.; No. 5 UCLA at Hawaii, 3:30 p.m.
>> TV: WSU at Hawaii, Spectrum Sports
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