Poi Poundahs Place 3rd in National Soccer Tournament

The Molokai Poi Poundahs in Irvine, California. Contributed photo

By Léo Azambuja
In most fairy tales, girls wear princess dresses or crystal shoes. They may dance or sing, and wear a crown. But in this Molokai fairy tale, the girls wear soccer jerseys and cleats. They dribble, kick and scream. The have medals.
They are the Molokai Poi Poundahs, a soccer team of girls who aren’t 14 years old yet, and placed third in the AYSO National Games 2025 in California in July.
“This was the first time that the girls (from) Molokai ever went out of state to play soccer,” assistant coach Naomi Bicoy said.
Being on national stage meant a lot for the Poi Poundahs players, she said. They had never seen so many kids in one place who also love soccer.
“For the opening ceremonies, there was 4,000 kids,” Bicoy said. “That was just the kids, from ages of U-10 to U-19.”
In the spring, head coach Kathy Puhi enrolled the Poi Poundahs to participate in the AYSO National Games at Orange County Great Park in Irvine, Calif. July 21-27. The team was chosen in a draw to play in the Under 14-years-old recreational division.
The Poi Poundahs’ division had 24 teams altogether, split in four groups of six teams each. Only the top team advanced to the semifinals.
After five games in the group stage, the Molokai girls took first in their group. Fate would place them against Oahu’s Kailua team, who had defeated them in the Rainbow Tournament July 4.
This time, Molokai was able to secure a draw, sending the decision to a penalty shootout, a cruel yet required tie-breaking method to determine a winner in a match that cannot end in a tie. Kailua finished 4-2 in the shootout.
“They played really strong. They communicated. They did awesome in the Kailua game. For us, it was a rematch with them, because we challenged them in the Rainbow Tournament, and we lost to them,” Bicoy said.
Despite defeat in the shootout, the tournament wasn’t over for the Poi Poundahs. They still had to face Huntington Beach for the third-place trophy.
The Molokai girls played well and were winning the game up until the dying seconds, when Huntington Beach tied the game.
“In the last minute of the game, Huntington Beach had a corner kick. One of our girls tried to kick it out, but it ricocheted off of her, and Huntington Beach ended up scoring,” Bicoy said.
Once again in a penalty shootout, this time Molokai emerged victorious, with a 5-4 win.
“They were excited that we still placed. They got third place,” Bicoy said.
AYSO registration for the next soccer season is now open for children born in the years 2012-2017. The registration period will close Aug. 9.
Visit www.ayso985.org to register your children or to volunteer. Email molokaisoccer@gmail.com if you have any questions.