Semifinal victories came at a stiff price for Kadena, whose boys and girls reached the Class AA championships Thursday but had key players suffer injuries that might keep them out of Friday’s title matches.

Kadena shut out Yokota 5-0 and Kubasaki dethroned defending Class AA boys champion Christian Academy In Japan 5-1, making Friday’s championship an all-Okinawa affair. But Kadena lost striker Ben Zendejas to a severe right-ankle sprain and sweeper Alex Mierzejewski, who suffered fractures to the right side of his face on a head ball attempt.

“Bad day at the office,” Kadena assistant coach John Reay said. “Those are key positions we’ll be missing.”

Jennifer Abel broke the Pacific season scoring record with her 67th goal in Kadena’s 6-0 victory over Yokota at Kubasaki High School. That achievement was tempered by an injury to her sister, two-time MVP Dianne Abel, who aggravated a right foot injury suffered last season.

Dianne was hoepful she would be able to play in Friday’s final against American School In Japan.

ASIJ edged Kubasaki 2-1 in a penalty-kick shootout in the other semifinal. It’s the first time Kubasaki hasn’t reached the final since 2000.

“We’ll play it by ear,” Panthers coach Hoa Nguyen said, adding that losing Abel would diminish Kadena’s offensive capability by 60 percent. “Dianne and Jen carry the weight,” he said of the two who have combined for 126 goals this season.

But, he added, “We do have other players. We have to hang tough.”

Kubasaki’s boys reached their second Class AA final in three years, mainly on the strength of Lee Robeson’s corner kicks; Chris Monroy converted two and Michael Derr one. “That hasn’t happened until this week,” coach Chris Kelly said. “Today, the guys stepped up and were really focused.”

Kelly also stationed defender David Motu on CAJ’s 31-goal scorer Leo Kobayashi, holding him to one penalty-kick goal. “We wanted to put a really strong player on him out of respect. He could really give us problems,” Kelly said of Kobayashi.

All-Osan Class A finalsDefending champions had their day in the Class A tournaments as the Osan American boys and girls reached the championship matches. The Cougars boys rallied from from a 1-0 halftime deficit to edge Robert D. Edgren 2-1, and the girls survived a penalty-kick shootout to edge the Eagles 2-1.

“That is one great team,” Osan boys coach Tony Alvarado said of Edgren. “They were very disciplined and they play their positions very well. But our guys had heart. They went out there hard. They wanted it. In the first half, we were on our heels but in the second half, we went on the offensive, just turned it on and scored.”

The Cougars girls took just the opposite tack, going into a prevent defense after seizing a 2-0 first-half lead, but “it backfired on us,” Plourde said after the Eagles rallied to tie it in the last five minutes of the second half.

Practicing penalty kicks in the days leading up to Far East might have saved the Cougars, he said. “We know that going into Far East, penalty kicks are important. We were prepared.”

Wet weather makes muck-ery of tournaments“Rain, rain, go away!” served as a very appropriate mantra for Far East Class AA boys soccer tournament participants at Yokota Air Base, Japan, and the Class A girls tournament at Iwakuni Marine Corps Air Station.

Drenching day-long rain at Iwakuni turned Penny Lake’s two fields into “Penny Swamps,” with kicked balls dying and players slipping and sliding in muck. Ceaseless rain that fell from Tuesday to Thursday turned Yokota High School’s upper field into a quagmire. Bonk Field, the school’s main field, was more firm but still slippery.

Penny Lake’s fields lie on reclaimed land on the base’s south side, near a sea wall and below the water table; the slightest rainfall can quickly turn Penny Lake into its namesake. “It rained for two weeks before the tournament,” Class A tournament director Mike Brust said. “Then, when you’re playing in the rain, it just makes it that much worse.”

Thursday’s weather at Iwakuni was a nicer but the fields already had been damaged, Brust said.

Players also stumbled and tumbled throughout Thursday’s play at Yokota, forcing Class AA tournament organizer Tim Pujol to check into the availability of Darling Field, an all-purpose field used by youth activities and base soccer and football teams. He said he planned to make Darling ready if needed for Friday’s placement matches.

Far East soccer tournament scoreboardClass AA boys

Yokota High School

Yokota Air Base, Japan

Single-elimination playoffs

Wednesday

Match 1—Zama American, Japan, 3, Hong Kong International 2

Match 2—Nile C. Kinnick, Japan, 1, Seoul American 0

Match 3—Christian Academy In Japan 6, Guam High 0

Match 4—Yokota, Japan, 5, Taejon Christian International, South Korea, 0

Match 5—Kubasaki, Okinawa, 11, Zama 0

Match 6—Kadena, Okinawa 7, Kinnick 0

Match 7—Taejon 5, Hong Kong Int’l 4, OT

Match 8—Seoul American 5, Guam High 0

Thursday

Match 9—Taejon 2, Kinnick 1

Match 10—Seoul American 5, Zama 0

Match 11—Kubasaki 5, CAJ 1

Match 12—Kadena 5, Yokota 0

Match 13—Hong Kong Int’l 3, Guam High 2; Hong Kong takes ninth place

Friday

Match 14—Kinnick vs. Zama, seventh place

Match 15—Taejon vs. Seoul American, fifth place

Match 16—CAJ vs. Yokota, third place

Match 17—Kubasaki vs. Kadena, championship

Thursday

Taejon 2, Kinnick 1

Kinnick.....0 1—1

TCIS.....0 2—2

Goals—Taejon, Patrick Song 2 (16); Kinnick, Daniel Appleman 1 (8).

Seoul American 5, Zama 0

Seoul.....3 2—5

Zama.....0 0—0

Goals—Seoul, Chris Churchwell 2 (13), Jessie Suh 2 (9), Allen Chin 1 (12).

Hong Kong 3, Guam 2

Guam High.....2 0—2

Hong Kong.....1 2—3

Goals—Hong Kong, Aaron Shortell 1, Guthrie Jones 1, Cameron Gilbert 1; Guam, Allen Moos 1, Ashton Adams 1. Assist—Guam, Nik Preusser 1.

Kubasaki 5, CAJ 1

Kubasaki.....2 3—5

CAJ.....0 1—1

Goals—Kubasaki, Chris Monroy 3 (30), James Reyes 1 (9), Michael Derr 1 (5); CAJ, Leo Kobayashi 1 (31). Assists—Kubasaki, Lee Robeson 3, Chris Monroy 1.

Kadena 5, Yokota 0

Kadena.....5 0—5

Yokota.....0 0—0

Goals—Kadena, Aaron Zendejas 3 (20), Anthony Soroka 1 (9), Alex Mierzejewski 1 (2). Assists—Kadena, Kingsley McLeod 1, Nathan LaGrave 1.

Class A boys

Camp Walker, Daegu, South Korea

Single-elimination playoffs

Thursday

Match 1—Taegu American, South Korea, 3, Matthew C. Perry, Japan, 2

Match 2—Osan American, South Korea, 2, Korea International 1

Match 3—Robert D. Edgren, Japan, 8, E.J. King, Japan, 0

Match 4—International Christian—Seoul 3, Korea Kent Foreign 0

Match 5—Pusan American 2, Taegu 0

Match 6—Osan 2, Edgren 1

Match 7—ICS—Seoul 3, Pusan 1

Friday

Match 8—Edgren vs. Pusan, third place

Match 9—Osan vs. ICS—Seoul, championship

Thursday

Taegu 3, Perry 2

Taegu.....1 2—3

Perry.....0 2—2

Goals—Taegu, Kyle Hendrix 1 (2), Matthew Page 1 (2), James Bradley 1 (1); Perry, Howard Barker 1 (2), Darren Cutshall 1 (1). Assists—Taegu, James Bradley 1, Kyle Hendrix 1.

Osan 2, Korea International 1

Osan.....2 0—1

KIS.....1 0—1

Goals—Osan, Kevin Finch 1 (13), Eddie DeChristopher 1 (2); Korea Int’l, Peter Jeong 1 (6).

Edgren 8, E.J. King 0

Edgren.....6 2—8

King.....0 0—0

Goals—Edgren, Patrick Pezoulas 2 (23), Brandon Green 1 (15), Alan Jones 1 (10), Nathan Fine 1 (10), Doug Nicholson 1 (9), Lucas Duraccio 1 (2), Devin Nelson 1 (1).

ICS—Seoul 3, Korea Kent Foreign 0

ICS—Seoul.....1 2—3

Kent.....0 0—0

Goals—ICS—Seoul, John Kim 2 (2), Daniel Jung 1 (13).

Pusan 2, Taegu 0

Pusan.....1 1—2

Taegu.....0 0—0

Goals—Pusan, Jeff Metzger 2.

Osan 2, Edgren 1

Edgren.....1 0—1

Osan.....0 2—2

Goals—Osan, Kevin Finch 1 (14), Carlos Albaladejo 1 (7); Edgren, Doug Nicholson 1 (10). Assist—Edgren, Patrick Pezoulas 1.

ICS—Seoul 3, Pusan 1

ICS—Seoul.....1 2—3

Pusan.....0 1—1

Goals—ICS—Seoul, Daniel Jung 1 (14), David Hyun 1 (10), Young—ro Yoon 1 (4); Pusan, Charles Lee 1 (3). Assist—Pusan, Jeff Metzger 1.

Class AA girls

Kubasaki High School

Camp Foster, Okinawa

Single-elimination playoffs

Wednesday

Match 1—Nile C. Kinnick, Japan, 1, Taejon Christian International, South Korea, 0

Match 2—Hong Kong International 4, Seisen International, Tokyo, 1

Match 3—Guam High 1, Zama American, Japan, 0, SO (3—0)

Match 4—Seoul American 5, Okinawa Christian International 0

Match 5—Kadena, Okinawa, 8, Kinnick 0

Match 6—Yokota, Japan, 2, Hong Kong Int’l 0

Match 7—Kubasaki, Okinawa, 5, Guam 0

Match 8—American School In Japan 2, Seoul American 1

Thursday

Match 9—Taejon 3, Zama 2, SO (3—2)

Match 10—Seisen 3, OCSI 1

Match 11—Kinnick 3, Guam 0

Match 12—Seoul 3, Hong Kong Int’l 1

Match 13—Kadena 6, Yokota 0

Match 14—ASIJ 2, Kubasaki 1, SO (3—2)

Friday

Match 15—Taejon vs. Seisen, ninth place

Match 16—OCSI vs. Zama, 11th place

Match 17—Kinnick vs. Seoul, fifth place

Match 18—Guam vs. Hong Kong Int’l, seventh place

Match 19—Yokota vs. Kubasaki, third place

Match 20—Kadena vs. ASIJ, championship

Thursday

Seisen 3, OCSI 1

Seisen.....1 2—3

OCSI.....1 0—1

Goals—Seisen, June Ha 2 (4), Olivia Eldridge 1 (4); OCSI, Amy Oechsle 1.

Taejon 3, Zama 2, SO (3—2)

TCIS.....0 2—2

Zama.....2 0—2

Goals—Taejon, Liz Kim 1 (2), Jessica Yoon 1 (1); Zama, Rachel Ravelo 2 (22). Shootout goals—Taejon, Ernie Song, Jamie Lee, Karin Aaltonen; Zama, Emma Barrett, Kate Shicks.

Kinnick 3, Guam 0

Kinnick.....2 1—3

Guam High.....0 0—0

Goals—Kinnick, Mariko Wood 1 (15), Erica Niemeyer 1 (12), Ashley Melin 1 (8).

Seoul 3, Hong Kong 1

Hong Kong.....0 1—1

Seoul.....1 2—3

Goals—Seoul, Whitney Grandy 2 (14), Angye Law 1 (13); Hong Kong, Britta Winans 1.

Kadena 6, Yokota 0

Kadena.....2 4—6

Yokota.....0 0—0

Goals—Kadena, Jennifer Abel 3 (67, Pacific season record), Dianne Abel 2 (59), Pattie Adkins 1 (10). Assists—Kadena, Niki Kauzlarich 3, Laura Kivi 1, Pattie Adkins 1.

ASIJ 2, Kubasaki 1, SO (3—2)

Kubasaki.....0 1 0—1

ASIJ.....1 0 0—1

Goals—ASIJ, Morgan Bridgman 1 (5); Kubasaki, Sarah Rhodes 1 (7). Shootout goals—ASIJ, Trish Kranyak, Mizuho Matsushita, Erin Morris; Kubasaki, Brittany Fultz, Kara Koeneke.

Class A girls

Iwakuni Marine Corps Air Station, Japan

Double-elimination playoffs

Thursday

Match 1—Taegu American, South Korea, 5, Matthew C. Perry, Japan, 0

Match 2—Robert D. Edgren, Japan, 1, Pusan American, South Korea, 0

Match 3—Osan American, South Korea, 2, Taegu 0

Match 4—Perry 1, Pusan 0, SO (4—2); Pusan eliminated

Match 5—Osan 3, Edgren 2, SO (3—1)

Match 6—Taegu 4, Perry 0; Perry eliminated

Friday

Match 7—Edgren vs. Taegu

Match 8—Osan vs. Match 7 winner

Match 9—Osan vs. Match 7 winner, if Osan loses Match 8

Thursday

Edgren 1, Pusan 0

Edgren.....1 0—1

Pusan.....0 0—0

Goal—Edgren, Katy Keene 1 (8).

Taegu 5, Perry 0

Taegu.....3 2—5

Perry.....0 0—0

Goals—Taegu, Joanne Youngblood 2 (12), Crystal Anguay 1 (8), Kat Nufable 1 (6), Aimee Hildenbrand 1 (3).

Osan 2, Taegu 0

Taegu.....0 0—0

Osan.....1 1—2

Goals—Osan, Sasha Gluzinski 1 (17), Gina Bosworth 1 (9).

Perry 1, Pusan 0, SO (4—2)

Perry.....0 0 0—0

Pusan.....0 0 0—0

Shootout goals—Perry, Jo Enriquez, Rei Enriquez, Inna Chavez, Jane Curtis; Pusan, Kay Husler, Linda Chong.

Osan 3, Edgren 2, SO (3—1)

Edgren.....0 2 0—2

Osan.....2 0 0—2

Goals—Osan, Sasha Gluzinski 1 (18), Gina Bosworth 1 (10); Edgren, Alyssa Rodrigues 1 (9), Mia Angelella 1 (7). Shootout goals—Osan, Sasha Gluzinski, Liz Caine, Gina Bosworth; Edgren, Mia Angelella.

Taegu 4, Perry 0

Taegu.....4 0—4

Perry.....0 0—0

Goals—Taegu, Joanne Youngblood 2 (14), Kat Nufable 2 (8).

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