Road frustration transcended into road salvation for the Hawaii soccer team.
Kama Pascua’s goal in the 61st minute combined with several stops from goalkeeper Monk Berger earned the Rainbow Wahine a 1-0 upset of Oregon on the Ducks’ home field in Eugene. It was the program’s fourth win against the Pac-12 in 29 tries.
UH (1-2) held its ground on the Pape Field artificial turf after dropping two shutout home matches two weeks ago to start the season. The Rainbow Wahine equaled last season’s road win total; they were 1-8-1 away from the islands in 2012.
They’ll go for a second upset at Oregon State at 11 a.m. Sunday. But regardless of what happens there, the stunner in Eugene vaulted to the top of third-year coach Michele Nagamine’s list of meaningful victories.
"I’m not going to lie. This one feels really good," she said in a postgame phone interview. "We’ve been on this journey. I think the best part about it for me was it wasn’t a fluke. We’ve been in this position so many times in the past — we just haven’t been able to pull it out.
"They found a way to make it happen."
Berger, a freshman, made a strong case for the team’s full-time goalkeeper job with five first-half saves vs. the Ducks (2-3), including stops on a pair of 1-on-1 situations.
"All you can ask of your keeper is to keep you in games. And she 100 percent did that today," Nagamine said.
Berger, a touted prospect from Mission Viejo, Calif., rated No. 58 on ESPN’s top 150 recruiting list, finished with seven stops in her second start.
"It was unbelievable," Berger said. "Coming into this program all I wanted to do was make a big impact. I had really big shoes to fill in after Kanani (Taaca) graduated. But Coach Bud patted me on the back and told me I did my job, so I must have done something right."
UH broke through on one of only two corner kicks in the match, compared to nine for the Ducks. Hayden Gibson bent a pass to Storm Kenui in the box on a set play. Kenui back-tapped it to Pascua amid traffic, and Pascua went low to the far post past goalkeeper Abby Steele for the first Wahine goal of the season.
UH buckled down tight for the last 30 minutes to claim its reward.
"That win meant a lot to our team because it’s like the turning point for our team to become more successful," Pascua said. "It gave us the confidence to show our team that we can play well against anyone."
The last time UH won its road opener was 2004, the same season it managed to beat a Pac-12 team, home or away. It ended a streak of 11 losses to teams from that conference.
Hawaii likely will be without forwards Skye Shimabukuro (rib) and T.J. Reyno (ankle sprain) for the contest against the Beavers, Nagamine said.
