WAIPAHU, Hawai'i – Tatianna Chavez scored in the 14th minute and Lydia Keller recorded her eighth shutout of the season as Hawai'i Hilo Women's Soccer edged HPU, 1-0, on Saturday afternoon in Pacific West Conference play at Waipi'o Peninsula Soccer Stadium.
Chavez found herself open right in front of the goal with all the time she needed and finished the match's only score — assisted by Delaney Barbee. It was her first goal of the season and lifted her career point total to 10. Hawai'i Hilo outshot HPU, 18-4, with eight shots-on-goal.
Keller turned aside all three shots-on-goal she faced (6', 57', 69'). Her eight shutouts this season tie her own 2025 total, which ranks No. 3 on the program's single-season shutouts list.
Hawai'i Hilo is tied for second in the PacWest standings with Vanguard at 15 points (4-0-3 record). Concordia (5-0-1) is ahead, with Point Loma (4-0-2) and Biola (4-1-1) right behind UHH. With two conference matches remaining, wins over Jessup (Oct. 21) and Dominican (Oct. 26) would guarantee the Vulcans one of the four spots in the PacWest Championships.
Saturday's result helped eliminate HPU from postseason contention.
GAME NOTES
- Total Shots: Hawai'i Hilo 18, HPU 4
- Total Shots-On-Goal: Hawai'i Hilo 8, HPU 3
- Total Corner Kicks: Hawai'i Hilo 7, HPU 2
- Hawai'i Hilo has extended its unbeaten run to 11 matches, going 7-0-4 since Sept. 4.
- Keller's eighth shutout of 2026 ties her own 2025 total for No. 3 on the program's single-season shutouts list. One more would tie the program record of nine, held by Jenna Hufford (2013) and Phoebe Barnes (2024). Her 16 career shutouts remain sole No. 2 all-time.
- Hawai'i Hilo has won eight consecutive matches against HPU and is 10-0-3 against the Sharks since the 2020-21 spring season.
- Previous Matchup (Sept. 13, 2026): W 2-0 in Hilo (Non-Conference)
- Hawai'i Hilo: 7-2-4 Overall (4-0-3 PacWest)
- Nickname: Vulcans
- Conference Preseason Poll: No. 3
- Current Conference Standing: No. T2
- NPI Rank (Oct. 11): No. 96
- HPU: 0-11-2 Overall (0-5-1 PacWest)
- Nickname: Sharks
- Waipahu, Hawai'i (O'ahu)
- Conference Preseason Poll: No. 9
- Current Conference Standing: No. 10
- NPI Rank (Oct. 11): No. 243
UP NEXT
- Wednesday, Oct. 21 (12:30 PM) vs Jessup (Vulcan Soccer Field)
- Monday, Oct. 26 (12:30 PM) vs Dominican (Vulcan Soccer Field)
VULCAN CHALLENGE
Hawai'i Hilo Athletics has launched its annual Vulcan Challenge, a month-long fundraising campaign running from Sept. 21 through Oct. 23 to support scholarships, travel, training and other essential resources for the Vulcans' 12 NCAA Division II teams. To support, visit HiloAthletics.com/VC.
PACWEST HAWAI'I CHALLENGE
With the win on Saturday, Hawai'i Hilo secured first place for the Women's Soccer section of the 2026-27 PacWest Hawai'i Challenge, earning three points. The Vulcans went 2-0 against the other two Hawai'i schools. Chaminade and HPU will play Oct. 31 to determine second and third place.
The year-long multi-sport leaderboard tracks head-to-head results and conference event results in equally sponsored sports between Hawai'i's three NCAA Division II schools (Chaminade and HPU). The Vulcans captured the 2025-26 competition for a third consecutive year. Full breakdown available at HiloAthletics.com/PWCHI.
PACWEST CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS
The top four teams in the conference standings will qualify for the 2026 PacWest Championships, hosted by Hawai'i Hilo on Nov. 5-7 at the Vulcan Soccer Field. Eliminated from Contention: Chaminade (1-5-0), HPU (0-5-1), Westmont (1-5-0).
The Vulcans made an appearance in last year's PacWest Championships semifinal round. Hawai'i Hilo was voted No. 3 earlier in this year's conference preseason coaches poll.
