WAIPAHU — For Kamehameha Hawaii, redemption is oh so sweet. 

The Warriors prevailed 2-1 over Mid-Pacific in the Motiv8 Foundation/HHSAA Division II Girls Soccer State Championship Monday night.

After coming up short on a handful of occasions over the last decade (including last year's loss to PAC-5 on penalties), the Warriors finally got their first Division II title since 2008.

"It doesn't feel real yet." said KS-Hawaii head coach Steven Cootey. "I'm extremely happy for the girls that they get to experience this side of the result. That was the entire goal, for them to get to this game again because that was one of the best games and now this is it. That experience and the life lessons that we learned from the previous game and this game is invaluable."

The game started off with KS-Hawaii taking some early shots, but nothing really dangerous from the Warriors in the opening 5 minutes of play.

Mid-Pacific started off slow, but grew into the game. Around the 10th minute mark, Owls junior Destiny Look threw a dangerous long ball into the 18 yard box. The ball bounced once, in between two Mid-Pacific players, but KS-Hawaii goalkeeper Lahela Cootey raced out to collect the dangerous ball.

In the 12th minute, Mid-Pacific won a corner kick on the right side. Senior Kylena Paredes hit a lofted high ball that hovered right over the six yard box, but Cootey made a one-handed acrobatic punch out. The ball landed at the top of the box to a Mid-Pacific attacker, but it was cleared away by the Warrior defense.

The Owls hit the first shot on target when Paredes hit a freekick from 35 yards out. The effort was on frame but Cootey was there to keep the score leveled. Cootey would end up making 5 saves on the night.

"The frustrating part was that we kind of got away from our game plan and we got a little bit more into that physical battle and some unnecessary fouls," coach Cootey said. "We kind of played into their (Mid-Pacific's) game. But once we settled in, that was where I was happy and I knew if we created chances, we would get one."

With under 5 minutes left before halftime, KS-Hawaii settled down and nearly scored the opening goal.

In the 36th minute, Madisyn Meyers and Lily Kay-Wong were moving the ball around the Mid-Pacific defense. Kay-Wong found some space and hit a decent shot from the top of the box, but Mid-Pacific goalkeeper Chloe Tepraseuth was able to secure the ball on the bounce.

A minute later, Tepraseuth was called into action again when KS-Hawaii freshman Kahalia Huddleston hit a freekick on frame, but the keeper punched that chance away. That was the last chance of the half.

The two teams came out after the break looking for some sort of inspiration in front of goal.

That inspiration would come for Mid-Pacific in the form of senior Eva Hand. Hand came on late in the first half and brought some energy in attack for the Owls. Her pressure and patience paid off with her scoring the opening goal of the game. In the 48th minute, Hand was the recipient of a well placed cross that was muffed by a Warrior defender. Hand struck the ball home from close range.

"The ball started out with Kylena (Paredes) and she passed it out to Anyah (Pedro) took it down and crossed it and Eva (Hand) put it in," said Mid-Pacific head coach Elaina Parades. "That's what we practiced all year long." Hand ends the season with a total of 3 goals, two of which happened during the state tournament.

Most times, when a team concedes a goal, the air gets knocked out of them. This could have been true for the Warriors especially since they haven't conceded a goal in exactly two months (since December 3rd against Waiakea). But that was not the case for Lahela Cootey, who knew that this was not the end for her and her team.

"We were all very nervous and shaken a little bit," said Cootey after going down 1-0. "But this whole team, we wanted it so much that we didn't let it affect us for so long and our coach believed in us and they told us we didn't really have to switch (strategy) too much. We just kept going."

In the 55th and 58th minutes, freshmen Inalei Haunga and junior Callie Chong forced Tepraseuth into two big saves.

Mid-Pacific were desperately trying to hold on to their slim lead, but the Warriors pressure would eventually lead to their equalizing goal.

In the 72nd minute, a ball was hit up from midfield toward the Owl goal. A Mid-Pacific defender missed the clearance and Alyssa Hudman hit a ball that curled right and away from the Tepraseuth to make it 1-1 for the Warriors. That was Hudman's fourth goal of the year.

The comeback would be complete for KS-Hawaii when junior Madisyn Meyers put in the game winner with 5 minutes remaining. On a corner kick from Mikaila Aina, Meyers was left wide open and headed the ball down and in for the game winner. Meyers ends the season with 17 goals to her name.

"It just doesn't feel real," said Meyers. "It's surreal. I can't even take it in at this moment, but I'm so grateful and I think that all of our work just paid off right here and it just feels so good."

The game-winning goal completed Meyers redemption arc as she was the only one to miss a penalty kick in last year's state championship game. Now she and her team are the new champs in town.

"I worked a lot in the off season," said Meyers. "I went to all these preseason practices, lifts and it just kind of drove me. I didn't want to be that one that let my team down again. So I knew that this coming season I had to work hard, I had to be a leader, I had to be a captain, and really just redeem myself in a way and push our team to be the best that we can be."

Coach Cootey couldn't be more proud of Meyers and her efforts.

"She actually was our center back last year," coach Cootey said of Meyers. "She worked so hard on improving on the attacking side a bit. Because of some freshmen that came in, we allowed her to play up more. She created a lot of opportunities but she's just a workhorse. She's an emotional leader. She's been huge along with so many other people. It's definitely an entire team effort."

Although Mid-Pacific came up short, the Owls put up a good fight and nearly won their 4th title in school history. The term "grit" was used by coach Paredes to describe this year's team.

"The girls really came together and it was a tough season", said Paredes. "This years seniors, six of them, were really strong and their senior leadership really pulled through when times got tough."

The Owls made an impressive turnaround from winning only one game last year, to make it all the way to the championship game this year. This was their first time in the title game since 2015.

"When we played the ILH Division I schools like Iolani and Punahou, we lost, but we were able to hang with them," said Paredes. "Another big turning point was playing Pac-5 the second time (in league play) and we beat them like 6-1. We really found our rhythm at that game."

Although the Warriors finally achieved what they've been chasing for, coach Cootey does not want him or his program to get complacent.

"In our program, when I first got in here, there was a big focus on changing the mindset and everybody up to this point has contributed to that," said coach Cootey. "We're not done and I don't know if we will ever be done but we're looking to continue to improve and improve."

With only four seniors graduating this year and key players like Meyers and Cootey returning, the Warriors have the pieces to try and build upon this new found success.