The Hilo boys' soccer team already had the odds stacked against them heading into Friday's opening round of the Outrigger Resorts/Hawaii High School Athletic Association Division I State Championships, but it received quite the jolt earlier in the day when it was the victim of property theft shortly after arriving on Oahu.

Vikings' coach George Ichimaru said the team's rental vehicles were broken into while at a shopping mall during the late morning hours Friday. Among the stolen property was some team equipment, including their white (home) jerseys — which they were to wear in their game against Kapolei that night.

"We arrived early and we had some down time, so we pulled into Pearlridge and somehow, someway our luggage was stolen," Ichimaru said, who was an assistant last year before becoming taking over as head coach. "The players had their carry-on bags with our jerseys, our shoes and shin guards and somehow they were removed from the car."

Ichimaru said he filed a police report, but had not heard back from investigators as of Friday night.

The Vikings, who finished second in the Big Island Interscholastic Federation, were already in a tough spot having to face the Hurricanes on their home field, despite the match officially being classified as a neutral-site game.

Hilo was forced to wear its blue (away) jerseys for the game, which created some confusion with Kapolei also wearing dark (black) tops.

One the game got underway, however, it was all Hurricanes, as they cruised to a 6-1 win.

Ichimaru said, understandably, that the day's events were a major drawback, but made no excuses for the game itself.

"I think some of the players were more concerned about their personal belongings than maybe even playing the game," Ichimaru said. "We have to come out ready to play regardless of what's going on around us. The game is 80 minutes and during those 80 minutes nothing should matter. As a young player, especially in high school, it's hard to cope with and if you're not in that right groove, in that right mentality, it can be a major factor. I do not know, nothing was ever stolen from me personally in my playing career, so this was a first for me."

Hilo will conclude its season against Baldwin in a 2 p.m. consolation game Saturday at Kapolei.