Kaiser repeats as boys’ 3-4 gold champion

It took 17 years for Kaiser Elementary to win a title in a boys’ division at the Daily Pilot Cup.

The Knights liked winning the boys’ third- and fourth-grade Gold Division last year so much, they decided to do it again.

Wyatt Gahm and Nikhil Vazquez scored second-half goals and Kaiser beat the Davis Ducks, 2-0, in the championship game Sunday afternoon at the Jack Hammett Sports Complex.

Kaiser was coached by Harrison Moore, Sean-Liam McCarthy and Alex Enriquez. The three all play soccer at Newport Harbor High, and McCarthy and Enriquez are Kaiser alumni.

“We had high expectations coming in,” Moore said. “A lot of parents wanted to coach the team, and thankfully, [Kaiser coordinator] Ian [Young] let me, Sean Liam and Alex coach. From that, we were just able to build this team. We didn’t do anything, it was really just the whole team. They just fought every game and had so much fun doing it. It was just so much fun, the whole experience.”

The kids have pride for their school. Moments after they won Kaiser’s second boys’ title in Daily Pilot Cup history, they raced over to an adjacent field to watch the Knights boys’ fifth- and sixth-grade Silver Division team win Kaiser’s third. That team, which contained members from last year’s third- and fourth-grade gold champions, defeated College Park in penalty kicks.

“It feels good to redeem last year’s [title] and win again,” Gahm said. “I’m honored to be one of the goal scorers.”

Kaiser had blanked Mariners, 4-0, in the semifinals earlier Sunday behind two goals from Gahm. The Knights went a perfect 5-0 in the tournament, scoring 20 goals while allowing just five.

But Davis came out strong in the title game. The Ducks had rallied from a 4-0 halftime deficit in their semifinal against Rea, using two goals from second-grader Isaak Duarte, as well as goals from Damien Soto and third-grader Cooper Goodman. Davis tied the semifinal game at 4-4 after regulation then won It in penalty kicks.

The Ducks kept the ball in Kaiser’s end for much of the first half, but the defense led by first-half goalie Tyler “Bear” Richardson (five saves), Andy Rodas, Max Marmaud and Spencer Krieg held strong.

“That’s soccer for you,” Davis coach Jose Duarte said. “If you can’t put your opportunities away, they come back and haunt you. We had a lot of chances, and we couldn’t put any away. [Kaiser] was a good team, fought hard and kept taking it to us, and they finally scored.

“After losing the first game 4-2 [to Andersen], nobody thought we would make it to the final. We had a good team, and they fought hard and got lucky sometimes. Luck runs out if you don’t put the ball in the net.”

Kaiser had a couple of good scoring chances right before halftime, with a shot hitting off the crossbar right before the whistle for the intermission. But the Knights kept up the momentum in the second half.

Gahm scored the game’s first goal after earning a corner kick in the 38^th minute. Gibson “Gibby” Young took it from the left, and it hit off the left goal post and deflected back into the field of play to Gahm.

“I knew he would try and shoot it, so I went back a little bit,” Gahm said. “He shot it, it bounced off the [goal post] and rolled to my feet. There were people blocking, so I just kind of curved it around them.”

Vazquez added the game’s second goal in the 47^th minute, after a bit of a defensive miscommunication from Davis. The ball bounced back out to Vazquez, who placed it well.

Carson Muto, Dennis Holland, second-half goalie Mason Netzer, Riki Villasenor and Tyler Showalter also contributed for Kaiser.

“Kaiser won last year, so it’s great to win again,” Vazquez said. “Next year, we can maybe make it three [in a row].”

Davis defenders Tanner Burnham, Kembe Howerton, Esa Ashraf and goalie Ryan Taylor (four saves) helped limit Kaiser’s offensive chances. Other contributors for Davis included Logan Gladd, Ulysses Siciliano, Grady Jackson and Grant Comeau.

The Kaiser fifth- and sixth-grade Silver Division team got goals from James Evans, Luke Reeve, Jon Jon Richardson, Cody Surdyk and Gavin Dodman in its shootout win in the finals. Harry Kelyan scored for Kaiser in regulation.

Kaiser also had its girls’ fifth- and sixth-grade Gold Division team make the final before losing to Andersen.

“It’s just a good year [for Kaiser],” Moore said. “[There were] good kids in every group.”

matthew.szabo@latimes.com

Twitter: @mjszabo