'Iolani remained in first place in the Interscholastic League of Honolulu while Punahou closed the gap between second and third after a 1-1 tie in a boys soccer game yesterday at Punahou School.

'Iolani remained undefeated (5-0-1, 16 points) and Punahou (3-1-2, 11 points) moved one point closer to idle Kamehameha (4-2-0, 12 points). The first round of the ILH was completed after yesterday's game. The teams — six in Division I and one in Division II — all play each other again in the second round.

"I don't think it means anything because the ILH is so competitive," 'Iolani coach Chris Lee said. "Obviously I'm happy we're in first place with one tie, but I expect the second half to be competitive, so we have to come out and play the way we're capable of playing."

'Iolani took the early lead on a goal by freshman Jordan Lee in the third minute.

The play was set up by senior midfielder Brock Granger, who turned with the ball and sent a lofted pass up the left sideline for senior forward Keith Lum. Lum chased the ball down and challenged the Punahou goalkeeper. The ball bounced free right up the middle of the 18-yard box and Lee put it away into the empty goal.

"Keith did everything," Jordan Lee said. "I was just there at the right time and put it away.

"It was exciting. It was important because we knew it would be difficult to score."

Before yesterday's game, Punahou had allowed only five goals, all against Mid-Pacific. 'Iolani leads the league in scoring with 23 goals.

"You always want to come out strong, especially at Punahou's home field," Lee said. "It gave us some confidence."

The Buffanblu tied it with about 10 minutes left on a John Cloutier 23-yard free kick.

Cloutier's kick, which did not need to be touched by another player because it was a direct kick, flew above the 'Iolani goalkeeper and under the crossbar.

"It kind of curved and dipped over him," Cloutier said. "It was pretty exciting; you heard the fans just roar. It felt good."

Both teams had to adjust to the narrower confines of Punahou's field. 'Iolani appeared comfortable playing balls long for speedy forward Nicholas Goo to chase down. Punahou, which wanted to play a more direct style to combat the narrowness, did manage to do so in the second half.

"It shifted the momentum," Punahou coach Dave Trifonovitch said. "In the first half we pretty much played in our half."

It resulted in chances for Punahou. Besides Cloutier's goal, the Buffanblu had another free kick dangerously close to 'Iolani's goal. Punahou was awarded an indirect free kick after junior forward Sean Hungerford was fouled in the 18-yard box, setting up the kick on the endline on the right line of the 6-yard box. Punahou's shot was cleared off the goalline in the 58th minute.

Ten minutes before that, it was 'Iolani on the attack, when Lee sent a long ball over the Buffanblu defenders for Goo. Goo's shot was stopped on a one-handed save by Punahou goalkeeper Gavin Matsukawa.

"We really needed to win, and it will take some major upsets for 'Iolani not to finish in first place," Trifonovitch said. "But the parity in the league is so close, it could happen."

NOTES

Punahou gold (7-3-0) won the ILH boys junior varsity title and Kamehameha Blue (6-1-3) won the ILH girls junior varsity title.