Championship experience counts for something. It’s not worth any free points, but it served as a valuable resource for Waiakea on the volleyball court, where the extra incentive of Senior night also helped in a battle against Kamehameha.
Championship experience counts for something. It’s not worth any free points, but it served as a valuable resource for Waiakea on the volleyball court, where the extra incentive of Senior night also helped in a battle against Kamehameha.
Behind much cleaner play and a champion’s resolve, Waiakea prevailed over Kamehameha 25-21, 26-24, 20-25, 21-25, 15-13 in a BIIF Division I showdown on Wednesday night at the Warriors Gym, increasing its chance for a title repeat.
With the win, Waiakea (13-2) can clinch the No. 1 seed to the BIIF tournament and face an easier road with a victory at Kealakehe on Saturday. Should Waiakea win on the road, the other semifinal would be a death match between Hilo and Kamehameha; the winner earns an HHSAA state tournament spot, and the loser stays home.
Waiakea will now be a cheerleader for Kamehameha (12-3) to beat Hilo (13-2) on Saturday at Koai’a Gym. On Saturday if Waiakea wins and Hilo loses, the defending BIIF champion Warriors would earn the league’s first state berth as the outright regualr season champ.
Hilo, Kamehameha and Waiakea all had the same 12-2 record entering Wednesday, the start of musical chairs battle week for the league’s No. 1 seed to the four-team BIIF playoffs, which start next Wednesday at the higher seed’s site.
It’s been an interesting merry-go-round dogfight between the three Division I powers, who play each other twice, and Konawaena, the two-time BIIF defending champion and only D-II team in the Red division.
Hilo’s two losses have been to Waiakea. The Vikings beat Konawaena in five sets on the road.
Waiakea’s two losses have been to Kamehameha in straight sets and to Kona in five games.
Kamehameha’s three losses have been to Hilo in five games, Kona in straight sets and to Waiakea.
Kakano Maikui had 10 kills, including four huge kills in the final set, to carry Waiakea. Cassie Emnase led the way with 14 kills while Kryssie Okinaka added 12 kills.
It was a coming out party for 5-foot-7 freshman Tiani Bello, who exploded for 24 kills to lead Kamehameha. Nani Spaar, a 6-foot freshman, added 13 kills and junior middle blockers Keane Farias and Tehani Kupahu-Canon had nine and six kills, respectively.
Waiakea committed just 30 unforced errors. (Most coaches prefer five giveaway points per set as a limit.) Kamehameha had 46 unforced miscues, including 16 service errors with 12 into the net, a major handicap all night long.
On the flip side of the coin, Kamehameha had 76 kills while Waiakea, which struggled to get production from its left-side hitters, had just 52 kills. But Waiakea junior libero Jordyn Hayashi compiled a match-high 30 digs to give her team a fighting chance in long rallies.
Maikui and Emnase are more comfortable swinging from the right at opposite, but they also moved to the left to pick up empty production from the L2 or No. 2 left-side hitter spot.
Kamehameha was far more balanced with Bello on the left and Spaar on the right. Also senior opposite Kailee Yoshimura was on a paid college trip to Dartmouth, where 2015 Kamehameha graduate Zoe Leonard was her host.
It’s sort of a New Guard era for Kamehameha, which finished runner-up last season after BIIF crowns from 2010-14. Still, the visitors have a promising future with two standout freshmen in Bello and Spaar. Both are club teammates at Pilipaa under coach Chris Leonard.
Though Waiakea played cleaner ball with fewer unforced errors, the home team had more mental mistakes with lane assignments. The Warriors cost themselves about five points when players cut in front of Hayashi, and Kamehameha scored on scramble plays.
But more than anything, Kamehameha kept pulling the plug on its momentum with service errors, especially in Game 5. The visitors had only one more unforced error than Waiakea, 6-5, including three service miscues; Waiakea had none.
Tied 12-12 in the final set, Maikui hit from the left and dropped a perfectly placed tip shot. Then Kamehameha hit long. Maikui, who was also a part-time setter, moved back to the right and smashed consecutive kills to start the celebration for Senior night.
The seniors — Maikui, setter Taniah Ayap, Emnase, Okinaka, Chelsea Guillermo, Haart Chung and Heavyn Chung — performed a dance skit before they were showered with lei and photographs.
In the 25-21 first set, Kamehameha gave away too many free points: 10 unforced errors, including five momentum-draining service miscues with three into the net. Waiakea had only four unforced errors.
It was close because Bello, the athletic cousin of former Waiakea basketball standout Kanisha Bello and Hilo junior baseball outfielder Micah Bello, walloped six kills.
Okinaka served an ace for a 23-21 lead, Kamehameha had a hitting error, and Melina DeVela blasted a rebound for game point.
In Game 2, Waiakea trailed 24-19 but reeled off an amazing seven straight points for the win, relying again on Kamehameha’s free gifts. Three points were unforced errors from the visitors, and Okinaka ripped two aces.
The visitors had 11 unforced errors, and Bello had an explosive six kills, again, but it wasn’t enough to compensate for the free-point giveaway.
In the third set, Kamehameha’s offense was well-balanced with five kills apiece from Bello and Spaar and three from Farias, who is her team’s shortest middle at 5-6 but has a knack for hitting around a block.
In Game 4, Waiakea got stuck in a weak rotation and had four straight hitting errors. And Spaar served an ace for a 22-15 lead. The avalanche stopped when Emanse clobbered a ball from the right.
Bello had thunder shots for Kamehameha’s last two points, and it was on to a final set between the two Warriors, who may very well meet again. If there’s a rubber match, it’ll likely be for the BIIF championship.