Saturday was the first round of the Central Pacific Bank/BIIF DII girls volleyball championships — and saw No. 5 Pahoa HS defeat No. 8 St. Joseph School, and No. 6 Parker School defeat No. 7 Honoka‘a HS.
Pahoa 3 – St. Joseph 0
The Daggers swept the visiting Cardinals to secure a quartefinal berth, defeating SJS for the second time in two weeks.
Though the Cardinals did not go down without a fight, they ultimately fell in straight sets of 25-18, 25-19 and 25-19.
The first set saw the Daggers obtain an early lead and hold on to it, despite SJS enduring through long rallies to inch closer.
The Cardinals kept much closer through part of the second set, but their mid-set errors helped Pahoa grow its lead.
SJS tied the score late in the third set, but the Daggers’ strength on both sides of the ball led them to victory.
The Cardinals end their season 5-9 overall and 4-8 through the regular season. On Wednesday, SJS swept Laupahoehoe CPCS in a play-in game to earn its playoff berth. Despite a rocky start to the season, the Cardinals developed well and notched wins just in time to tie for No. 8 of 13 in BIIF DII ahead of the play-in.
The Daggers finished the regular season 8-4, now moving to 9-4. They will play their quarterfinal matchup away at No. 4 Kohala HS, who dealt them a 3-0 loss in late September.
Pahoa and Kohala’s playoff match will take place 6 p.m. Tuesday. The winner will advance to Thursday’s semifinal to face undefeated No. 1 Ka‘u HS.
Parker 3 – Honoka‘a 0
On the other side of the isle, the Bulls defended their home court — sweeping the Dragons.
Parker will also play a quarterfinal match 6 p.m. Tuesday, at No. 3 Konawaena HS.
The Bulls faced the Wildcats for their season finale almost two weeks ago, and fell 3-0.
The winner of Parker vs. Konawaena will face No. 2 Hawai‘i Prep in Thursday’s semifinal.