Konawaena volleyball scratched and clawed, but fell just short of a state title match berth Friday at Kalani High School on Oahu.
The second-seeded Wildcats fell to Le Jardin Academy in five hard-fought sets in the Hawaii High School Athletic Association (HHSAA) Division II semifinal round. Kona advanced one round farther than it did a year ago, where it fell in straight sets to Saint Louis in the state quarterfinals.
Friday’s opening set was a back-and-forth affair between the two clubs, as the score was even at 20-20 near the end of the frame. The Wildcats went on a 5-2 run, which included three straight points and a decisive kill from freshman Ellison Morgan to earn the team’s 25th point and the first-set win.
The second frame was even more narrow. Kona held a 24-23 lead near the end of the interval, but the Bulldogs responded with a 6-3 to win the frame 27-29. Attack and service errors from the Wildcats down the stretch and kills from Le Jardin’s La‘akea Kamahele and Elijah-Shore Flores proved to be the difference maker at the end of the set.
Tied 1-1 heading into the third, Kona handled the set maturely — coming out guns-blazing with kills from Morgan, Mana Dias and Elijah Morgan off crisp assists from Travis Nakamoto. The Wildcats led by as much as 15-6, but the Bulldogs made some adjustments and worked their way back in the set, cutting the deficit to 16-14. However, Kona handled business out of a timeout and went on a 9-7 run to close out the frame — scoring its 25th point after Flores committed an attack error.
With the Wildcats trying to close out the match in the fourth set, the two squads were tied at 12-12 near the midway point of the interval. But the Bulldogs weren’t ready to home just yet, as they went on a 13-5 run to tie that match at 2-2. Le Jardin was sharp on both sides of the net, denying Kona kill attempts and securing accurate spikes on offense — led by setter Brennan Nakayama.
In the fifth and final frame, the Bulldogs led the entire way, winning 15-9. Mental lapses on the Wildcats’ front and offensive execution from Kamahele, Flores, Jackson Swirsky and Jake Heidsieck gave Le Jardin a comfortable set win.
On the Bulldogs’ side, Flores tallied a match-high 22 kills, while Nakayama also dished out 50 assists to lead both teams. Teammate Alika Piette additionally had a match high, securing 20 digs on the defensive side of the net.
Kona was led by the Morgan brothers and Dias in the kills department, combining for 42 of the team’s 57. Nakamoto did an exceptional job of facilitating the offense — logging 49 of the group’s 55 assists.
Le Jardin played No. 1 seed University Lab School in the championship match on Saturday.
The Wildcats ended 2024 finishing third overall in DI — beating Molokai on Saturday 2-1 in a best-of-three bout by scores of 25-22, 22-25 and 15-11. Ellison Morgan led the team in kills with 24, Nakamoto in assists with 28 and Evin Wong in digs with nine.
Kona concluded the year with a 14-1 overall record — with its only loss being to Le Jardin in the semifinals. The green and white also won the BIIF DII title over Ka‘u earlier this month, securing its 10-0 island record.
Other BIIF finishers
After falling to University in the quarterfinals earlier in the week, Ka‘u fell to No. 4 Waialua in the DII fifth-place semifinal on Friday. The match was won by the Bulldogs in two straight sets, as the consolation playoff matches are only best of three.
Waialua played No. 3 Island School in the fifth-place consolation championship on Saturday morning, but fell to the Voyagers in three sets — 25-19, 23-25 and 15-13. Waialua ended the season with a 10-5 overall record.
The Trojans finished 2024 10-5 overall and 8-2 against the BIIF. The season was successful for the Pahala team, as it did not reach the state tournament in 2023.
Kamehameha Schools-Hawai‘i also played in the fifth-place semis, falling 2-1 to Kamehameha Schools-Maui over in the DI bracket. KSH finished the season 12-5 overall and 11-3 in the BIIF. A season ago, it finished fourth in DI at states.
KSM went on to play BIIF squad Hilo in the fifth placing championship, and the Vikings handled business by winning 2-1 — 25-23, 23-25 and 15-13.
Hilo’s Payton Pana finished with a match-high 13 kills, while KSM was led Ho‘opi‘i Richard — who posted a match-high 21 assists.
The Vikings finished 2024 15-2 overall. They additionally finished 12-1 in league play, beating KS-Hawai‘i in the DI championship on May 1.
State winners
KS-Kapalama beat Punahou in the DI championship Saturday in four sets — 25-27, 25-23, 25-17 and 25-21. The Warriors avenged the Buff ‘N Blue from their five-set loss in the state title match just one year ago.
Kainoa Wade led KSK with an impressive 34 kills, one assist and four blocks. Teammate Brayden Van Kuren led all players in assists with 41.
Punahou’s Adam Haider and Nalu Akana combined for 21 kills to lead the team.
The Warriors finished 2024 with a 14-5 overall record, while the Buff ‘N Blue went 15-1.
Earlier in the evening, University escaped Le Jardin in five hard sets in the DII championship — 25-22, 25-27, 27-25, 25-27 and 15-12. The Junior ‘Bows finished the season unbeaten at 14-0 — capping off unfinished business from their four-set state-title loss to St. Louis in 2023. The Bulldogs concluded at 9-7.
Koa Laboy led University with a match-high 40 kills. Teammate Micah Nakasato had 26. But perhaps Kawehi Kaneakua had the most impressive performance for the ‘Bows — logging 68 of the team’s 73 assists.
Le Jardin’s Flores had another impressive outing with 31 kills, while setter Nakayama dished 61 of the squad’s 62 assists.
All-Tournament teams
The New City Nissan/HHSAA Boys Volleyball State Championships All-Tournament Teams for Divisions I and II can be found below.
Division I
Evan Porter, Punahou
Conor Williams, KSK
Adam Haidar, Punahou
Poukihi Awai, KSK
Nalu Akana, Punahou
Harryzen Soares, KSK
Most Outstanding Player: Kainoa Wade, KSK
Division II
Elijah-Shore Flores, Le Jardin
Micah Nakasato, University
Jackson Swirsky, Le Jardin
Kenna Quitan, University
Kawehi Kaneakua, University
Alika Piette, Le Jardin
Most Outstanding Player: Koa Laboy, University