HILO — Waiakea’s better balance, ball-control and setting trumped Kealakehe’s powerful but one-dimensional offense in a must-win volleyball match. ADVERTISING HILO — Waiakea’s better balance, ball-control and setting trumped Kealakehe’s powerful but one-dimensional offense in a must-win volleyball match. The
HILO — Waiakea’s better balance, ball-control and setting trumped Kealakehe’s powerful but one-dimensional offense in a must-win volleyball match.
The tandem of senior Monique Apuakehau and freshman Kayla Kahauolopua had 10 kills each to spark Waiakea over Kealakehe 25-21, 25-18, 25-23 in a Big Island Interscholastic Federation Division I showdown Wednesday night at the Warriors’ gym.
The match was critical because neither team wants to be the No. 4 seed in the four-team BIIF Division I playoffs and face unbeaten Kamehameha in the semifinals.
The Warriors (9-3) have games left against Hilo on Monday and Honokaa on Wednesday. Both are at home. If the Warriors get one win, they’ll at least secure the No. 3 seed.
The Waveriders (9-4) have only one game left against Keaau on Oct. 18 at home. If Kealakehe and Waiakea finish with the same record, the Warriors hold the head-to-head tiebreaker and would get the higher seed.
Waiakea last went to Hawaii High School Athletic Association state tournament in 2010 and Kealakehe last made the trip to Oahu in 2006.
Apuakehau is a middle blocker and Kahauolopua is an outside hitter. Hiilei Ishii-Chaves, a setter/right-side hitter, added nine kills and outside Alison Fuata also had nine kills. Kills from all three hitting posts is the definition of a spread offense.
Taniah Ayap is the other Waiakea setter and helped balance the attack. The Warriors had more firepower, 49 kills to Kealakehe’s 34. That helped compensate for their 28 unforced errors; the Waveriders had 19 giveaway points (hitting, serving, ball-handing, setting errors).
The Warriors won the blocking contest 4-2. They also served tough and piled up five aces with Ishii-Chaves getting three aces; the Waveriders had zero aces.
Nika Paogofie-Buyten had 18 kills and Rashai Kailiwai, the other Waveriders outside hitter, added 12 kills. That’s 88 percent of the offense coming from one spot on the floor.
And though the Warriors had more unforced errors (most of them hitting), their ball-handling was much cleaner. They knocked down three kills on Kealakehe over-passes. Waiakea didn’t give the visitors any freebie overpass opportunities.
The Waveriders picked the wrong time to go on a hitting error streak. They had three consecutive hitting errors to end the second set, and had another hitting error on match point.
