Even short-handed, Kamehameha-Hawaii took third at the HHSAA Division I volleyball tournament.
Juniors Avery Enriques and Addison Enriques made up for the absence of Isaiah Lahea on Friday with 10 kills and seven kills, respectively, and the Warriors outlasted Mililani 25-22, 26-27, 15-12 at Neal Blaisdell Center in Honolulu.
It’s BIIF champion Kamehameha-Hawaii’s lowest finish at states since the Warriors (16-1) finished fifth in 2013, but their bid to reach a fourth final in five seasons took a big hit Wednesday when Lahea left a quarterfinal victory against Kamehameha-Kapalama with an ankle injury.
Lahea, who had compiled 25 kills against Kapalama, missed Kamehameha-Hawaii’s past two games, including a semifinal loss to Moanalua on Thursday.
The Enriques twins had the Warriors covered against Mililani (14-3), and Samuel Kahapea added four kills.
“We actually played how we should have played against Moanalua,” coach Guy Enriques said. “In my estimation we have a good team, but we should have done better without (Lahea) against Moanalua.”
Each Enriques dug 13 balls and Jai Makuakane and Kameron Moses added 14 assists apiece in a match in which neither team posted a high hitting percentage.
The Warriors outhit the Trojans .129-.103. Frederick Liva smacked a match-high 15 kills for Mililani but made 10 errors.
“It’s hard to be disappointed that we aren’t in the final, because we didn’t deserve it,” Guy Enriques said. “But some good things happened against today. We beat a good team and everybody on the bench played.”
Enriques said the full extent of Lahea’s injury was known yet, but he said senior would be on crutches for “a while.”
Kona takes fifth
A breakthrough season for Konawaena was punctuated by a breakout performance by Keanu Caldwell.
Caldwell and fellow sophomore Benjamin McKinley each put down seven kills as the Wildcats swept Farrington 25-20, 27-25 in Honolulu to finish fifth at the HHSAA Division II boys volleyball tournament.
“We showed a lot of heart and improvement,” coach Ainsley Keawekane said after the BIIF champion won for the second day in a row following a three-set loss to Damien in the quarterfinals.
Caldwell, a 6-foot-3 outside hitter, had a big hand in the Wildcats’ success the last two matches, finishing with as many kills (16) as McKinley, Konawaena No. 1 hitting option, including nine in a victory against Kaimuki on Thursday.
“He really started to bring it these last two days,” Keawekane said.
Kealii Kuahuia added five kills against Farrington at its gym, and McKinley and Wall added 11 digs apiece.
Coming off its first BIIF title since 1998, Konawaena will lose four seniors, including Wall and libero Anthony Ward, but the Wildcats will return three potential cornerstones in McKinley, Caldwell and Kuahuia, a junior.
“They played more as a team and communicated more,” Keawekane said. “Konawaena hadn’t finished fifth in a long time, and I’m very proud of them.
Warriors rebound in pool
It was the kind of bounce-back effort at the HHSAA water polo tournament that Dan Lyons has come to expect, though this one was special in its own right.
Hiwa Kaapuni scored late in the fourth quarter to lift Kamehameha-Hawaii past Baldwin 10-8 in a consolation match in Honolulu. Senior Katelynn Kubo tallied five goals as the BIIF champion Warriors (11-3) overcame a 6-3 halftime deficit.
The last five state tournaments have unfolded in familiar fashion for Kamehameha-Hawaii, with a defeat in the quarterfinals – the Warriors lost to Kamehameha-Kapalama 14-6 on Wednesday after trailing 6-4 at the half – followed by a win in consolation play. On Saturday, Kamehameha-Hawaii will try to finish fifth for the fifth consecutive season.
“I thought we played good for a half (Thursday),” Lyons said. “We actually played pretty well for the entire game. There were some momentum-changing plays that hurt us.”
On Friday, the Warriors grabbed the momentum in the second half. Alyssa Pelanca scored twice, and Lahela Rosario and Kukui Haumea also scored. Kaapuni, Kubo and Pelanca are the team’s three seniors.
“We are such a young team, it was nice to see that they could play at this level,” Lyons said. “This is just the beginning for many of them.”
