HONOLULU — In one of the most unexpected years, the quest for title No. 10 — and a fifth straight — is still alive for Konawaena.
Behind a 3-point barrage from freshman Kaliana Salazar Harrell and a double-double from Caiyle Kaupu, the Wildcats beat OIA champion Kahuku 46-42 to advance to the HHSAA Division I state semifinals.
Salazar Harrell found her groove early with some big buckets, hitting five 3-pointers in all on the way to a game-high 22 points. Kaupu was dominant in the paint, with 17 points and 14 rebounds.
While Konawaena’s streaks against Big Island foes ended this year — including a 124-game winning streak and a run of 10 straight league titles — the most important championship is still the Wildcats’ to defend.
Under head coach Bobbie Awa and her committed staff, the Wildcats have won nine Division I state titles — including the last four consecutively.
The win also kept alive a unique streak for the Big Island. Since 2003, the HHSAA girls basketball D-I semifinals have included a team from the BIIF.
Konawaena will face top seed Iolani today at 7 p.m. The Raiders (11-1) beat Maui 67-32 in their quarterfinal matchup.
With a young roster that features no seniors and a bevy of freshman contributors, the common sentiment around the state was that Konawaena would be scariest late in the season, on the state stage with some valuable experience earned. That’s proving true, with the Wildcats notching two solid victories to open their state title campaign. Konawaena beat Leilehua on Monday in a first round game at their home gym, 61-41.
Early in the second quarter, Konawaena led by as many as 11 points, but Kahuku quickly cut it to six. The Wildcats would keep battling, however, building a 10-point half time lead. Salazar Harrell and Kaupu combined for 22 of the Wildcats 25 first-half points.
Konawaena never lost its lead, which ballooned multiple times to double-digits. But the aggressive Red Raiders would not go away, staging a last gasp fourth quarter surge. It wouldn’t be enough to dethrone the champs, however.
The Wildcats were the beneficiaries of some bad Kahuku free throw shooting. The Red Raiders were just 7 of 19 from the free throw line, with some big misses late.
The win becomes even a little more impressive when looking across the bracket at what OIA runner-up Kalani did to BIIF champion Waiakea.
The Warriors (11-2) captured their first BIIF championship since 2008, ending Konawaena’s reign with a convincing 58-48 title game win. However, a quarterfinal matchup against Kalani was anything but an easy route for Waiakea, which garnered the No. 2 seed.
Kalani built an early lead and held a 47-23 edge heading into a wild fourth quarter. The teams combined for 60 points in the final stanza — 34 of those by Waiakea — but the Falcons hung on for a 73-57 victory.
Kalena Halunajan led the way for Kalani, amassing 21 points on 75 percent shooting. Kamalu Kamakawiwoole added 17 points to go with a whopping 18 rebounds.
Kelsie Imai had a team-high 11 points for Waiakea, while Destynee Williams and Jazelle Dorser each had 10.
The Falcons (14-2) are familiar with Big Island opponents, having beaten both Konawaena and Hilo in the Wildcats’ preseason tournament. With Kalani’s win over the Waiakea in the quarterfinals, the Falcons bested the BIIF’s top three squads this year that went a combined 30-5 during the league season.
Waiakea will play a consolation game today at 3 p.m.
Division II
Waimea (kauai) 53,
Hawaii Prep 14
A near triple-double by Waimea’s (12-3) Kaye Serapio (21 points, 16 rebounds, 8 steals) eliminated BIIF champion Ka Makani from the Division II tournament on Thursday night at Damien High School on Oahu.
To say offense was hard to come by for Ka Makani might be an understatement. Hawaii Prep managed just 8 points in the first three quarters, going scoreless in the second quarter.
Kyana Brucelas recorded a team-high six points and five rebounds for Hawaii Prep (4-9).
Consolation: Ka‘u 46, KS-Hawaii 35
Ka‘u (6-8) will not go home from its first trip to the state tournament without a win — and it came against a familiar foe.
The Trojans won a BIIF battle on Oahu behind a packed stat line from Kianie Medeiros-Dancel (10 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals).
Reishalyn NK Jara added 10 as the only other Ka‘u player in double figures.
Meghan Wong notched 12 points for Kamehameha-Hawaii (6-7) in the loss.
Ka‘u will play for seventh place against Waipahu today.