This was supposed to be the Waiakea girls tennis team’s year, to not only shatter the belief that Punahou is unbeatable but that the Big Island has blue-chip Goliath talent, too.
Last May at Mauna Lani, the Buffanblu captured the HHSAA championship, edging the Warriors 19-14 points for their 17th consecutive state title.
It’s the longest current winning streak in state history. Punahou’s water polo team is next with 12 straight.
But Waiakea had all of its starters back for 2020 and was boosted with the return of Kianna Oda, who didn’t play in the BIIF the last two years. She competed on the USTA circuit instead.
It had the potential to be the most talented team in the BIIF’s history. Maile Brilhante is No. 1 on the girls 18 USTA Hawaii Pacific standing list, Oda is No. 5 and Keilyn Kunimoto is No. 11.
All three seniors are headed to Division I schools: Brilhante to University of Pacific, Oda to Gonzaga and Kunimoto to Idaho State.
Chloe Teramoto provided additional firepower. The senior signed with UH-Hilo after advancing to the quarterfinals at states with junior Alicia Chun, ranked No. 35 in the USTA poll.
Waiakea’s other doubles team of Jade Brilhante and Maya Atwal are ranked No. 8 and No. 23, respectively, in the girls 16 USTA list. The duo lost at states to Teramoto and Chun in the quarters.
It was also supposed to be a father and daughters moment, too, for coach Bill Brilhante, whose Warriors finished third in 2018 at states and runner-up in 2017.
The senior class held a 38-0 BIIF record and was a modern day’s dynasty, built on teamwork, discipline and the type of generational talent that Punahou pumps out on an annual basis.
“It was one of the most talented teams out of the island of Hawaii. No team from here has won the state championship,” he said. “Last year without Kianna, we lost to Punahou by five points. Her addition could have easily closed that gap with the graduation of Punahou’s seniors.”
Brilhante prefers to find a silver lining somewhere. He pointed out the disappointment with no traditional senior graduation, but noted that at least the school held its prom.
As talented as Waiakea is, it’s that state and national experience, from playing in competitive mainland tournaments, that sharpened the Warriors.
Basically, the Warriors could draw from their memory banks to have an understanding of what to expect in their swan song season.
But the coronavirus pandemic eliminated their season after one BIIF match and sent the team into a world of What if possibilities.
“We had a really good chance of winning states, especially with me, Kianna, and Keilyn all being Division I players,” Maile Brilhante said. “We would have been the strongest team Waiakea ever had.”
To add to the motivational fire, she finished second to Kihei’s Jessalyn Lopez for the state singles title. Kunimoto was fourth, falling to Kapolei’s Annika Alcorn.
It’s perhaps important that the Warriors have come to grips with their lost season but also see the big picture with the coronavirus pandemic.
“It’s sad and really disappointing,” Kunimoto said. “I thought we had a strong chance to be a great team this year. We played only one match. We have to stay positive and hang in there.
“Last year, we got second and were really close to beating them. This year the team was really deep. This was our best chance with the seniors on the team.”
A tricky musical chairs situation, figuring out the two players for singles and three doubles teams, has been avoided.
Actually, the Warriors are selfless, so no headache for Brilhante.
“I would have been fine with anything,” said Kunimoto, who won a BIIF singles crown in 2019, took the doubles title with Chun in 2018 and was runner-up in singles in 2017.
Maile Brilhante and Oda were on the doubles team at states in 2017 that finished fourth and have played in national tourneys together.
“How you maximize points is based on the number of points generated through the rounds,” Bill Brilhante said. “Whether that’s singles or doubles. That was our game plan to take advantage of our strong singles and doubles players. Our top three girls requested to play doubles.”
So, what’s next for Waiakea?
Punahou will still be an obstacle.
It’s no secret that the ILH schools run a farm system from the first grade, encouraging their students to excel in academics and athletes.
They start a particular sport really young, get top-notch coaching and go through a Darwinian process with three teams on the high school level to fight for starting spots.
It’s probably a safe bet that the idiom “Jack of all trades, master of none” didn’t come from someone at Punahou.
“It’s unprecedented to have three Division I scholarships players as well as a Division II one. That’s pretty incredible and speaks volumes about tennis in Hilo,” Bill Brilhante said. “They started playing at 5, 6 or 7 years old. It’s life-long dedication.
“We were perfectly aligned this year, and we were competing to break Punahou’s streak. Determining a state champion comes from your third and fourth singles and doubles players. That’s how a team like Punahou earns points. That’s where you see a difference.”
The Warriors graduate Maile Brilhante, Oda, Kunimoto, Teramoto, Miya Yanagisawa, and return juniors Atwal, Chun, Jade Ishimine, Saedie Wakida, sophomores Jade Brilhante, Lisa Miyazaki, Haley Teramoto, and freshmen Kate Newell, Mia Tulang, and Makena Denault.
Yanagisawa and Haley Teramoto fell in the state quarterfinals.
The Warriors return four players with state experience in Atwal, Chung, Brilhante, and Teramoto.
It’s a good nucleus to kick start the next wave of Warriors.
“The cupboard is not bare,” coach Brilhante said. “But we have a lot of work with the competition on our team next year.”
Editor’s note: This is the first in a series of stories detailing what was lost through the cancellation of each BIIF spring sport.