KEALAKEKUA – Midway through the second set against the visiting Cowgirls of Kohala, Konawaena’s coach was not happy.
The Wildcats trailed the Cowgirls by as many as four points early on in the set, forcing assistant coach August Dias to call a timeout in an effort to right the ship.
“I just said that we weren’t playing up to our potential,” said Dias. “If we want to be champions, every point of every game, we have to play like it.”
Konawaena responded by going on a tear, putting up a 12-0 run to turn a two-point deficit into a 20-11 lead. The Wildcats ultimately swept Kohala 25-13, 25-16, 25-9 to up their BIIF record to 4-1, tied with Hawaii Prep atop the BIIF Division II standings.
The Wildcat offense was led by junior outside hitter Kaelyn Shibuya, who notched 13 kills on the day.
“She’s one of our smaller players, but she’s a smart hitter,” Dias said of the 5’5” Shibuya. “She hits corners really, really well. She places the ball well.”
In addition to her 26 assists in the contest, Tiffanie Alo led Konawaena with 6 aces.
Konawaena and Hawaii Prep are now set to square off on Tuesday night in Waimea with first place on the line.
Kealakehe def. Christian Liberty 25-17, 25-9, 25-21
In their second BIIF victory of the season, the Waveriders put it all together in an impressive second set during their sweep over Christian Liberty.
“We just made too many mistakes, too many errors,” said Kealakehe head coach Jaymie Nield of the difference between the second set and the remaining two sets. “The second set, we had strong serving.”
Kealakehe’s outside hitters Teysha-Rey Spinney-Kuahuia and Lina Husek settled in after a rough first set, pacing the Waveriders with nine and six kills on the night, respectively.
“She’s an all-around athlete,” Nield said of Spinney-Kuahuia. She’s a strong hitter, she can set, she can pass. She’s pretty reliable, which is nice to have. We know that she’ll put away the ball every time.”
The Waveriders (2-3) will host Honokaa (3-3) on Monday before traveling to Kohala (3-3) on Wednesday. Christian Liberty will host the Cowgirls Tuesday night in their next contest.
Parker def. Makua Lani 25-15, 25-17, 25-15
The Bulls notched their first win in BIIF play, taking down the Lions in straight sets.
Parker (1-3) will host Pahoa (1-4) Saturday morning in their next contest, while Makua Lani (0-4) will travel to Konawaena (4-1) Saturday morning.
Friday
Waiakea def. Keaau 25-13, 25-19, 25-9
Laupahoehoe def. Makua Lani 22-25, 25-22, 25-14, 26-24
Thursday
Kamehameha def. Hawaii Prep 25-7, 25-7, 25-13
Kamehameha’s Maela Honma at Kaleaokapumakani Kuamoo paced the Warriors with nine kills apiece in their home victory over Ka Makani. The victory kept Kamehameha’s unblemished BIIF record intact, while Ka Makani suffered their first defeat of their BIIF schedule.
Football
Kohala 36, Kau 30
The Cowboys snapped a two-game slide by matching their highest offensive output of the season in a home victory over Kau.
Kohala (2-2) travels to Kamehameha (3-1) on Friday night hoping to make it two in a row. Kau (0-4) will travel to Pahoa (0-4) with each team hoping to earn a win for the first time in 2022.
Kealakehe 18, Waiakea 16
The Waveriders rode a two-touchdown third quarter to their first victory of the year. The Kealakehe defense held firm, with all of Waiakea’s points being scored by their defense: two pick-sixes and a safety.
Kealakehe (1-2) will travel to Keaau (1-2) next Saturday with aiming to make it two in a row. Waiakea (0-3) will host Hilo (2-1) hoping to break into the win column.
Friday
Konawaena 66, Keaau 0
The Wildcats continued to roll, passing the half-century mark for the fourth consecutive game as they upped their BIIF record to 4-0.
Konawaena will have a bye this week before hosting Kealakehe (1-2) on Thursday, Sept. 22.
Honokaa 27, Kamehameha 23
The Dragons scored the game-winning touchdown on a 45-yard pass midway through the fourth quarter, winning the battle of unbeatens to take sole possession of first place in the BIIF Division II standings.
Honokaa (4-0) will be tested again next Friday night when they host Hawaii Prep (3-1).
Thursday
Hawaii Prep 45, Pahoa 22
Ka Makani earned their third straight victory, taking down the Daggers on the road to up their record to 3-1. Hawaii Prep’s 45 points were a season-high.
Pahoa (0-4) will host Kau next Saturday hoping to break into the win column for the first time in 2022.
Cross Country
Saturday’s race at Kamehameha was the closest all year, with both the boys’ and girls’ races decided by less than two seconds, but in the end, the result was the same as the previous two weeks.
Kealakehe’s Levi Childers claimed the boys’ race in 17:31.07, edging out Waiakea’s Shane Tominaga, while Hilo’s Hulali Halpern won the girls race in 19:42.92, fending off Kealakehe’s Cozette Wood by less than a second.
Led by Tominaga, Austin Mohica in third and Tyler Selley in eighth, the Waiakea boys claimed first place with a total of 34 team points. Kealakehe was in second with 45 team points.
Hawaii Prep’s girls’ team took first with a total of 40 points, led by top 5 performances by Bella Dadzie and Wynter Radey-Morgan.
Makua Lani’s Sofia Mattix finished in third place overall, posting a time of 22:17.64.
All BIIF schools will head to Kealakehe next Saturday for their next race.