By MATT GERHART
Hawaii Tribune-Herald
Keaau and Kohala are on the clock in Big Island Interschlastic Federation softball, and so are Kealakehe, Waiakea, Konawaena and Hawaii Prep in volleyball.
At least in the sense that all six are hoping to turn the tables in the postseason against teams that beat them in the regular season.
There will be no gazillion dollar prize fight nor a run for the roses on the Big Island, and no BIIF alums are waiting to hear their names called at the NFL draft.
But there is still plenty going on locally to whet fans’ appetites:
Softball
In a Division I championship series that starts Friday at Old Kona Airport Park, either a first-time champion, Keaau, will be crowned, or Waiakea will capture it first title since it won five in row from 2007-11.
The Warriors (9-3) enter having won eight in a row, and one of the highlights during the run was a 23-8 battering of Keaau (9-3) on the Cougars’ field April 7. Waiakea scored 13 runs in the first, but that inning didn’t start against Keaau ace Lohi Kamakea-Wong, a senior who will likely start Games 1 and 2 in the finals.
In Division II, Kamehameha (12-0) looks to win its fourth consecutive championship in style by completing its first unbeaten BIIF season.
Kohala (8-4) has been competitive against everybody but the Warriors this season. Of its four losses, three came by a combined four runs to Division I teams. But the Cowgirls were humbled 14-0 at Kamehameha on April 18 in a five-inning TKO in which ace Mykala Tokunaga threw a no-hitter.
Win or lose, Kohala will make its six consecutive appearance at the HHSAA softball tournament, the longest such streak on the island.
Volleyball
Odds are that that come late Friday night either Hilo or Kealakehe will be celebrating an end to a state drought.
At 5:30 p.m. Friday in the Division I semifinals at Afook-Chinen Civic Auditorium, Kamehameha (13-0) takes on Waiakea (9-4), a team it handled 25-12, 25-10, 23-25, 25-5 on April 15.
Kamehameha already has an automatic state berth, so if it takes care of business again against Waiakea, the Waveriders and Vikings would vie for the other state spot at 7 p.m.
Hilo (11-2) hasn’t been to states since it moved up to D-I before the 2010 season, while the Waveriders haven’t made the trip since 2004. Kealakehe had been rather silent in volleyball since coach Kahinu Lee guided it to three consecutive league titles from 2001-2003, but Lee led them to an 11-2 record this season in his second season back at the helm.
One of those losses came March 14 at Hilo, 25-15, 25-22, 24-26, 25-21, a match in which Kealakehe was plagued by a slow start and a masterful performance by Vikings’ outside hitter Bradley Comilla.
Outside hitter Kai Enriques looks to lead top-seeded Ka’u (9-4) to its second consecutive Division II title, starting with a 2:30 p.m. semifinal against Konawaena (8-6). Wildcats coach Ainsley Keawekane said Enriques made all the difference when the teams met in Pahala on March 13, a Trojans sweep.
Kohala (8-5) enters as the hottest team in D-II, having won eight of 10 since an 0-3 start. The surge included a four-set road victory April 14 against Hawaii Prep (9-5), the Cowboys’ opponent in Friday’s other semifinal.
Track and field
The last tuneup before the BIIF championships is Saturday at Kamehameha.
Two-time champion Hilo is one of the presumptive favorites on the girls side because of its depth, but Kealakehe and Hawaii Prep had most of the fun last week at HPA, combining to win 15 of the 16 girls events.
It’s hardly news anymore when HPA’s Emma Taylor lowers her state-best time in the 100 hurdles, but she also left HPA ranked No. 1 in Hawaii in the 300 hurdles.
