As the old saying goes, champions find a way to win, even on volleyball teams where there are a bunch of first-year starters.
As the old saying goes, champions find a way to win, even on volleyball teams where there are a bunch of first-year starters.
Kamalu Makekau-Whittaker is the only returning starter for Kamehameha, which made the type of clutch plays that was routine during the early years of dominance.
The 6-foot-1 senior came up big in hitting, blocking and setting to spark the Warriors over Hilo 25–19, 26-24, 25-22 in the BIIF Division I semifinals on Thursday night at Hilo High’s Gym, opening the door for a sixth straight league title.
In the other semifinal, Waiakea eliminated Kealakehe 25-10, 25-22, 28-26.
The five-time defending BIIF champion Kamehameha (13-4) will play Waiakea (14-3) at 7 p.m. Saturday.
The season is over the Vikings (11-6), who lose five seniors.
Makekau-Whittaker clobbered 15 kills, Kailee Yoshimura added 13 while Hiwa Kaapuni and Cienna-Lei Daog had four kills each. Cassandra Fonseca came off the bench and provided a nice boost with energy and three kills.
Hilo outside hitter Kawai Ua tried her best to carry the offense. The 5-6 sophomore pounded 17 kills while senior hitter Ma’alhi Remmers drilled seven kills. Kailee Kurokawa, a sophomore hitter/setter, added stability setting and balance with six kills.
But a major difference was Kamehameha’s height and length on the block. The Warriors outblocked the shorter Vikings, 7-3, getting four stuffs in the last set. Hilo had none in the final game.
Even when the Warriors didn’t get a block, they got the next best thing — a deflection, which led to a ton of free balls. They only had a few more kills than the Viks, 43-39. That’s because Hilo hustled all over the place to come up with digs.
Perhaps nothing summed up the match more than the final point. As if on cue, Makekau-Whittaker served, and there was an entertaining rally before Daog bumped the ball over with one hand. It fell to the open floor between several exhausted and emotionally drained Vikings.
The Warriors celebrated then the cheering quickly died down. The exhilaration of the moment escaped the shiny gym.
They already knew that there was still some unfinished business.
• Waiakea def. Kealakehe 3-0: The Warriors had better balance and firepower to take down the Waveriders, who relied mainly on the one-two punch of outside hitter Nika Paogofie-Buyten (17 kills) and middle Hopoe Napoleon-Martins (eight kills).
Lindsey Maikui ripped 14 kills, Kadara Marshall 12 and Cassie Emnase had seven kills for Waiakea, which attacked from different spots. Maikui slammed balls from the right, Marshall the middle and Emanse from the left side.
The Warriors are gunning for their first BIIF title since 2009.
The season is over for the Waveriders, who lose two seniors in the hard-hitting Paogofie-Buyten and Tara Kekuaokalani.
Waiakea had more kills (37-27) and fewer unforced errors (24-25). But the last set summed up Kealakehe’s day. Coaches don’t like it when teams beat themselves. The ‘Riders had five service errors; the Warriors had just one.