In the rematch, it was the Kawai Ua and Jordyn Hayashi show again as Hilo battled Waiakea in another BIIF volleyball crosstown rivalry classic.
In the rematch, it was the Kawai Ua and Jordyn Hayashi show again as Hilo battled Waiakea in another BIIF volleyball crosstown rivalry classic.
The Vikings outlasted Waiakea 19-25, 25-21, 10-25, 25-18, 15-6 in a Division I roller-coaster on Thursday night at the Warriors Gym, where excitement is always in the air with the long-time rivals.
Ua finished with 13 kills, smashing three key points in Game 5, while Lexi Paglinawan and Taina Leao provided balance with seven kills each for Hilo (11-1), which remains in good shape for the BIIF regular season title, which includes the league’s first berth to the HHSAA tournament.
Hayashi, a senior libero, finished with an entertaining 43 digs, but it wasn’t enough to mask Waiakea’s passing troubles in the fifth set.
With Paglinawan behind the line, she served four straight points, including an ace to close the match.
Kayla Kahauolopua clobbered 23 kills, her sister Cadelynn Kahauolopua and Melina Devela 10 each, and Jazzy Alston had seven kills for the Warriors (10-2).
It looked like Waiakea would upset the defending BIIF champion. The Warriors held a 2-1 set lead and looked like they had better ball-control, balance, and team chemistry. That was the case until the last set.
In the 25-19 first set, each team had 10 unforced errors, but Hilo struggled with its serve-receive passing with setters Kailee Kurokawa and Makena Ahuna often setting balls from beyond the 10-foot line.
When balls were hit over, Hayashi was there to pick them up. She gathered eight digs, and Kayla Kahauolopua knocked down five kills.
One sign of Hilo’s shaky passing: Devela had three kills in Game 1 with two easy slams on over-passes.
In the 25-21 second set, Hilo cleaned up its passing and served down, especially down the stretch. Paglinawan closed out the game with six straight points, including one of her team’s two aces.
The Warriors had four service errors and no aces and hurt themselves with 12 unforced errors. The Vikings gave away 10 free points on unforced errors.
In the 25-10 third set, Waiakea had an eight-point run with Angel Navor behind the service line, and Kayla Kahauolopua knocked down four consecutive kills during that spree. Kahauolopua slammed seven kills during her hitting display.
The Viks found a better rhythm in the 25-18 fourth set. They passed better and served tough. They had two aces and one service error; Waiakea went one and one.
But even better, Hilo found balance. Paglinawan, Ua, and Leao, the offense’s hitting sparkplugs, had three kills each.
There are no secrets among the powerhouse trio of Hilo, Kamehameha, and Waiakea. Each has a well-known strength and weakness. And they do their best to exploit something whenever they meet.
For Hilo, there’s a six-rotation firepower unmatched by anyone else in the league. But the Vikings sometimes struggle with their passing, both in serve-receive and off digs to the setter.
However, in Game 5, Hilo stabilized its passing and unleashed its power hitting.
For Waiakea, the BIIF runner-up has the best serve-receive passer and defender in Hayashi, who provides a clean connection for setter Navor. When Kayla Kahauolopua, one of the league’s most dynamic hitters, rotates out of the front row, the offense sometimes goes into prolonged scoring dry spells.
For Kamehameha, sophomores Tiani Bello and Nani Spaar provide a potent 1-2 scoring punch as a power hitter and savvy attacker, respectively. But if one or both go into a mini-slump, the team’s rhythm tumbles.
Hilo was in Division II from 2011 to ’13 and took the BIIF title each year. After the Vikings jumped a level, they’ve been the outsider in a race for two of the league’s spots to the HHSAA tournament, until they won the league title last year.
This season, there’s interesting parity among the powerhouse trio, and the second round of matchups has only begun.
The next date of musical chairs battle for the BIIF regular season title, which includes the league’s first berth to states, is next Thursday with Kamehameha at Hilo.