Hilo made quick work of Makua Lani with a 25-5, 25-20, 25-23 BIIF sweep on Wednesday night at the Vikings Gym, where the benefit of being in the White division came into play.
“We played everybody once and being in the White is good and bad. We could work in our subs, and that could help us next week in the playoffs,” Hilo coach Cy Alicuben said.
Moku Maikui led the Vikings with eight kills, and Aukele Mortensen had six kills for the Vikings, who had two wins last year and got stuck in the White division.
They didn’t get to play the tops teams — Kamehameha, Waiakea, and Kealakehe — twice. That lack of iron sharpening could prove harmful, or it may not if the Vikings get a boost from their bench.
The Vikings (10-4) are confirmed as the No. 4 seed in the four-team BIIF Division I playoffs, which start next Monday at the higher seed’s site.
Kealakehe swept Waiakea 25-14, 25-16, 25-10 on Wednesdayt night at the Waveriders Gym to momentarily set the seedings for the four-team BIIF semifinals.
Because of the tiebreaker system with matches won, Kamehameha (9-2) is the No. 1 seed with a win over Kohala on Thursday, Kealakehe (10-2) the No. 2, and Waiakea (10-2) the No. 3.
The league’s two state berths are up for grabs in the BIIF postseason, which now looks filled with parity and unpredictability.
The Lions (2-10) close out their season on Friday at Christian Liberty (8-2).
And it’s probably a good idea to be wary of Hilo, a young team with promising talent that starts with 5-foot-11 sophomore outside hitter Kaala Deitch. The other outside hitters are sophomores Kekaukahi Alameda and Guyson Ogata. The setter is the coach’s son, junior Cy Alicuben.
Three seniors fill out the lineup in middle blockers Kashtian Ioane-Sadlon and his cousin Kadedin Ioane-Ogawa, and opposite Lono Vincent. Sophomore Kaoha Wilson also sees time at middle.
Deitch, Alicuben, and Wilson play club ball for Pilipaa, but Deitch and Alicuben grew up playing youth volleyball under the first-year Hilo coach, who got a boost from first-year players Vincent, from football, and Alameda.
Alameda and Ogata are basketball players, and their strengths in hoops — jumping and lateral quickness — help in volleyball.
“Because of basketball their side-to-side movement and acceleration are quick,” Alicuben said. “Kekaukahi’s dad thought volleyball would help him with basketball. Before he could touch the bottom of the basketball backboard. Now, he can touch the rim. That’s how much his jump has improved.”
The offense revolves around Deitch, who’s a deceptive looking player as a high-jumping hammer.
“He doesn’t look it but stand next to him and he’s 5-11,” Alicuben said. “He started with me in age group, and he was really green. Last year, he trained and his jump improved by a minimum of six inches. He’s got a big jump and can hold the rim with two hands.”
In the season opener, Hilo lost to Kamehameha in four sets and was swept by Waiakea and Kealakehe. The Vikings will face one of the three on Monday after winning their seventh straight match.
Even against the Lions, the Viks struggled with unforced errors, hitting balls long or serving into the net. But when the passes were clean, Hilo looked good ripping shots.
“To me, we have to get the first pass to the setter, then we have the option of running the middle, opposite or left, and we have enough firepower,” Alicuben said. “I can’t wait until Monday to see how much the kids have grown.”
Rare loss
As the four-time defending BIIF champion, Kamehameha was unbeaten in league play from 2014 to last year, compiling a 57-0 record.
At the time, the Warriors were the second-best unbeaten BIIF dynasty. The greatest is the Konawaena girls basketball team with 10 straight BIIF titles, a 116-0 league record, and the last four state titles.
Then Kamehameha lost to Waiakea in five sets on March 3, ending their perfection streak. Another streak fell on Monday when Kealakehe won in five sets at Koai’a Gym.
In 2013, Waiakea captured the BIIF championship, and that was Kamehameha’s only league loss for a 13-1 record.
The previous year, Kamehameha pocketed the BIIF title with a 16-0 record. In 2011, Waiakea was the BIIF champion and Kamehameha the runner-up with a 12-4 record.
Before if Kamehameha fell, it was only to Waiakea. But this season is entirely different. It seems anyone can beat anyone. That makes the postseason the most fun when there’s nothing but parity and unpredictability.