The Kamehameha boys canoe crew showed the strength of its young paddlers with an upset victory at the final BIIF tune-up regatta on Saturday at Hilo Bay, where conditions were different from a week ago.
The water wasn’t flat. It was choppy due to an onshore wind. The day wasn’t postcard picture perfect with a smiling sun and smooth water.
The Warriors (Nauhi Lewis, Tyler O’Brien, Noah Pila, Nihau Paulos, Kamau Beauqet, Umi Young ) won the half-mile race in 4 minutes 1.65 seconds, barely ahead of favorite Kealakehe, 4:02.91; Hilo, 4:06.07; Keaau, 4:07.66; Waiakea, 4:31.12; and Hawaii Prep, 4:34.61.
It was the surprise of the season considering Kamehameha has battled COVID-19 issues and didn’t race much at all. The Warriors didn’t race last week.
“I don’t expect anything. We were just happy to get out on the water,” Kamehameha coach Keahi Warfield said. “We knew we knew we were going to get an outside lane. They knew what they had to do. They trained hard, and if they wanted it then they have to go out and get it.
“It’s hard to say (about BIIF championships). You can be the first seed and run over a flag. It’s their availability with COVID. Things can change at any moment. We could lose that whole crew we had today, so there are no expectations. The main goal is that we have representation. We have a young crew at Kamehameha. We only have one senior girl.”
With the return of its starters from quarantine, the Keaau girls (Dalilah Martin, Lexie Prudholm, Kysha Carvalho, Adelaide Stebbins, Kassidy Lucas, Cother McKeague La’a) dominated in 4:37.01 while Kealakehe took second in 4:40.57, followed by HPA, 4:44.59; Waiakea, 4:45.81; Parker, 5:12.46; Pahoa, 5:14.45; and Kamehameha, 5:15.03.
“I’m happy for the girls to get back on the water. We challenged them to have a good day,” said Keaau Grant Kaaua, who coaches the Cougars with his wife, Anna Golden Kaaua. “Next week is for all the marbles, so we just have to see the best we can do. This has been a season like no other. We’re just happy to have the whole team together and participating, and hopefully for next week.”
Since canoe paddling started in 2002, no school has pulled off the elusive BIIF sweep, winning all three titles. It looks like a BIIF sweep will have to wait until next season. Kamehameha and Kealakehe figure to battle for the boys title, Keaau, and Kealakehe for the girls, and HPA and Keaau for mixed.
In the last race of the day, HPA (Della Stallsmith, Te’a Kanuha, Tain Lawson, Nathan Roberts, Kacen Hamada, Ollie Hope) won mixed in 4:13.27, followed by Keaau, 4:14.88; Kealakehe, 4:19.97; Kamehameha, 4:25.33; Waiakea, 4:32.25; Parker, 4:37.11; and Hilo, 4:47.16.
“We don’t care how we finish throughout the season. Next week is what we’re looking toward,” HPA coach Mesepa Tanoai said. “We have our combination and will try to get a couple (titles) at next week’s championships. We went in lane 1 (close to the shore). It’s a little different. You don’t get to line yourself up with the two flags to have a target. The wind and the tide change was a little hard to read, so it was a little challenging for the kids. We didn’t know what to expect. It’s always new, but they made it happen.”
The BIIF championships will be held on Saturday at Hilo Bay. The top three finisher in each race earn spots to the state championships. Hilo High will broadcast the race at hilohigh.org/livesports.