Big Island Interscholastic Federation (BIIF) winter sports action continued across the weekend with teams involved in state tournament action on O‘ahu and in island regular-season play. See the paper all week for continued updates.
Soccer:
KSH 3, Waimea 0
First-seeded Kamehameha Schools-Hawai‘i girls soccer punched its ticket to the HHSAA Division II state championship over the weekend on O‘ahu, blanking Waimea 3-0 to advance to Monday night’s title setting against No. 3 Pacific.
Earlier in the weekend, the Lady Warriors shut out PAC-5 in the quarterfinals, getting revenge on the Wolfpack after falling in penalty kicks during last season’s DII championship. It was KSH’s 11th consecutive shutout, adding to its prestigious 65-3 goal differential in 2024-25.
Lady Warriors’ star midfielder Madisyn Meyers led the team with two goals — one in the 22nd minute and the other in the 41st. Meyers leads KSH with 16 goals this season. Teammate Kahalia Huddleston also added a goal in the 36th minute, adding to her nine cumulative goals.
The Menehunes were slated to face Kauai in the DII third-place match Monday, but all consolation matches this week were called off. Waimea now ends its season at 7-5-3 overall.
The paper was unable to report Monday’s state championship results by deadline. The championship was moved to this week due to inclement weather over the weekend. See Wednesday’s paper for coverage.
Mid-Pacific 3,
HPA 0
Mid-Pacific girls soccer qualified for Monday’s DII state championship after shutting out BIIF powerhouse Hawaii Preparatory Academy 3-0, sending Ka Makani to the consolation bracket.
Kylena Paredes (19’), Eva Hand (26’) and Natasha Strongosky (58’) scored the Owls’ three goals. Mid-Pacific peaked at the right time in the season, riding a five-match win streak to put itself on the highest stage in Hawai‘i girls soccer.
HPA then won the fifth-place semifinal against Waialua by a score of 6-3. Madie Buczyna led with a hat trick, scoring in the first, 13th and 17th minute. Teammate Kekai Lansdale (16’), Zaylee Moses (34’) and Tae Detwiler (73’) also contributed goals.
The Bulldogs, whose season ended at 6-9-0 overall, were led by Iris Miguel — who scored in the 18th and 62nd minute. Teammate Adelynn Boling scored in the 69th minute.
Ka Makani was scheduled to play PAC-5 in the fifth-place championship Monday, but the match was called off. The red and white officially end their season at 9-6-0 overall with a second-place finish in BIIF Division II. HPA had a goal differential of 60-27, recording five shutout wins.
Waipahu 3,
Waiakea 2 (OT)
No. 4 Waiakea girls soccer’s run to the state championship ended in heartbreaking fashion on Friday, falling 3-2 in double overtime to Waipahu in the state quarterfinals.
With the Lady Warriors leading 1-0 late in the match after a Kalia Franklin goal in the 10th minute, Anela Leslie of the Lady Marauders scored in the 73rd minute to tie things up. Waiakea quickly reclaimed the lead in the 73rd minute after Franklin scored again, but Deizha Lyn Jacinto scored in the 77th minute for Waipahu to force overtime.
Jacinto saved the day for the Lady Marauders once again in the 94th minute to advance to the semifinals. Waipahu then fell to first-seeded KS-Kapalama on Saturday. Its third-place match against Moanalua was cancelled.
The Lady Warriors then beat Campbell 4-3 (penalty kicks 6-5) to advance to the DI fifth-place match, but that was then also decided to be cancelled. Waiakea’s lone goal scorer against the Lady Sabers was Franklin in the 25th, 70th and 80th minute. The Lady Sabers’ scorers were Miyah Suster in the 23rd and 55th minute and Delina-Marie Piho in the 10th.
The Lady Warriors’ season ended at 12-2-0, posting a 70-10 goal differential with eight shutout wins. They were slated to face Mililani in the fifth-place championship, but Monday’s match was cancelled.
Basketball:
Kona 64, Pahoa 40
Konawaena boys basketball dominated in a 64-40 rout of Pahoa on Saturday night inside Ellison Onizuka Gymnasium. The Wildcats improved to a 12-10 overall record and 9-3 in conference. The team’s BIIF playoff seeding has yet to be decided (as of late Monday afternoon).
Kona’s Alex Martinez posted a game-high 19 points, followed by teammates Riley Asakua and Ladainien Marquez Alex with nine each. The Wildcats average 64 points per game in league play, now winning their fourth in a row. Dylan Nonaka leads the green and white in scoring at 14.8 points per game in island play.
The Wildcats next play Christian Liberty Academy tonight at 6 p.m. in Kealakekua.
Daggers swingman Kyran Canete, who leads the state in scoring at 28.4 points per game, finished with a game-high 22 points. Pahoa fell to under .500 at 6-7, averaging 58.8 points per game while allowing under 50. The Daggers also hosted Hilo Monday night in Pahoa town. See Wednesday’s paper to read the results.
See the paper later this week for continued BIIF tournament seeding and matchup updates.
Hilo 46, Waiakea 35
Hilo boys basketball faced off against crosstown rival Waiakea on Saturday at home, walking away with a 46-35 win in the two team’s first matchup of the season.
The Warriors jumped out to a 10-6 lead after the first quarter, but the Vikings responded by going on a 33-13 run in the second and third quarters to reach a lead that Waiakea ultimately couldn’t catch up to.
There were no double-digit scorers in this game, but Michael Palmerston led the winners with nine points. Teammates Kalewa Lerma and Shayston Iyo scored seven each.
Waiakea was led by the sibling pair of Ethan and Jayzen Hough with nine points each. Josiah Amuimuia and Azariah Agno scored six each.
Hilo improved to 8-9 overall and 7-5 in the BIIF. The Vikings average 53.4 points per game on the island while allowing 41.4. The Vikings also faced Pahoa on Monday night on the road; see Wednesday’s paper for the results. Hilo also hosts HPA on Wednesday night, with junior varsity slated to tip off first at 5:30 p.m.
Honoka‘a 79,
Kea‘au 49
Honoka‘a boys basketball’s high-powered offense was on full display once again Saturday night, scoring 70 or more for the seventh time this season in a 79-49 rout of Kea‘au at home.
Trailing 29-25 at half, the Dragons defense settled in in the second half, which then translated to better offensive execution. Honoka‘a out-scored the Cougars 54-20 in the final two quarters.
The Dragons’ two-headed snake of Kukia Tagabi (24 points per game) and David Aiona (15.7 points per game) scored 28 and 25 points, respectively. Honoka‘a averages over 70 points a night in the BIIF.
Kea‘au was led by swingman Jaizaiah Pahinui-Willets with 12. The 5-7 Cougars average nearly 49 points per game.
The Dragons have won four straight, improving to 11-6 overall and 11-2 in the conference. They’ll next face SJS at 6 p.m. Thursday in Honoka‘a town for their final matchup of the regular season.
Kea‘au has lost six straight after starting the season 5-1. The Cougars have not won a game since Jan. 4. Their next opponent will be Kealakehe at 5:30 p.m. tonight at Kea‘au High School. Junior varsity will play first at 5:30 p.m.
HPA 55,
Kealakehe 39
HPA boys basketball just continues to go on a roll.
The 16-5 (10-1 BIIF) Ka Makani won its 10th straight, beating the visiting Kealakehe Waveriders 55-33 on Saturday night inside Castle Gymnasium.
Cam Root, who averages 10.6 points per game for HPA, finished with a team-high 14 points. Teammates Vander Eberhard and Kingdon Simmons combined for 21.
DeMarion Olloway, Kealakehe’s top scorer, finished with 14 points to lead the blue and white. Estavon Morales and Isaac Cho combined for 13.
Averaging nearly 64 points per game on the island, Ka Makani is expected to be one of the top seeds in the BIIF DII tournament, which begins later in the week. HPA will host local rival Parker at 6 p.m. tonight in Waimea.
Kealakehe fell to 11-7 overall and 8-5 in league play — averaging almost 64 points per game. They’ll next host Hilo tonight inside the Waveriders’ gymnasium.