LIHU‘E — Having reached O‘ahu thanks to a buzzer-beater in the Kaua‘i Interscholastic Federation title game, it seems the Kapa‘a Lady Warriors still had some dramatic magic left in the tank. It took a pair of extra sessions to determine
LIHU‘E — Having reached O‘ahu thanks to a buzzer-beater in the Kaua‘i Interscholastic Federation title game, it seems the Kapa‘a Lady Warriors still had some dramatic magic left in the tank.
It took a pair of extra sessions to determine a winner, but Kapa‘a outlasted Hawai‘i Baptist in double-overtime, 60-54, Wednesday night in the quarterfinals of the HHSAA Hawaiian Airlines Girls Basketball State Championships at Farrington High School.
Jessilyn Aki was the game’s top scorer with 16 points. Kapa‘a displayed offensive balance as Reggie McCabe scored 15, including the team’s only 3-pointer, and Mahea Hanie-Grace scored 13.
Kekai Gonsalves had seven points, Cherrilyn Coloma scored five and Ethelyn Calvan had two. Raquelle Matayoshi and Katalina Fifita had one point apiece.
Hawai‘i Baptist was led by Kayla Yamamoto’s 13 points, while Jennifer Uehara scored 11.
Kapa‘a faced an uphill climb after trailing 26-18 at halftime, but whittled the lead down throughout the third quarter, heading into the fourth down by four at 31-27.
The Lady Warriors scored 14 in the final quarter, their highest period of the night, and evened the score at 41-41 to force the extra sessions.
One overtime wasn’t enough, with each team scoring seven points to prompt the second OT.
Kapa‘a managed to pull away late and outscored HBA 12-6 in the period to advance into today’s semifinal round.
Having entered the tournament as the No. 4 seed in the Division II bracket, Kapa‘a had a bye into Wednesday’s quarterfinal matchup.
It moves on to face another tough team that had a memorable opening game of its own.
No. 1 seed Radford survived a major test from Hawai‘i Prep, needing overtime to come away with a 47-45 win. Jemory Castro scored inside with 2:10 remaining in the extra session, which turned out to be the only points scored in the four-minute OT period.
Kelsey Bash led Radford with 12 points, while Castro had 11.
Today’s Radford-Kapa‘a semifinal will tip off at 7 p.m. at the Farrington High School Gym.
The winner of tonight’s contest has a spot in the Div. II championship game, Friday at 5 p.m. at the Blaisdell Center.
No. 3 Kamehameha-Big Island handled University, 65-41. Casey Poe led all scorers with 22 points, followed by Katelynne Paleka-Kennedy who scored 18.
It will now face Maryknoll, which pulled off a 43-41 upset over No. 2 seed Moloka‘i.
The Kamehameha-Maryknoll game will tip off at 5 p.m. at Farrington in the night’s opening semifinal matchup.
That winner earns a spot into Friday’s title game against either Radford or Kapa‘a.
Division I championship bracket
In Div. I, I‘olani was a 68-57 winner over No. 4 Farrington behind 18 points from Kylie Maeda. I‘olani held a 22-point lead heading into the third quarter, its largest of the game.
It will take on the tournament’s top team in Konawaena, who dismantled Kaiser by a 57-32 final. Dawnyelle Awa led the Tigers with 20 points on the night. Konawaena jumped out early and led 15-0 after the first quarter.
No. 2 Lahainaluna squeaked by Kapolei, 58-55, having trailed by six points with just 1:49 to play. Down 53-47, it was able to come back behind Maiki Viela’s seven points in the final 98 seconds, including a 3-pointer that cut a six-point deficit to three.
It now faces No. 3 seed Punahou, which got a big second-half effort to knock off Kahuku, 37-33. After scoring just four points in the first quarter and trailing 15-11 at halftime, Punahou used a 15-8 third period to take control of the game. Hailey Ann Maeda was the stat leader with nine points and 12 rebounds.
Consolation brackets
In the Div. II consolation bracket, Hanalani was a 42-33 winner over Honoka‘a, while Kalani beat Waianae, 46-41. Those two winners will now play each other today at 3 p.m. at Kaimuki for the consolation title.
Hawai‘i Prep and Hawai‘i Baptist will face off at 5 p.m. at Kaimuki High School, prior to Moloka‘i playing University at 7 p.m. Those four teams are all competing for fifth place.
Kaimuki knocked off King Kekaulike, 47-33, and Waiakea topped Pearl City, 45-26, to each reach the final of the Div. I consolation bracket. That game will take place at 11 a.m. today at the Blaisdell Center.
Kaiser will face Farrington at 1 p.m., while Kapolei will take on Kahuku at 3 p.m., also at the Blaisdell Center in the fifth-place tournament.
