LIHU‘E — Kaua‘i High School guard Kristle Henry was one of 11 players from across the state to be named to the 2011 Team Aloha all-star girls basketball team, announced Wednesday by Mufi Hannemann. Just coming off of her sophomore
LIHU‘E — Kaua‘i High School guard Kristle Henry was one of 11 players from across the state to be named to the 2011 Team Aloha all-star girls basketball team, announced Wednesday by Mufi Hannemann.
Just coming off of her sophomore season for the Red Raiders, Henry will be heading to Los Angeles on April 14 to participate in the Tournament of Champions LA, taking place April 16 and 17 at Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, Calif.
Kristle and her family found out the good news before the official announcement was released, which came as a very welcome surprise.
“I was excited because I’m getting to travel, but I’m also staying calm about it,” she said. “My mom was in tears and my dad was really happy.”
The basis of the team was outlined by Hannemann, who will also be serving as the team’s assistant coach. Hannemann played for the men’s varsity team when he attended Harvard University, and previously during his high school years at ‘Iolani.
“Team Aloha is an outgrowth of the annual Jamboree I’ve been sponsoring since 1994 as the state’s only post-season showcase of girls high school hoops,” he said in the release. “I saw then that the caliber of girls athletics in the islands was outstanding, and hoped to someday take a team of Jamboree all-stars to compete against the best the rest of the nation had to offer. We’ve realized that dream and have since participated in four tournaments on the Mainland.”
There are no seniors as part of the team, because the stated purpose is to provide the state’s top underclassmen as much exposure as possible to college coaches and scouts.
The rest of the team will be comprised of Dawnyelle Awa (Konawaena-junior), Jade Botelho (‘Iolani-freshman), Dejah Faasoa (Kaimuki-junior), Lia Galdeira (Konawaena-junior), Kylie Maeda (Punahou-junior), Alex Masaquel (‘Iolani-sophomore), Carissa McBride (Leilehua-sophomore), Toe Motu (Kapolei-junior), Alohi Robins-Hardy (Kamehameha-freshman) and Mysha Sataraka (Punahou-junior).
It will be Kristle’s first time playing with the other 10 girls and the team will be coached by Fran Villarmia-Kahawai, a former University of Hawai‘i Rainbow Wahine player. She also coached the Aiea High School Na Alii to a state girls title and is coaching Team Aloha for the second time. The previous coach was Dana Takahara-Dias, who now serves as head coach for the UH Rainbow Wahine.
Kristle will be heading off on her own, but she said she has family in L.A. who will be able to watch her compete.
Coming out of the Kaua‘i Interscholastic Federation, which is a Hawai‘i Division II sanctioned conference, Kristle’s new teammates have mostly been playing for Division I schools.
“I’m a little bit nervous to experience a different level of play, but I’m up for the challenge,” she said, adding that the selection was a big surprise to her, especially being from Kaua‘i.
This season’s Red Raider squad lost the KIF championship in a playoff game to the Kapa‘a Lady Warriors — a heartbreaker at the buzzer, 63-61. The leading scorer for her team, Kristle said that while that loss was tough, it was a good season because of the overall improvement the Raiders showed since her freshman season.
“It teaches our team to keep coming back and never give up,” she said.
Kristle is among good company, both now and with former players who have had the honor of playing for the all-star squad.
Some of the past Team Aloha participants that have gone on to play for major college programs have been ‘Iolani’s Jamie Smith (Nevada, UNLV), Punahou’s Shawna Kuehu (Hawai‘i) and Shaena Kuehu (Idaho), Roosevelt’s Iwalani Rodrigues (Utah) and Honoka‘a’s Keisha Kanekoa (Hawai‘i).
For more information on the Tournament of Champions, visit www.asgr.info/tournaments/tocg
