LIHU‘E — A 14 point half-time lead followed by seven points in the second half leading to an eventual two point loss. It was after this monumental collapse on Monday night that the Kaua‘i Red Raiders knew they had to
LIHU‘E — A 14 point half-time lead followed by seven points in the second half leading to an eventual two point loss. It was after this monumental collapse on Monday night that the Kaua‘i Red Raiders knew they had to regroup.
Players called and texted each other after the game. They told each other to believe in themselves. They told each other to focus. They told each other to remember their team motto: “One team. One Dream.”
Twenty-four hours later, the dreams of the Kaua‘i Red Raiders turned into reality.
A day after the Waimea Menehune shocked the Kaua‘i faithful by pulling off a miraculous comeback to beat the Red Raiders 35-33, forcing a winner-take-all showdown for the KIF title, the Red Raiders got revenge in the most important game of the year by beating the Menehune 54-34 Tuesday night at Kaua‘i High School.
“We were just happy to have a second chance,” Kaua‘i senior Kawehi Louis-Diamond said. “We texted each other all last night saying to keep our heads up. It’s better to win a championship the hard way.”
The Red Raiders fought adversity early Tuesday night. With the Menehune hot on their heels throughout the first half, the Red Raider offense took a hit when team leader Krystle Henry got into foul trouble.
The Raiders only had a five-point lead at half-time, with Henry sitting on the bench to start the second. But the Raiders gathered as a team and came out shooting to start the half. The Raiders outscored the Menehune 15-5 in the third and 15-6 in the fourth quarter, all with Henry only scoring two points in the half.
“When Krystle went down, all the other girls knew they had to step up,” Kaua‘i head coach Sandi Nadatani-Mendez said. “They had her back. They played awesome.”
Leading the way in the second half was Louis-Diamond. The tall center attacked the basket stronger than she had all year en route to 13 points, with nine of those coming in the second half.
“She was disappointed in the way she played last night and took it upon herself,” Nadatani-Mendez said. “I have nothing but good things to say about her tonight.”
For the Waimea, the Menehune showed signs of slowing down in the second half. The Menehune had a miraculous run just to get to Tuesday’s game — they won five straight must-win games — and head coach Elton Montemayor said that the streak finally wore down his team.
“We had five games with our backs against the wall, and it finally took its toll,” Montemayor said. “We’re proud of them to get to this game when everyone counted us out.”
The Menehune received a game-high 16 points from senior Vakeesha Lagazo. Paige Connelly added 9 points for Waimea.
For the Red Raiders, Bristy Agu and Casey Anacleto each equaled Louis-Diamond with 13 points while Henry added 8 points.
