Coach Clyde Vito was heartbroken by the double overtime loss Kaua‘i High School suffered at the hands of the Kapa‘a Warriors Tuesday, but his consolation was knowing both his Papalina basketball teams won their matches at the Kalaheo Neighborhood Center.
Coach Clyde Vito was heartbroken by the double overtime loss Kaua‘i High School suffered at the hands of the Kapa‘a Warriors Tuesday, but his consolation was knowing both his Papalina basketball teams won their matches at the Kalaheo Neighborhood Center.
“We’ve got a lot of basketball tonight,” Vito said while watching the waning moments of the Junior Varsity game at Bernice Hundley Gym. “The girls are playing for the championship, our boys are here in Kapa‘a, and we even have basketball in Kalaheo.”
Karen Matsumoto, the Kaua‘i Youth Basketball Association coordinator who helps the county with scoring and fielding officials, said Tine Howard and Ian Clements stepped in to substitute for Vito, driving both teams to victory.
Jonah Howard, Tine’s son, pegged a game-high 21 points with Joseph Cumlat adding nine points to lead Papalina-Orange to a 46-34 win over Lepo Ula, who got 17 points from its tall man, Kamea Alquiza in the first of two games played in the county’s youth winter basketball league for students in grades 6 through 8.
Daniel Fee got the nod for Papalina-Blue, netting a game-high 15 points with Kai Lewis adding nine points in its 45-28 showing over Team Lihu‘e . Team Lihu‘e got eight points from Jhay Karl Dante.
Both Papalina teams open the action Saturday when four games are on tap at the Kalaheo Neighborhood Center.
Papalina-Blue opens the day against Lepo Ula starting at 9 a.m., followed by Papalina-Orange taking on Hanakila at 10 a.m.
The girls close out the day with the Team Lihu‘e girls meeting the Kamikaze at 11 a.m., followed by the Kamikaze opening its second game against Kaulupono at noon.
