WAIMEA — The Waimea High School Menehune went into Friday night’s game perfect. That is, the team was 11-0 with its toughest win going to a tie break against the Kaua‘i High School Red Raiders on Oct. 2. The Kapa‘a
WAIMEA — The Waimea High School Menehune went into Friday night’s game perfect. That is, the team was 11-0 with its toughest win going to a tie break against the Kaua‘i High School Red Raiders on Oct. 2. The Kapa‘a High School Warriors decided it wanted to give the Menehune one more test before the end of the season, and that they would, with Waimea coming the closest it has all year to defeat. In the end, on Waimea’s senior night, the Menehune has cause for celebration as the team would go on to beat the Warriors after dropping the first two sets, 27-29 and 22-25, the Menehune bounced back taking the next two sets 25-16, 25-23 and taking the tie break 15-12 to complete its perfect 12-0 season.
The first set was highlighted with a lot of solid play especially from the Warriors, who did a nice job all night battling and coming away with crucial points. Waimea would pull out to the early 7-4 lead but Kapa‘a did not give in eventually tying it at 11 off of a Alexis Stogner tip. The set would remain tight from there on out, with neither team being able to pull away.
Warrior Ka‘imi Moniz had a stellar performance throughout the game terrorizing the net and the Waimea front line, it appeared as if Moniz, Justice Brown-Kimura and Kaylee Silva outplayed Waimea’s vaunted net play in the first two sets. Despite the Warriors solid play, the Menehune found themselves ahead off of a Mariyah Oliver kill 27-26. However, and unforced Menehune error and Moniz kill would turn the tables which was capped off by a clever Maile Tuttle tip, which caught the Menehune sleeping and gave the Warriors the 29-27 win and 1-0 lead.
Set two had a very similar feel to it but this time with Kapa‘a getting out to the early 7-4 lead, but Waimea’s Oliver would earn a pair of kills to go along with a Lei Alejandro ace, which would see the game knotted at 7 a piece. Once again it was the trio of Moniz, Brown-Kimura and Silva to go along with the excellent setting of Stogner that would propel Kapa‘a’s offensive attack. A pair of blocks at the net from Silva saw the Warriors take a 15-11 lead. Waimea is not one to roll over lightly would again battle back to an all even 21-21. Eventually the Warriors would find themselves up 24-22 and get the win off a Jade Andaya kill and the comfortable 2-0 lead.
Just as on Oct. 2 against the Red Raiders, the Menehune found themselves trailing by two sets and facing its first loss of the season.
Waimea came out firing on all cylinders in set three, taking eight of the first 10 points and solidifying a lead. Kapa‘a would show spurts of energy and potential in coming back but it was Oliver and the service game from Bailey San Agustin, which would keep the Menehune comfortably out front. The Warriors would get sloppy in the third set and it was unforced errors that did them in and gave the Menehune the easy 25-16 win.
Kapa‘a had another chance to tarnish the Menehune record in the fourth set. It appeared as if this set was going to be hard fought from the beginning with both teams not willing to give an inch and responding to every point scored.
With the score locked in at 12-12, Waimea rallied for four straight points, which seemed to put the Menehune in a commanding position. Yet again Moniz would lift up her team a trio of kills leaving the Warriors trailing 20-22. An unforced error late from Waimea put the score at 24-23 in favor of the Menehune. Eventually a score from Waimea’s Alejandro would knot the game up at 2-2 and force a tie break.
The tie break set would see the Warriors jump out to an early 5-0 lead and shock many in attendance. It appeared as if the Menehune may just drop its first game. However watching Waimea play this season, one thing is evident; it does not go down lightly and it can rely on its tremendous defense to get back into sets and games when necessary. That is exactly what the Menehune did. It locked down on defense coming up with huge digs and keep plays alive, which eventually got them back into the set and tie it at 5-5. With Waimea trailing 7-9 the Menehune started to redirect its kill opportunities to Oliver, and she would respond with three kills and Waimea would score the next six points putting them ahead 13-9. Fittingly it was a senior Lei Alejandro who would give Waimea its kill shot and let them escape with the 15-12 win in tie break and remain undefeated on the year.
In junior varsity action, the Kapa‘a Warriors took down the Waimea Menehune in straight sets 25-18, 25-11 and an exciting 27-25 final set.
Over in Lihu‘e, the Kaua‘i High School Red Raiders hosted the Island School Voyagers, and would win in four sets, 25-12, 25-20, 24-26 and 25-12. The Red Raiders finished 8-4 on the year.
In junior varsity action the Red Raiders beat the Voyagers in straight sets 25-4, 25-11 and 25-11.
