KALAHEO — Down by a point with .9 second showing, The Pride’s teamwork beat the Kauai Ballers Sunday. Jayden Almeida of the visiting team from Upcountry Maui was at the foul line facing a charity pair at the Kalaheo Neighborhood
KALAHEO — Down by a point with .9 second showing, The Pride’s teamwork beat the Kauai Ballers Sunday.
Jayden Almeida of the visiting team from Upcountry Maui was at the foul line facing a charity pair at the Kalaheo Neighborhood Center during the finals of the Kauai Girls Invitational tournament.
The first shot clanged off the rim. With one remaining shot, top-seeded Pride could tie the match, 38-38 and force overtime.
Almeida launched the second shot.
Another clang, but Sylvania Amor was waiting and a putback at the buzzer sent the Maui girls celebrating, 39-38 for the title of the 16 and Under, and 13 and Under basketball tournament.
“It was about staying calm and discipline,” said a Pride staffer following the nail-biting win. “Not panicking and going back to what we practice is the key.”
Amor, getting a liberal dose of floor tasting in the physical matchup, finished with 11 points.
Almeida, nursing a leg throughout the game, topped Maui with a dozen points.
Almeida set the pace for The Pride, netting eight of her dozen points in the first half to give the visitors a 23-16 margin at the break.
Heeding the advice of a Kauai Ballers parent to stay close, the team coached by William Aki and featuring several players who were in their third match of the day, stayed in single-digit range until the waning moments of the game.
The move to stay close was costly as the Kauai Ballers, seeded second in the finals, forced fouls early, sending the Pride to the foul line 20 times just in the first half, Maui reaping 12 points at the line.
Maui responded to the physical game in the second half, relying on the strength of Amor to lead the scoring, but sending the Ballers to the foul line 20 times.
But the Ballers could capitalize on just six points.
Instead, it lost its height as Tori Daligcon-Pomaikai and Paea Tafea fouled out.
The Pride, getting nine trips to the foul line, marked four points before losing Rebeka Revelle to fouls, the perky driving guard leaving the floor in total frustration after netting six points.
Autumn Warnock, playing key ball in the earlier Kauai Ballers outings, topped the scoring effort with 11 points followed by driving guard Ariel Cummings adding eight points and Paea Tafea getting six points.
The win gives The Pride the title in the 16 and Under division, Almeida getting the nod to hoist the Kauai Chamber of Commerce-sponsored trophy high in the air, celebrating the team’s undefeated record.
Steven Matsumoto of the Kauai Youth Basketball Association, one of the tournament sponsors, said when The Pride played the Kauai Ballers on Saturday, the game was just as close, with Revelle and Amor scoring 11 points apiece in the 42-41 win.
That effort saw Warnock and Cummings lead the Kauai Ballers scoring with nine and eight points, respectively.
Earlier in the day, Paea Tafea netted 20 points to lead the 13 and Under Kauai Ballers to a 56-30 win over Kaulupono for that division title.
This was the second meeting of the two teams due to the division having just three teams, and in the earlier meeting, Paea Tavea netted another 20 points to lead the 13U Kauai Ballers to a 26-33 win.
Jazmine Kaleiohi netted four points in the early win and added nine points in the division title game.
Kaulupono defensive guard Monique Joy Lorenzo teamed with Kiarra Palacio in the early game, each player bucketing 11 points in the effort.
During the title game, Lorenzo finished with eight points followed by Kaulupono low posts Melia Okura and Schae-Marie Tavita each netting four points.
Brandee Burton scored 15 points and Caitlyn Owen added 12 points to lead Waimea to a 54-22 win over Kaulupono for the third place berth of the 16 and Under division.
Lorenzo, playing up, topped the Kaulupono 16U effort with 19 points followed by D’Annalyn Helgen adding seven points.
The tournament, which saw the visiting Maui team leave Kauai undefeated, was coordinated and sponsored by the County of Kauai, the Kauai Youth Basketball Association, and Team Lihue.
“This was a good tournament,” said Team Lihue coach Max Manera. “We had good teams who played good games. We also want to thank the Kauai Chamber of Commerce, who, in celebrating its 100th anniversary, sponsored the championship trophies for both the 13 and Under and the 16 and Under division.”
• Dennis Fujimoto, photographer and staff writer, can be reached at 245-0453 or dfujimoto@ thegardenisland.com.
