LIHUE — Waimea High School’s varsity girls volleyball team defeated Kauai High, 3-1, Friday evening at Kauai High School. “I’ve always said practices are where it’s counting. That’s what we’ve been doing the past two weeks,” said Waimea head coach
LIHUE — Waimea High School’s varsity girls volleyball team defeated Kauai High, 3-1, Friday evening at Kauai High School.
“I’ve always said practices are where it’s counting. That’s what we’ve been doing the past two weeks,” said Waimea head coach Chad Delanoza. “We’ve been building our self-confidence in practice and doing these things to give us a chance. Not necessarily to win, but to give us a chance to compete to win. Tonight, they stuck with it.”
Waimea (6-2 KIF, 2-0 second round) overcame late deficits to win the first two sets, 26-24 and 25-22.
Menehune senior outside hitter Ariell Aquino-Lazaro said the time spent during the break in between the season’s two rounds got the team refocused.
“I think when we had the break, it put a spark to us. We started practicing harder, and we practice like we want it,” Aquino-Lazaro said.
In the fourth set, the Menehune girls built a sizable lead, at one time holding a 19-12 favor, to win the game, 25-17.
“The coaches really stuck it to us (about) serve areas. They tell us what area to serve and we try our best to put it there,” Aquino-Lazaro said about the last set. “When you get it, it gives you a great feeling.”
Kauai (3-5, 0-2 second round) avoided getting swept at home and won the third set, 25-23. Senior outside hitter Adrienne Graycochea got the game-winning kill.
Kauai High head coach Dorene Matias said starting the second round with two losses isn’t ideal and the team has its work cut out for it moving forward.
“It’s kind of hard because it’s something I cannot put a finger on,” Matias said of losing the first two sets. “Just learning to drive themselves to the very end and not let up when it gets close. It’s so necessary to just shut the door and finish the game.
“I have a lot of work ahead of me as a coach. I think the girls need to be really focused when we come back to practice on Monday, and we’ll go from there,” she added. “Waimea did put up a good fight. They didn’t give up.”
Aquino-Lazaro was Waimea’s leading scorer with 25 kills. Junior middle blocker Shania Kahepuu had 10 kills and two blocks. Senior setter Alyssa Pigao recorded 50 assists and an ace.
Graycochea totaled 18 kills and a block for the Red Raiders. Senior setter Leisa Eto had 11 assists, two aces and a block. Junior setter Sierra Fernandez had seven assists and an ace.
Waimea also won the junior varsity contest, 2-1. The JV Menehune won the second and third sets, 30-28 and 25-21, and the Red Raiders won the opening frame, 25-20.
In the night’s other Kauai Interscholastic Federation match, Kapaa’s varsity and JV teams beat the Voyagers, 3-0, at Island School.
Waimea will host Kapaa (7-1 KIF, 2-0 second round) and Kauai High will play at home versus Island School (0-8 KIF, 0-2 second round) on Tuesday. The JV matches will begin at 5 p.m. and the varsity will follow.
“I think we’re excited to play Kapaa. Kapaa’s a tough team. They’re well-coached. They’ve been putting some streaks together and I know they’re working hard,” Delanoza said about the team’s upcoming opponent.
