WAILUA — Kauai High School varsity girls paddling team lost its opening run on the Wailua River to the Kapaa varsity girls Saturday at the final Kauai Interscholastic Federation regatta before the KIF championships. The Red Raider wahine were chasing
WAILUA — Kauai High School varsity girls paddling team lost its opening run on the Wailua River to the Kapaa varsity girls Saturday at the final Kauai Interscholastic Federation regatta before the KIF championships.
The Red Raider wahine were chasing the Warrior wahine at the turn and came up short in the preliminary run on a time of 4 minutes, 45.20 seconds, more than 15 seconds behind Kapaa’s 4:29.05 paddle over the sprint course.
But the team of Kirstee Luis, Nala Manintin, Alana Bailey, Jessie Thurley, Jadyn Mercer-Cayabyab and Cheyenne Duarte regrouped and overcame the strong winds that pushed the canoe upstream on the turns to take the Warriors in the finals on a 4:34.58 run, nearly two seconds faster than Kapaa (4:36.08).
The Raiders relished the victory after its B team beat the Kapaa B team on a 4:38:19 run in the second heat of the preliminaries over the Warriors’ 4:41.52 run.
The Kauai victory was one of six division races, Kapaa taking the JV girls, and Waimea High School taking four top spots in four races, the JV boys, the JV Mixed, the varsity boys, and varsity Mixed.
Waimea captured the varsity boys on a 3:51.09 run in the finals over Kapaa (3:59.35) and Kauai (4:11.19), and continued strong to take the Mixed finals on a 4:05.97 run, about a second ahead of Kapaa (4:06.91), and the Kauai (4:43.75) team.
Kapaa wrapped up the JV girls on an uncontested 4:43.98 run with Waimea sealing the win in the JV boys race.
Waimea stroked to a 4:01.90 run in the JV boys over the 4:03.55 posted by the Kapaa A team, 4:16.18 by the Kauai team, and 4:21.21 by the Kapaa B team. The Menehune were also awarded top finish in the JV Mixed division followed by Kapaa, and Kauai.
The results of Saturday’s regatta puts Waimea leading the JV Boys (20 points), the JV Mixed (19 points), the Varsity Boys (18 points) and the Varsity Mixed (18 points).
Kapaa controls the JV girls with 20 points and sits second in the JV boys (9 points) and JV Mixed (10 points). The Warriors lead the Varsity girls at 18 points, and is in second place for the Varsity Boys (12 points) and the Varsity Mixed (12 points).
Kauai High School, following its win over Kapaa in the Varsity Girls race, sits second in that division at 9 points. The Raiders hold four points in the JV girls, five points in the JV boys, and eight points in the JV Mixed. They also have three points in the Varsity Boys and five points in the Varsity Mixed.
The Saturday KIF paddling championships on the sprint course at Wailua River will have double points which means a first place finish counts eight points compared to four points in the regular regatta. A second place finish is four points compared with two, and third place earns two points instead of a point.
The first paddlers hit the river at 9 a.m.
