LIHU‘E — The first half of the Kaua‘i Interscholastic Federation girls volleyball season came to a close on Saturday, with the top two teams each coming away victorious, including Waimea’s successful run to a perfect 6-0 record. The Lady Menehune
LIHU‘E — The first half of the Kaua‘i Interscholastic Federation girls volleyball season came to a close on Saturday, with the top two teams each coming away victorious, including Waimea’s successful run to a perfect 6-0 record.
The Lady Menehune stayed unblemished entering the second half of the season with a 25-11, 25-18, 25-21 victory over the Kapa‘a Lady Warriors at Waimea High School. Coach Chad Delanoza and his strong all-around team made sure earlier this week that no first-half playoff would be necessary, as they held a two-game edge over the Kaua‘i Red Raiders heading into Saturday’s action.
The Kapa‘a JV won its match against Waimea, winning the first two games in a 25-18, 25-22, 24-26 series.
Kaua‘i improved its record to 4-2 with a 25-15, 28-26, 25-13 road victory against Island School. Island kept the pressure on Kaua‘i for much of the night and forced the Raiders to change up their style with a number of long rallies.
Kaua‘i jumped out to a 9-4 lead in the first game, before Island made a run to cut the deficit to one point at 10-9. However, Kaua‘i had much of the control for the rest of the opener, grabbing nine of the next 10 points en route to the 25-15 win.
The second game was likely the best that Island has played to this point of the season. A back-and-forth pace was the storyline throughout and Island looked to be on the verge of a win when Michaela Sullivan found Joy Claypoole for the finish to give the Voyagers a 20-18 lead. They would also add the next point to go up by three.
Kaua‘i ran off the next three points to tie it up and the two teams traded scores until Island held a 26-25 lead. It seemed like the win was within reach until Kaua‘i’s Dayna Agustin came up with an incredible dig to keep her team alive and the Raiders used that momentum to win the next three points and grab the 2-0 match lead.
The third game was another well-played battle, but Kaua‘i just had a bit too much for Island and pulled out the 3-0 victory.
Reanna Javinar led Kaua‘i with six kills in the match, followed by Teal Basquez’s five. Carly Matsumoto had four.
Waileia Kanealii again led her squad with 17 assists in the match, also adding two kills and a block.
Alexa Tamashiro had three digs, while Saryna-Brooke Garcia had two.
Michaela Sullivan led Island with 12 assists. Lauren Claypoole had six kills for Island, while Madison Duarte added four.
Kaulana Haneberg had two digs and Lauren Claypoole had four blocks.
Waimea finishes the first half atop the standings with a 6-0 record, followed by Kaua‘i (4-2), Kapa‘a (2-4) and Island School (0-6).
