Punahou powers past Kamehameha for 16th girls water polo state title

HONOLULU – Sprint out at the start and never look back.

The Punahou Buffanblu varsity girls water polo team completed the climb back atop the podium on Saturday night, charging past Kamehameha-Kapālama (13-5) in the 2025 Kyo-ya Hotels Girls Water Polo State Championships title match, 12-3. Synnove Robinson and Kailoa Kerber each recorded hat tricks for Punahou (17-0) as seven different players scored goals to claim the program’s 16th crown in the pool and first since 2022.

“We talk about [at the start] of the year, we have a theme for each year,” said legendary Punahou head coach Ken Smith, who has been at the helm for every single one of the Buffanblu’s titles. “Our theme this year was ‘The only easy day was yesterday’ and they really took that so to heart in every day that we trained.”

The 12 goals marked a season-low for the high-powered Punahou attack, which found the back of the net 254 times in total in 2025 and outscored opponents by an average of 11.7 goals per match. The defense, which held opponents to an average of 3.2 goals per match this year, was as stingy as ever as KSK was held completely scoreless after halftime.

Punahou junior Synnove Robinson lobs a shot over a Kamehameha defender in the girls water polo state championship game. | Photo credit: CJ Caraang, special to HSRN

“I don’t think that I’ve had a team that has trained so diligently, so consistently for such a long period of time and the results speak for themselves,” Smith said of his unbeaten Buffanblu. “There’s no secret to this thing, it’s just how hard you want to train, and they’ve just been so, so perfect about that.”

Robinson’s three scores put her up to 68 goals in total for her junior year, the most in the state and 14 more than the next closest scorer (Ava Carlson, KSK – 54), helping lead to an unbeaten year and her first state title in the pool. Kerber finished out a successful senior season as a key member of the team, scoring 30 goals in her final year in high school as she earned her second state championship.

“I really think our team put in a lot of work for this and it obviously paid off,” Robinson said after the match. “It feels great winning it, especially with this team.”

Junior Ava Aguilera tacked on a pair of goals for Punahou while Jayden Ching, Zoe Pang, Hope McCarren and Ceila Aguilera all chipped in with one goal each. The Buffanblu attack raced out of the gates, scoring five times in the opening six minutes as the defense suffocated Kamehameha’s attack and disrupted multiple transition breaks.

Leading 5-1 after the first period, Punahou continued the offensive onslaught with four more goals in the second frame while letting up a pair of scores to Kamehameha’s Kawena Neumann and Charlotte Nakagawa to go into halftime leading 9-3.

The defense turned up another level in the second half, holding the Warriors’ offense without a single goal as both Aguileras scored and Kerber completed her hat trick to provide some second-half insurance for Punahou.

Punahou’s Kailoa Kerber fires a shot over a Kamehameha defender. She would be one of two Buffanblu players to record a hat trick in the win. | Photo credit: CJ Caraang, special to HSRN

The dominant victory provided a dose of payback for the past two state championship meetings between the programs, each going to Kamehameha-Kapālama. Robinson, a part of both teams that previously fell but not in high school for the Buffanblu’s 2022 state title win over KSK, wanted to help bring the program back atop the totem pole.

“Our water polo office is filled with all photos of like past state champs and great water polo athletes that have come out of Punahou,” Robinson said of the team’s motivation to go above and beyond. “Being reminded of that every day, it makes you really want to make those people proud and just put in extra work to get back to that. The past two years, it definitely taught us that we needed to come together as a team and work harder and we have done that, and it definitely work out for us.”

Robinson was selected as the HHSAA Girls Water Polo Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player while Ava Aguilera, Hope McCarren, Kerber and goalkeeper Reia Kimi all made the All-Tournament team for Punahou. For Kamehameha-Kapālama, standout senior scorer Ava Carlson made the All-Tournament team alongside teammates Laikuakamahina Wong and goalkeeper Taua Kimsel.

Mid-Pacific freshman Lehiwa McElheny rounded out the All-Tournament team and was the lone selection outside of KSK and Punahou.