MOANALUA — The Kamehameha-Kapālama Warriors (12-3) marched past the KS-Hawaii Warriors (14-2) in three sets (25-16, 25-15, 25-17) Friday night at Moanalua High School. The ILH’s Warriors advanced to the 2023 HHSAA Division 1 state championship match Saturday night against fellow ILH squad, Punahou. 

Kamehameha-Kapālama took the opening set, 25-16, after pulling away late in the frame. The two Kamehameha schools traded points early to start the match, with KS- Kapālama holding a slight 14-10 lead just after the midway point. 

The Warriors from the ILH continued a strong opening by holding their Big Island counterparts at bay for the remainder of set one, led by Kainoa Wade’s consistent heavy hand and perfect placement on the way to the 25-16 win and 1-0 set lead.

KS-Hawaii looked to answer quickly in the second set, jumping out to an early 5-3 lead over their Oahu counterparts. Kamehameha-Kapālama struggled from the service line in the second frame, with a pair of service errors leading to points for the BIIF champs.

The Big Island squad was unable to hold on to the lead for long after going up 8-5, as KS- Kapālama scored four straight points to take a 9-8 lead. The teams continued short scoring bursts throughout the set, with the ILH squad holding a three-point lead midway through the second frame.

KS-Hawaii answered back with a 3-0 run of their own to tie things back up at 13 before Wade put his fingerprints all over the set again to reclaim the lead for Kamehameha-Kapālama and grow it to four, 19-15.

Following a timeout from the Big Island’s Kamehameha, Oahu’s own Kamehameha scored three more points behind a turn from Wade at the service line to make it 22-15 in the blink of an eye. Feeling the pressure, KS-Hawaii called another timeout to try and stop the Warriors’ momentum.

The effort proved futile, as Kamehameha-Kapālama closed out the set on an 8-0 run fueled by Wade’s dominance to take a 2-0 set lead over KS-Hawaii. The Warriors from Oahu took the second set by a larger margin, 25-15, than the first over KS-Hawaii. 

The BIIF champions, fighting for their state tournament life, jumped out to an early 4-2 lead in the third set of the night down by two sets. Kamehameha-Kapālama quickly struck back with four straight points to reclaim the lead and sent Wade back to the service line with an 8-5 advantage.

Wade added two more points on his turn before turning the serve back to the Big Island competitors. KS-Kapālama’s elite defense returned the ball to the Warriors quickly as they grew the lead to six, 13-7, forcing a timeout from KS-Hawaii.

The advantage for KS-Kapālama grew to double-digits, 19-9, after a Wade denial at the net. The regular season champions from the BIIF wouldn’t go quietly, going point-for-point with their Oahu opponents to keep the set alive and stealing a few late points before finally falling, 25-17. 

Leading the way for KS-Hawaii was senior middle blocker/outside hitter Nauhikapakea Liwis, who had seven kills in the match. The BIIF D1 champions, who fell for just the second time all season, also had three players turn in five-kill efforts.

KS-Hawaii will play Saturday at 3:30 p.m. HST at the Cannon Center in the third-place match with Moanalua, who fell earlier Thursday in a five-set classic against Punahou.

The Warriors of KS-Kapālama were paced by Wade’s 17 kills, as the sophomore tossed in a pair of service aces and five blocks for good measure in the win. Brayden Van Karen dished out 21 assists in the match for the Warriors. 

Kamehameha-Kapālama advances to the state title match where the Warriors will see a familiar foe. The HHSAA Division 1 boys volleyball state championship marks the seventh meeting between Punahou and KS-Kapālama this season.

First serve is expected around 7:00 p.m. HST at the Cannon Center.

The Warriors have already clinched the season series, winning four of the six matchups played already, but look for the most important win yet. Punahou enters Saturday as the only D1 program to lift the state crown since 2011, when Kamehameha-Kapālama won the state tournament under the direction of Kainoa Downing. 

MOANALUA — The Punahou Buffanblu (13-5) shocked the Moanalua Na Menehune (15-1) in five sets (25-22, 21-25, 20-25, 27-25, 15-11) at Moanalua High School Friday night. The Buffanblu advance to the HHSAA boys’ volleyball D1 state championship game at the George Q. Cannon Center on the BYU-Hawai’i campus on Saturday, May 13 at 7 p.m. HST.

A packed house from the start, fans understood the environment that the game deserved as two of the state’s top programs faced off. 

The Buffanblu proved to be a bit more prepared to take on the top-seeded Na Menehune than other opponents, as the teams battled to a 13-13 tie midway through the set before Punahou opened a three-point lead.

Moanalua would begin to fight back, tying the opening frame at 21 after a block at the net by multiple Na Menehune.  

Punahou wouldn’t panic though, taking four of the next five points to win the opening set, 25-22, and hand Moanalua the team’s first set loss all season long. Na Menehune had won all 15 previous matches in straight sets over opponents. 

Na Menehune would come roaring back in the second set, but not before Punahou had an impressive showing early in the frame. Keying in on unforced Menes errors, the Buffanblu held an early 7-3 lead.

Punahou continued to capitalize on Moanalua mistakes, reaching 20 first and holding a five-point lead with it before the three-headed Moanalua Monster of Kai Rodriguez, Justin Todd and Zachary Yewchuk turned up the heat to help Na Menehune snatch the second set, 25-21.

The set win proved to be the momentum boost that the OIA champs needed, as the “Big 3” from Moanalua who committed to the University of Hawai’i for next year continued their hot play to power Na Menehune to an early lead over Punahou in the third set. 

The breathing room the tournament’s top seed grabbed at the beginning of the set proved to be important, as the Buffanblu played Na Menehune relatively even for the rest of the frame. With the added boost from the early set points, Moanalua took a commanding 2-1 set lead over Punahou, the 9-time defending state champion.

The Buffanblu wouldn’t waver in confidence after falling behind, with players motioning to the Na Menehune crowd the number five after Punahou dropped the third set.

Understanding the mission at hand, Punahou remained calm while trading point after point in the fourth set with Moanalua, all the way up to 15. While Na Menehune was the first team to 20 in the set, the Buffanblu used timeouts to attempt to stop the Moanalua momentum.

The top-seeded Na Menehune got three set point tries to put away Punahou in the fourth set, leading 24-22 with two sets in hand already, but could not close the frame. The Buffanblu grinded their way back, scoring five of the next six points to win, 27-25, and force a decisive fifth set against the hosts.

Both sides looked for an early advantage with only one set left to decide the first member of Saturday’s state championship match. It was host Moanalua that jumped ahead early, 7-5, and forced another Punahou timeout.

The representative out of the ILH took the break in action to collect themselves, storming out of the timeout to take a 12-10 lead after freshman Kanalu Akana delivered an ace. The Buffanblu wasted no time closing out their OIA counterparts, scoring three of the final four points to take the set, 15-11. 

Leading the way for Moanalua in the loss was Justin Todd, who had 22 kills and a pair of service aces for Na Menehune. Fellow senior and future ‘Bow Kai Rodriguez also chipped in 20 kills and an ace in the effort for the OIA representative in the state’s final four.

Punahou’s Emanuele Clini turned in a championship effort of his own, racking up 20 kills and two service aces in the win for the Buffanblu. Two other Punahou players recorded double-digit kills during the match, as Evan Porter and Ian Kinney ended the night with 14 and 11 kills respectively to help the ILH powerhouse advance.  

The loss for Moanalua is the first of the season for the top-ranked team in Hawai’i, who entered the state tournament with a perfect 14-0 record. Na Menehune will play Saturday against KS-Hawaii at Cannon Center in the third-place match. First serve expected to be around 3:30 p.m. HST.

Punahou advances to the HHSAA Division 1 state championship match against Kamehameha-Kapālama as the 9-time defending D1 state champions and looks for the program’s 10th consecutive state crown. A win in Saturday’s match would mark the 39th time that Punahou would be the Hawai’i boys volleyball state champions. 

MOANALUA — The Punahou Buffanblu (12-5) beat the KS-Maui Warriors (11-4) in three sets Thursday night at Moanalua High School, 25-16, 25-17, 25-13. 

With the win, the Buffanblu move on to Friday night’s HHSAA boys’ volleyball state semifinals and a clash with the top-seeded Moanalua Na Menehune. 

KS-Maui started out hot, scoring three of the first four points of the night before the Buffanblu responded with a 5-0 run to take the lead, 6-3. Punahou continued to add on to the lead, doubling up the Warriors in the opening set, 14-7.

KS-Maui was forced to take a timeout after falling behind, 18-10, looking to slow down some of the momentum that Punahou had mounted since their early deficit in the set. While the Warriors were able to mount a slight comeback, Punahou held their opponent mostly at arms’ length for the remainder of the frame.

Punahou closed out the opening set on a 3-0 run, taking it 25-16 over the Warriors with three straight powerful kills. 

The second set of the night started far better for the Buffanblu, jumping out to a 5-1 lead over KS-Maui. Punahou continued to build on the lead after an early KS-Maui timeout, as effort turned into extra points for the Buffanblu to steal from the Warriors, 13-6.

Punahou forced KS-Maui to call their second timeout of the set after going up 19-10, as the Warriors’ coaches tried to rally the team to avoid a two-set deficit. The effort came up short for KS-Maui, dropping the set, 25-17.

A smooth night continued to go the way of the Buffanblu in the third and final set as Punahou jumped out to a six-point lead, 9-3, to force the Warriors to call a timeout. KS-Maui continued to try and fight, but Punahou doubled them up late with a 20-10 lead in the set.

That lead only continued to grow with a big block at the net for Punahou, as the Buffanblu closed the match out on a 5-3 run to win it, 25-13. 

Kamehameha Schools-Maui will face Hilo in the fifth-place bracket semifinal match on Friday night after dropping just the team’s fourth match all season. The match will take place at McKinley with first serve coming around 5:00 p.m. HST.

Punahou advances to the state semifinal round and will take on top-seeded Moanalua with a spot in the 2023 HHSAA Boys Volleyball State Championship match on the line. First serve for the semifinal is expected to be around 5:00 p.m. HST. 

Moanalua continued their opening set dominance, taking a double-digit lead multiple times in set one of the quarterfinal. Na Menehune’s lead reached as many as 14, which ended as the final margin of the first set with Moanalua taking it, 25-11.

Na Menehune kept the momentum rolling to the second set, scoring the first three points of the frame before the Vikings found their way on the board with two straight points. UH commit JT Todd got the top-seed back on track with a vicious kill before leading a 3-0 run at the service line to take 7-2 lead.

Hilo would start to wake up, trading points back-and-forth with the Menes until the set’s midway point, 13-8. Moanalua pulled away with a 5-1 run to force Hilo’s second timeout of the set as Na Menehune doubled up the Vikings, 18-9.

The timeout proved to be more effective for Moanalua, scoring the next five points following the stoppage. After sitting on set point for a few rallies, Na Menehune took the second set, 25-13.

The night’s third set proved to be similar to the first two (with a slight variance) as Moanalua and Hilo sparred back-and-forth early to the tune of a 3-1 Hilo lead, the Vikings’ first (and largest) lead of the evening. Na Menehune woke up quickly after, scoring five straight points to retake a lead they wouldn’t relinquish again.

The lead would balloon to seven, 12-5, for Moanalua before forcing a timeout from Hilo. Despite the Vikings’ best efforts, it was only a matter of time before Na Menehune overwhelmed them in the third set, 25-15. 

Punahou, who won against KS-Maui in straight sets, will face Na Menehune in the state semifinals Friday night at Moanalua High School at 5 p.m. HST.