Iolani tops Kamehameha in girls volleyball
By Wes Nakama
Advertiser Staff Writer
Due to last week's terrorist attacks, we'll never know how the Iolani School girls volleyball team would have fared in the prestigious David Mohs Memorial Tournament at Huntington Beach, Calif.
Richard Ambo • The Honolulu Advertiser
But we do know this: In Hawai'i, the Raiders are a power to be reckoned with.
Kamehameha's David Hoke spikes the ball as Iolani's Tyler McCready (42) and Jonathan Grobe (21) get set to defend.
That was clearly evident last night, after Iolani blitzed perennial power Kamehameha, 15-9, 15-3. The home victory boosted the Raiders to 3-0 in the Interscholastic League of Honolulu, while Kamehameha fell to 1-2.
"I ranked them No. 1 in the state in preseason," Kamehameha coach Joey Miyashiro said, referring to Iolani. "They have the talent and the experience."
Last night, the Raiders also had the hunger. They were set to leave last Thursday for the Mohs tournament, but air travel problems caused by the attacks resulted in the trip being canceled. The tournament, which went on as scheduled, featured some of the top teams in the nation.
"The Mainland (trip) would have been good for us," said Iolani setter/outside hitter Kanoe Kamana'o. "We wanted to see how we would do against that kind of competition."
The disappointment of skipping that event, however, was tempered by last night's victory. All the energy saved up for the tournament apparently was expended on Kamehameha. After spotting the Warriors a 6-0 lead in the first game, Iolani ran off five straight points, then scored nine unanswered points after trailing 9-6.
The Raiders built a stunning 14-0 lead in the second game behind a strong serve and a balanced offense.
"(Kamehameha) came out really quick, but all we had to do was settle down," Kamana'o said.
Iolani coach Ann Kang said canceling the trip actually may have benefitted the Raiders last night.
"We were more rested," Kang said. "That was one of our concerns, because we would have come back on Sunday and then have to play again on Wednesday. We also would have had to catch up on a lot of schoolwork, which was another big concern."
La'akea Campbell led Iolani with seven kills and two aces. Rae Woolford added six kills, and Kamana'o had five kills and one ace. Ashley Aratani contributed two aces and served the first nine points of the second game.
"We practice serving a lot, that's one of our strengths," Kamana'o said. "That was one of our key goals tonight — to serve tough."
BOYS
• Kamehameha wins: Kamehameha fought through an early challenge from Iolani and went on to beat the Raiders, 15-10, 15-5.
David Hoke led the visiting Warriors with six kills, with only one error. Hoke also had four blocks. Ricky Estrada added five kills and four blocks, and Willy Melemai had four kills and five blocks.
Isaac Kneubuhl contributed two aces for the Warriors, who improved to 4-0.
Iolani (3-1) took leads of 4-1 and 8-4 in the first game, only to see Kamehameha fight back each time. The Raiders managed to keep it close at 11-10, but the Warriors won the final four points of the game.
Iolani scored the first point of the second game, but Kamehameha then ran off 10 unanswered points.
"They're a tough team, a big team with good athletes," Warriors coach Pono Maa said of Iolani, which features basketball standouts Derrick Low and Tyler McCready. "It was a good challenge for us."
