Kalaheo runs past Kaua'i in opener

By Wes Nakama
Advertiser Staff Writer

Kalaheo's Shantel Marumoto passes against Kaua'i's Lindsay Sugihara. Kalaheo won, 62-38. Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser

The Mustangs raced past Kaua'i, 62-38, in yesterday's first round at Stan Sheriff Center and will face the No. 3 seed Buffanblu at 8 p.m.

Kalaheo (10-4) took fourth place in the O'ahu Interscholastic Association after a season of constant injuries, including a foot injury which caused top scorer Taylor Smith to miss two months.

Smith returned to the lineup for the first time yesterday and contributed 11 points and three rebounds in 14 minutes.

"Having her back gave us a lot of confidence," said Mustangs center Kai Huihui, who also had 11 points. "She used to be our high scorer, so when she got hurt we were wondering how were we going to make our points. Somehow we found a way."

That wasn't easy, considering Kalaheo saw most of the team go through one injury or another.

"This is as healthy as we've been over the course of the season," Mustangs coach Chico Furtado said. "I think getting Taylor back is huge, especially because of the struggles we've had offensively."

Yesterday, Kalaheo jumped to a 12-3 lead and never looked back. Kaua'i (8-2) cut it to 14-8 at the end of the first period, but that was as close as the Red Raiders would get. The Mustangs opened the second quarter with an 11-0 run to go up 25-8, and started the second half with a 10-0 spurt to take a 35-14 lead.

Kaliko Kepa also scored 11 points and grabbed a team-high nine rebounds for Kalaheo.

"It's been a roller-coaster season, because the injuries took a lot from us," said Huihui, who was out four weeks herself with a torn arch in her right foot. "But now we've got everybody back, and everything fits."

Reach Wes Nakama at wnakama@honluluadvertiser.com or 535-2456.