Reversing a fate of recent years, the Seabury Hall boys volleyball team opened its state tournament with a win to advance to the state semifinals.

"The past few years we haven't fared as well, so it's nice to start with a win," Seabury Hall coach Caleb Palmer said. "It's nice to come out of the gate and have everyone ready to play."

The third-seeded Spartans, out of the Maui Interscholastic League, defeated Waipahu, 25-10, 25-18, 25-15, in yesterday's quarterfinals of the New City Nissan/Hawai'i High School Athletic Association Division II State Championships at Kalani.

"I think we played great. In past years we come, and it's almost like we are deflated," said Spartans junior outside hitter Dylan Hamilton, who had 12 kills. "We came together as a team and played together volleyball. Seabury Hall volleyball."

Seabury Hall (10-1) plays No. 2 Hilo (14-1) tonight in one semifinal match at Kalani. No. 4 Moanalua (12-3) and Hawai'i Baptist play in the other semifinal match at Farrington. Both semifinals are at 7 p.m.

"It was a nice win and we were able to play well and serve well and keep our errors down, and that was really the key," Palmer said.

The Spartans used near error-free volleyball to gain an early advantage in the match, with three service errors and a couple of net violations seemingly the only mistakes. Seabury Hall's first hitting error occurred after their 21st point, giving Waipahu its eighth point.

Hamilton led the Spartans with five kills in the second set. They led 6-1, but the Marauders closed to 11-9. The Spartans then went up by as many as seven late in the set.

"(The Spartans) were good, and our kids came out flat," Waipahu coach Julna Pasiscaran said. "We weren't prepared. Not making excuses, but we came late because we were stuck in traffic. We just didn't have it today.

"Their setter spread the ball around and they didn't have any weaknesses. We tried blocking and they went right through and above our block."

After another 6-1 start in the third set for the Spartans, Waipahu again came within 11-9. But consecutive double blocks by Seabury Hall's Mark Walker and Josh Chapple eventually made it 19-11.

NO. 2 HILO 3, PAHOA 2

It took the second-seeded Dragons five sets to take down a familiar opponent in an all-Big Island Interscholastic Federation quarterfinal match that began with one team crossing under the net to greet the other with hugs before the match at Kalani.

Hilo defeated Pahoa, 17-25, 25-21, 25-19, 17-25, 15-11, in the win.

"(It took) heart; everybody had to step up," said Hilo senior Kaulana Kalauli-Rowe, who had 16 kills. "We played them for the BIIF championship and they took us to five, and you can't doubt them."

The Daggers rode the momentum of a 15-8 start to capture the first set. In the second set, the Dragons went on a 5-1 run for a 19-15 lead. Pahoa didn't come closer than three points the rest of the set.

Hilo took advantage of an 11-4 start to the third set to hold off the Daggers, who came within 22-19.

The Daggers won the fourth after a 13-4 run in the latter part of the set gave them a 22-13 lead.

Kalauli-Rowe had five kills in the final set for Hilo.

"It was adrenaline," Kalauli-Rowe said. "You just come out and hit. I mean, you have to hit smart, but you have to hit hard. You can't dink against these guys. They are everywhere; they get down, they run, they jump over chairs."

Hilo's Andrew Welsh had 14 kills. Pahoa's Isaiah Ekau had 13, and Jonathan Viernes and Clinton Hatori 10 apiece.

NO. 1 HAWAI'I BAPTIST 3, KOHALA 0

The top-seeded Eagles (17-1), of the Interscholastic League of Honolulu, swept the Cowboys, 25-19, 25-15, 25-13, in a quarterfinal at Farrington.

HBA's Ryan Leung had 15 kills and Chad Barretta added 10, and Nathaniel Gomera had eight kills for Kohala (11-6), the second team out of the BIIF.

NO. 4 MOANALUA 3, WAIMEA 2

Na Menehune defeated the Menehunes, 22-25, 25-19, 25-20, 25-27, 15-13 in a quarterfinal match at Farrington.

CONSOLATION

Kapolei def. Le Jardin, 2-0 (25-21, 25-22). Leading hitters: Kapo: Steven Johnson 8; Jordan Ferreira 6. LeJ: Kalani Soeda 7; Maunakea Coelho 5.

Honoka'a def. Kaimuki, 2-1 (22-25, 25-23, 19-17)