Kamehameha-Maui Reaches State D-I Semis

By Fred Guzman

Kamehameha-Maui lived up to its No. 4 seed last night, but it wasn’t easy. It never is against Kahuku. The Warriors responded with a dramatic five-set victory over the tall and powerful Red Riders before a fired-up crowd at the McKinley High gymnasium and a statewide television audience.

KS-Maui pushed its way into the semifinals of the girls’ Division-I volleyball tournament by out-lasting Kahuku 25-22, 17-25, 18-25, 25-21, 15-8 in a quarterfinal match.

Sienna Davis had 17 kills and Anuhea Kaiaokamaile added 11 as the Warriors set the stage for an even more imposing challenge tonight — a 5 p.m. date with top-seeded Punahou.

The Buffanblu, ranked sixth nationally, improved its record to 13-0 with a decisive 25-21, 25-18, 25-19 victory  over Moanalua.

Baldwin gave a strong account of itself, but it was not enough overcome second-seeded Mililani, which topped the scrappy Bears 28-26, 28-26, 28-18 in another quarterfinal match.

The win earned the Trojans a berth in the D-I semifinals against six-time defending champion Kamehameha-Kapalama, which advanced by routing KS-Hawaii  25-15, 25-13, 25-13.  Baldwin will meet KS-Hawaii in a 7 p.m. consolation match at McKinley.

Fourth-seeded Seabury Hall opened with a five-set loss to Leilehua in the D-II quarterfinals by scores of 18-25, 25-23, 25-20, 24-26, 15-11.  Lena Fox had 14 kills and Brooke Sturdevant added 11 for the Spartans, who next face Konawaena in a 5 p.m. consolation contest at Kaimuki.

In consolation action yesterday, defending D-II champion Molokai extended its stay on Oahu with a 25-17, 23-25, 25-22, 6-3 win over Kau of Hawaii Island in a match that was halted via the time limit.  The Farmers will play in Saturday’s consolation final against Radford.