King Kekaulike sweeps boys and girls divisions at MIL surf contest at Koki Beach

King Kekaulike High School claimed both the boys and girls team titles at Saturday’s Maui Interscholastic League surf contest at Koki Beach — the third straight win for the Nā Aliʻi boys this season.

The boys team continued its dominant run following victories at D.T. Fleming Beach and Hoʻokipa Beach Park. The girls contest came down to the final heat for the second consecutive event, with Nā Aliʻi edging out Maui Christian by just three points.

Senior Bella Kuailani sealed the win for King Kekaulike with a composed performance in the Girls No. 3 final. In challenging, overhead conditions, she posted two five-point rides for a heat-winning two-wave total of 10.57, holding off Maui Christian’s Thayane Colpas and Maui Prep’s Layla Merrill.

“I was aware of how close it was,” said Kuailani. “There was a lot of pressure, but I just had to lock in. The conditions were tricky. I could tell a lot of the girls were having a hard time. I think the main thing was just for me to pick off the good ones, and thankfully I did, and it worked out.”

Kuailani overcame a setback earlier in the day when her surf leash snapped during her semifinal heat. Her brother, Kanoa, grabbed her board before it hit the rocks, and her father, Kapena, passed her a replacement leash from shore. By the time she paddled back out to the line-up, only five minutes remained in the 15-minute heat.

“After I got back out there, I was under pressure and just scratching for whatever I could get,” she said.

Somehow, Kualani was able to catch three waves and place third to advance to the Girls No. 3 final.

“Thankfully I moved on to the final and it definitely motivated me to do better,” Kualani said. “We really needed this win for our team to get on top. It was also a lot of motivation from my teammates. They’re very supportive and I’m just thankful, mahalo ke akua, that I pulled through.”

Kuailani was joined by teammates Ayla Daian and Sochi Henderson, who won the Girls No. 2 and No. 4 finals, respectively. Daian, a freshman, earned her third straight victory in the No. 2 slot, rallying past Maui Christian’s Mikaia Barnes with two six-point rides, which gave her a 12.23-11.67 edge over Barnes.

“She (Barnes) is like my biggest competitor,” Daian said. “She started off with a really strong wave, so I was like, ‘okay, I have to do something.'”

On the boys side, Kingston Panebianco’s win in the Boys No. 2 final clinched the team title for King Kekaulike. Teammate Teiva Keomaniboth followed with a victory in the No. 3 final, and Kanoa Kuailani — Bella’s brother — won the No. 4 heat.

“Honestly, I just went out there trying to catch two good waves and not fall,” Panebianco said. “It was probably the best and the biggest I’ve ever surfed it (Koki).”

Other individual winners included Kahlil Pineres-Schooley of Seabury Hall (Boys No. 1), Max Schwartz of Kīhei Charter (Boys No. 5), Sloane Jucker of Maui Prep (Girls No. 1) and Sophia Bunch of Maui Christian (Girls No. 5). It was Jucker’s third victory of the season, and the second wins for Bunch and Schwartz.

The final MIL surf contest of the season is scheduled for Saturday at Hoʻokipa, where team champions will be officially decided.

Results

Boys Team

1. King Kekaulike – 56
2. Kīhei Charter – 49
3. Maui Prep – 45
4. Baldwin – 42
5. Seabury Hall – 41
6. Hāna– 38
7. Maui Christian – 38
8. Kūlanihākoʻi – 22
9. Haleakalā Waldorf – 20
10. Kamehameha Maui – 19
11. Maui High – 6
12. Lahainluna – 4

Boys Individual Results

Boys No. 1

1. Kahlil Pineres-Schooley, Seabury Hall 14.20
2. Zolten Poulsen, Maui Prep 12.84
3. Chase Burnes, King Kekaulike 12.43
4. Memphis Brown, Haleakalā Waldorf 11.86
5. Aiden Haas, Kīhei Charter 9.00
6. Kanoa Gaffney, Hāna 8.83

Boys No. 2

1. Kingston Panebianco, King Kekaulike 11.97
2. Marley Franco, Haleakalā Waldorf 10.10
3. Ezra Offergeld, Maui Prep 10.07
4. Rex Ang, Baldwin 9.87
5. Blake Gebb, Seabury Hall 9.17
6. Jayden Craig, Kīhei Charter 7.03

Boys No. 3

1. Teiva Keomaniboth, King Kekaulike 12.80
2. Miki Przeciechowski, Kīhei Charter 9.83
3. T.J. Hehemann, Maui Prep 8.33
4. Huy Vu, Baldwin 7.60
5. Noah Dvorak, Maui Christian 7.57
6. Cru Spalding, Kamehameha 0.00

Boys No. 4

1. Kanoa Kuailani, King Kekaulike 12.33
2. Jude Mathers, Maui Christian 8.20
3. Noah Haas, Kīhei Charter 7.83
4. Maxwell Aaron, Hāna 6.93
5. Lane Solano, Seabury Hall 6.61
6. Ayden Truong, Baldwin 6.16

Boys No. 5

1. Max Schwartz, Kīhei Charter 9.50
2. Dylan Molina, Baldwin 9.43
3. Imiloa Nelson, Hāna 8.07
4. Jack Hill, Maui Christian 7.34
5. Jack Leone, Maui Prep 6.27
6. Beck Riemenschneider, King Kekaulike 4.00

Girls Team

1. King Kekaulike – 59
2. Maui Christian – 56
3. Maui Prep – 52
4. Kīhei Charter – 45
5. Haleakalā Waldorf – 34
6. Lahainluna – 23
7. Baldwin – 23
8. Seabury Hall – 16
9. Kūlanihākoʻi – 15
10. Maui High – 6

Girls Individual Results

Girls No. 1

1. Sloane Jucker, Maui Prep 15.33
2. Layla James, Kīhei Charter 6.93
3. Lila Sloan, Maui Christian 5.33
4. Chrislyn Simpson-Kane, King Kekaulike 5.27
5. Graye Smith, Baldwin 5.24
6. Gianna Pogni, Lahainaluna 4.16

Girls No. 2

1. Ayla Daian, King Kekaulike 12.23
2. Mikaia Barnes, Maui Christian 11.67
3. Imani Caserta, Maui Prep 9.16
4. Kelea DaCaro, Kīhei Charter 2.97
5. Alexa Johnson, Kūlanihākoʻi 1.17
6. Talei Laury-Schaefer, Haleakalā Waldorf 0.00

Girls No. 3

1. Bella Kuailani, King Kekaulike 10.57
2. Thayane Colpas, Maui Christian 7.33
3. Zenara Dattola, Kīhei Charter 7.17
4. Layla Merrill, Maui Prep 5.50
5. Oliana Schur, Lahaina 2.23
6. Bella Molina, Kūlanihākoʻi 2.00

Girls No. 4

1. Sochi Hendrson, King Kekaulike 12.84
2. Talia Sloan, Maui Christian 11.27
3. Alyssa Condrey, Maui Prep 7.00
4. Natalie Riggs, Kīhei Charter 4.80
5. Isadora Casare 4.33

Girls No. 5

1. Sophia Bunch, Maui Christian 10.67
2. Kaya Przecieshowski, King Kekaulike 7.57
3. Ilana Caserta, Maui Prep 6.50
4. Mia Kondo-Long, Baldwin 4.27
5. Gisele Miller, Lahainaluna 3.60
6. Isabella Salamone, Haleakalā Waldorf 3.43

Team Standings after three surf contests

Boys

1. King Kekaulike 39
2. Kīhei Charter 33
3. Maui Prep 28
4. Maui Christian 26
5. Seabury Hall 25
6. Baldwin 24
7. Hāna 19
8. Kamehameha 13
9. Kūlanihākoʻi 13
10. Maui High 7
11. Haleakalā Waldorf 6
12. Lahainaluna 5

Girls

1. King Kekaulike 36
2. Maui Christian 35
3. Maui Prep 31
4. Baldwin 22
5. Kīhei Charter 22
6. Haleakalā Waldorf 20
7. Kūlanihākoʻi 20
8. Lahainaluna 18
9. Seabury Hall 17
10. Maui High 9
11. Kamehameha 4