Kahuku pushes pressure
aside for OIA title
A 15-0 second-quarter run propels
the Lady Raiders to a 64-42 victory
over Kaiser
This time, the Lady Raiders were ready for the pressure in more ways than one.
Kahuku handled Kaiser's fullcourt pressure early and the weary Lady Cougars wilted in the second half, helping the Lady Raiders to a 64-42 win last night for the Oahu Interscholastic Association basketball championship at the McKinley High School gym.
A game-breaking 15-0 run in the second half lifted Kahuku to its second league crown in a row.
"It feels better than last year because it was more of a challenge," coach Wendy Anae said. "Kaiser's a great team. It says a lot for the kids."
Kahuku (20-3) will enter the state tournament next week as the OIA's top seed. The Lady Raiders, ranked fourth in the Star-Bulletin Top 10, will have a bye through Tuesday's opening round at the Stan Sheriff Center.
"Kahuku played really good tonight. I'm not gonna say they wanted it more than us, but they played hard, got the loose balls and rebounds," Kaiser coach Lisa Mann said.
Pressure defense is what helped Kaiser nearly beat Kahuku in two regular-season meetings.
"Coach talked about it. We did a lot of press-breaking drills," Kahuku guard Artevia Wily said. "We were more focused in our last two practices."
Anae agreed.
"It wasn't always smooth, but it was in Tavy's hands," she said of Wily.
The Lady Raiders did it with a balanced attack again. Wily tallied 12 points, five assists and four rebounds. She had just two turnovers as Kahuku dissected Kaiser's defense.
Posts Aisha Ale and Kamaile Hughes added 10 points each. Hughes, a 6-foot senior, grabbed 12 rebounds and blocked two shots. Ale, playing on a sore right knee, pulled down six rebounds in limited action. Camilla Ah-Hoy added nine points.
Kahuku's Tina Soliai drove around Kaiser's Nicole Lehner in the second half of last night's game at McKinley High School.
"Our girls ran out of gas," Mann noted.
Christine Meredith added six points off the bench.
"She played huge for us, especially going in for Aisha when I had to get her out because of her knee," Anae said.
"I'm happy 'cause I got an OIA title at Kahuku," said Hughes, who transferred from Kailua two years ago.
Kahuku shot 57 percent from the field (28-for-49) and dominated the boards with a 31-14 edge.
Nicole Lehner and Sharde Pratt led eighth-ranked Kaiser (17-8) with 11 points apiece. Lehner made all seven of her free-throw attempts, but wasn't able to find many open lanes to the basket because of Kahuku's collapsing defense.
"We put Camilla on her and she did a good job on Nicole," Anae said.
Kaiser shot just 34 percent (13-for-38) from the field, but stayed in the game through more than two quarters thanks to free-throw shooting (16-for-25).
After Lehner sank two foul shots and Kehau Bangay made a pull-up baseline jumper, the Lady Cougars were within 33-27 with 3:23 left in the third quarter.
That's when the tank went empty for Kaiser. Six different Lady Raiders scored during a decisive 15-0 run. After Ale hustled downcourt for a layup, Kahuku led 48-27 with 7:37 to go in the fourth quarter. Kaiser never threatened again.
The Lady Cougars also head to the state tournament, and Mann couldn't be happier. "I told them that I'm very proud of them. Our effort was great. Next week, we'll have fun playing the tournament," the former UH Rainbow Wahine forward said.
Kaiser 11 7 9 15 -- 42 Kahuku 18 10 18 18 -- 64 KAISER--Nicole Lehner 11, Amber Nakachi 0, Jaime Nerona 5, Kehau Bangay 4, Chelsea Kapuniai 2, Kuhia Arakaki 0, Sharde Pratt 11, Rene Shitanishi 3, Kelsey Beck 1, Kilioe Aliifua 5.
KAHUKU--Camilla Ah-Hoy 9, Delicia Wilson 3, Ane Vea 2, Adrianne Galeai 0, Leann Mapu 2, Artevia Wily 12, Lily Latu 2, Kaimi Ah Puck 0, Salote Livai 0, Tina Soliai 8, Christine Meredith 6, Aisha Ale 10, Noel Au 0, Kamaile Hughes 10.
3-point goals--Kaiser 0, Kahuku 3 (Soliai 2, Wilson).
Roosevelt 51, Farrington 39
Also at McKinley, Tati Beasley pumped in 13 points and Nicole Yoshimoto connected on two treys to finish with 12 points as the Rough Riders (14-15) captured third place in the OIA.Kapio Alatasi scored 10 for Farrington (15-11), as did recent junior varsity call-up Elaine Leaupepe, who sank two 3-point shots.
Both teams have already sealed state tournament berths. Farrington entered the tournament as the No. 4 seed in the East. Roosevelt was the fifth seed. All five OIA representatives in the state tournament will be from the East.
Roosevelt 13 14 9 15 -- 51 Farrington 7 7 11 14 -- 39 ROOSEVELT--Dianna Zane 1, Tati Beasley 13, Chelsie Kadota 9, Dasha Kawakami 0, Larisa Nakasone 0, Kaitlynn Simmonds 2, Melanie Nakatani 0, Nicole Yoshimoto 12, Shannon Miyashiro 12.
FARRINGTON--Maria Segundo 0, C'ani Kealoha 7, Sandy Valdez 0, Tanya Sale 4, Shirlyn Tambua 1, Kalani Alatasi 3, Joanna Montero 0, Kapio Alatasi 10, Elaine Leaupepe 10, Dejanira Bryce 4, Kirstyn Vaa 0, Bryanna Tatupu-Leopoldo 0.
3-point goals--Roosevelt 3 (Yoshimoto 2, Kadota), Farrington 3 (Leaupepe 2, Kealoha).
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