RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@STARBULLETIN.COM Kamehameha's Kanani Herring blocked a kill attempt by Iolani's Chelsea Hardin during Game 2 of last night's match at Kamehameha School.

Kamehameha earns state berth

The Warriors defeat Iolani 25-23, 21-25, 25-22 to claim the ILH regular-season championship

Plan B for the Kamehameha Warriors doesn't just refer to coach Chris Blake.

With a hot Iolani squad firing away on all cylinders and two of his top guns misfiring, Blake counted on his trustworthy squad to adjust. The Warriors captured the Interscholastic League of Honolulu regular-season title last night with a 25-23, 21-25, 25-22 win.

The victory also clinched a state-tournament berth for the resurgent Warriors (15-1).

"It was a great team effort. All the girls stepped up," Blake said. "It was great to see everybody step up when Kanani (Herring) had a little bit of a hiccup."

A subdued crowd of about 700 at Kekuhaupio Gym saw the Warriors struggle early for the second time in as many matches. Herring paced Kamehameha with 15 kills, three roofs, an ace and an assist, but wasn't on her usual efficient level of play. Fortunately for the Warriors, senior Logan Keala and junior Bekah Torres went above and beyond the call.

Torres made the switch from middle to outside hitter when Jordan Meredith's shinsplints became a factor. Torres finished with 10 kills, two roofs and an ace. Keala, a Rutgers-bound opposite hitter, came through with eight timely kills. Kealohilani Kea had 35 assists, two kills and an ace.

"Sometimes people are off, that's what you have a team for," Keala said. "The passes were there. Kea put up some awesome sets."

Torres was more than ready to make the switch.

"We always practice different positions just in case. We did it more this week 'cause Jordan's injury was getting worse," she said.

With Meredith and Herring slightly off for different reasons, Iolani seemed primed to knock off the Warriors in Kekuhaupio Gym for the first time since 2001.

Instead, Iolani (13-2) enters the ILH single-elimination tournament and will need to beat Punahou on Tuesday to keep state-tournament hopes alive. Only one berth remains for the ILH.

"We had our leads, but closing was a problem," Raiders coach Jenic Tumaneng said.

Leinani Keanini pounded 14 kills and Lauren Minkel slammed 13 kills to lead Iolani. Setter Kapua Kamana'o finished with 32 assists.

Powered by middle Chelsea Hardin, Iolani roared to an 11-4 lead in Game 1. The sophomore had three early roofs as the Raiders threatened to run away.

"We called timeout, and I had the team close their eyes and focus. I told them, 'It's 0-0 all over again,' " Blake said. "We needed that talk for all three sets."

Iolani led 21-16 when the Warriors rallied. Keala and Torres delivered kills, and Kea leaped for a reverse tip that caught the Raiders off guard.

Kamehameha scored the final six points of the game, including Torres' unchallenged slam on a back set from Kea to end it.

"It came down to three crucial errors on our side of the net," Tumaneng said.

Hardin suffered an ankle injury with Iolani ahead 9-4 in the second game, but reserve I'ishah Keliikoa stepped in smoothly and helped the Raiders cruise to a relatively easy win.

With Kamehameha beset by unforced errors, Iolani controlled Game 3 at the start with a 10-4 lead. Hardin returned, but stayed on court for only a few serves.

"We have more volleyball ahead, so I didn't want to take any more chances," Tumaneng said.

The Warriors rallied thanks to a series of Iolani errors and took the temporary lead, 14-13, on a kill by Herring. A pair of kills by Torres extended the lead to 21-18, and Iolani got no closer than two the rest of the way.

Torres ended the match with her final kill off a cross-court set from Kea.

The match resembled the first meeting between the teams a month ago, when Kamehameha outlasted Iolani 25-21, 23-25, 25-14.

Punahou, Iolani and Kamehameha had finished the regular season tied in first place at 13-1. Herring and Meredith carried much of the weight in Kamehameha's three-game win over Punahou on Thursday in the first leg of the tiebreaker.