[ HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETICS ]
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Raiders roll as Getting a state tournament win didn't come easily for Iolani and its three seniors.
taller Lunas
come up short
Iolani wins to set up a second-
round game against KalaheoCarson, Gravelle reunite
By Tim Crouse
tcrouse@starbulletin.comA year after bowing out in the first round, the Raiders overcame a much taller, more physical Lahainaluna team, winning 60-35 in the opening round of the Girls State Basketball Championships at the Stan Sheriff Center.
Iolani senior Trisha Nishimoto, who missed the majority of the season with an ankle injury, was sick all day prior to the game, then left in the second quarter after a forceful collision with a Lahainaluna player.
Nishimoto needed assistance to walk off the court after the collision with three minutes left in the first half and Iolani leading 24-13.
She returned to action five minutes into the second half after the Lunas trimmed the Raiders' lead to 34-31 -- and she made a huge shot down the stretch that ended any thoughts of a Lahainaluna comeback.
"I don't think she would sit out this game after missing the whole season," Iolani coach Glenn Takara said. "She would do whatever it took to play."
But it was sophomore Ginger Gravelle who made sure the Raiders advanced to a second-round matchup with No. 2 seed Kalaheo.
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Gravelle scored 15 of her game-high 20 points in the second half and scored eight straight Iolani points at the end of the third quarter and beginning of the fourth."I knew that the only way we would (win) is if we all stepped up," Gravelle said.
Once Gravelle started hitting shots, her teammates made it a point to get her the ball.
"I always look for her because either her or me will have the mismatch," said senior Fabriann Gin. "She played very well tonight."
"Trisha hit some key shots then she got hurt but we still managed without her. We played the whole season without her so just having her back is a bonus."
When Lahainaluna went on a 10-2 tear to close within two points, 36-34, Gravelle buried a jumper and then hit another at the start of the fourth quarter. Gravelle scored once again and Nishimoto sealed the outcome with a coast-to-coast run that she capped off with a leaning jumper to put Iolani ahead 44-35.
Lahainaluna, which featured three players 5-foot-11 or taller, was in foul trouble the entire game and couldn't mount a comeback once its players started fouling out.
Six-foot-one center Fatai Hala'api'api had four fouls at the half, but managed to play the entire third quarter and two minutes into the fourth quarter before fouling out. Monika Vehikite, who led the Lunas with 14 points and 10 rebounds, fouled out two minutes later.
Without their inside game, the Lunas scored just one point in the fourth quarter while Iolani scored 22.
"We're not really big so we used our speed against them and we took it to them and fouled them out," said Gin.
Said Iolani coach Glenn Takara: "We just tried to force the issue more."
Nishimoto finished with 10 points, four rebounds and four steals in 18 minutes of action.
"(Nishimoto) is our leader. Just her being on the floor helps," Takara said.
Gin chipped in with four points, seven rebounds and three assists and the third senior, Diana McClain, had four points, eight rebounds, two assists and two blocks.
"For them to win this game, it's a credit to them, especially with the year we had with Trisha going out and having three of our starters out at one time," said Takara. "The win is big for (the seniors)."
Takara said Nishimoto had a low-grade concussion, and she had a large welt over her right eye after the game.
Lahainaluna used its size to take a huge edge in rebounding in the first half. But the Lunas couldn't buy a basket for most of the half.
Iolani went on an 8-1 run in the first quarter to take a 12-4 lead. Jackie-Lynn Sasaki hit a 3-pointer and Nishimoto scored on a putback of her own missed shot after making a steal.
The Raiders reached a 10-point cushion two minutes into the second quarter on a pair of free throws by Lana Young. Young went to the line after drawing a third foul on Hala'api'api.
Moments later, Nishimoto buried a trey and freshman Patricia Wong converted a three-point play for a 22-8 Iolani lead.
Shortly after, Nishimoto left with the injury and the Lunas went on a 12-5 run the rest of the half. Vehikite scored Lahainaluna's final six points to trim Iolani's lead to 29-22 at halftime. The final two points epitomized Lahainaluna's dominance on the glass and the difficulty the Lunas had scoring.
"They got us out of our game by pressing us and making us run more than we wanted to. Once we settled down, the girls started playing how they're used to playing," Takara said.
Moanalua 35, Waiakea 32: The Menehunes withstood a late charge by the Warriors to advance, and will play top-seeded Kamehameha today.
Moanalua led 29-23 with three minutes left, but after Amy Kaaiakamanu hit a 3-pointer, Waiakea was within 29-26.
After Moanalua turned the ball over, Waiakea missed a 3-point attempt that would have tied the game.
With 52 seconds left, Kaaiakamanu drilled another 3-pointer from the top of the key to pull the Warriors within 31-29. Moanalua turned the ball over and Waiakea had a chance to tie or go ahead with another trey, but the ball was knocked loose in the paint and tied up, and the possession arrow pointed to Moanalua.
Patti Hardimon came up big for the Menehunes, making a free throw and rebounding her miss on the second shot. She was fouled and converted both free throws to put Moanalua up 34-29 with 12.9 seconds left.
Genevieve Girdner converted a traditional three-point play for Waiakea with just under four seconds left to make it 34-32. After a quick foul, Kepua Lee made 1 of 2 free throws, and a three-quarter-court desperation heave by the Warriors at the buzzer fell well short.
Hardimon led all scorers with 14 points and collected nine rebounds. Lee added six points and 10 rebounds for Moanalua, which held a significant 43-22 edge in rebounds in the game.
Waiakea made six treys, but shot only 16 percent from the field.
Stacey Yanagihara buried her third 3-pointer of the game to pull Waiakea within 22-18 with 1:10 left in the third quarter. She followed with a steal that turned into an Ashley Kualii basket.
Kahuku 65, Kapaa 40: The Red Raiders showed no after-effects from losing in the Oahu Interscholastic Association championship game Friday, scoring 17 straight points in the first quarter en route to an easy win.
Kahuku hit seven layups -- four on fastbreaks --and one 3-pointer to take a 19-2 lead.
The Red Raiders (11-3) went on a 7-0 run early in the second quarter, and after a Kapaa bucket, Mereani Lewenilovo converted an offensive rebound for a 30-7 lead.
The Warriors didn't score their 30th point until the fourth quarter.
Lewenilovo led Kahuku with 23 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. She made 10 of 16 shots from the field. Kelci Naihe drilled three treys and finished with 13 points, six rebounds and six assists.
Eight players scored for the Red Raiders, who outrebounded the Warriors 41-19. Kahuku did commit 24 turnovers, all but nine coming in the second half when the game was already out of Kapaa's reach.
Tania Tasic came off the bench to lead Kapaa (7-2) with 13 points.
Punahou 61, Pearl City 34: Thirteen players scored for the Buffanblu, which slowly pulled away as the game progressed.
Junior Becky Hogue led Punahou (12-2) with 11 points and six rebounds.
The Buffanblu was ahead 29-16 at halftime after shooting 39 percent in the half. Pearl City nearly matched that at 37 percent, but committed 13 turnovers.
Christie Ayers scored 14 points for Pearl City (10-4), which finished with twice as many turnovers as Punahou, 24-12.
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