[ HIGH SCHOOL CHEERLEADING ]
RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@STARBULLETIN.COM
Kamehameha cheerleaders celebrated thier win in the Zippy's HHSAA Cheerleading championships at Stan Sheriff Center.
Warriors, Menehunes win
School colors were everywhere at the Stan Sheriff Center last night, but the dominant one was blue.
That's blue -- as in the blue and white of Kamehameha and the blue, silver and white of Moanalua. The Warriors and Menehunes won the Zippy's State Cheerleading Championships in front of 2,456.
It was a three-peat for coach Dolly Wong's Kamehameha squad. The Warriors won the large-squad (12 to 18 performers) division for the second year in a row, after winning the small-squad championship in 2002.
"It's so rewarding," said Wong, whose squad is also two-time national champion. "They not only hit their routine, but they probably hit it the best they've ever done. The routine was harder than it was at nationals and it's a lot tougher to perform here in front of a home crowd. Nothing faltered and they got the crowd into it so much and they didn't crack under all that pressure."
Kamehameha scored a state-championship-record 275 points, breaking the previous mark of 272.5 set by Aiea in 2002. Radford was second with 253 points, followed by Baldwin with 232.
Jessie Riane Ahuna, Mia Archuleta, Tiare Camarillo, Corinne Chun, Jessica Kaanoi, Alyssa Kong, Shawna Lee, Emi Manuia, Summer Maunakea, Jasmine Merseberg, Tamara Patton, Chanel Silva, Kawena Vierra and Lehua Watanabe are the Warriors' winning cheerleaders.
"It feels so awesome and unbelievable," Lee said. "There's no real words to describe it -- all the blood, sweat and tears that it took to get here. We did it for each other, our families and all of our sisters (teammates)."
Camarillo said she was "so psyched" to see more supporters than usual.
"More family and friends came this time and more people from the school. We don't usually get a lot of recognition around the school," she said.
The only thing Bo Frank, the Radford coach, could say after finishing second to the Warriors in the large-squad division for the second time in a row was, "We'll get 'em someday."
Coach Sherrie Faldo's Menehunes earned the small-squad title (11-and-fewer performers) for the second straight year. They finished with 262 points and were followed by Mililani with 243 and Leilehua with 228.
Faldo thought a disappointing fourth-place finish at the Oahu Interscholastic Association championship meet motivated the Moanalua girls.
"I'm overwhelmed," Faldo said. "I'm just so happy with how they performed. When it was time to hit it, they hit it."
The Menehunes' winning cheerleaders are Megan Batara, Candace Cabanilla, Chelsea Castilliano, Patricia Fernandez, Jennifer Maki, Jenna Neeley, Lindsey Okumoto, Jennifer Oyape, Lindsay Tangonan, Katlin Taosaka and Angelica Wright.
"It was a long, hard bumpy road, but it was so smooth tonight," Wright said. "We all wanted it so badly and we didn't want that (the fourth-place OIA finish) to happen again."
Large-squad division
12-18 performers
Team Points Kamehameha-Oahu 275 Radford 253 Baldwin 232 Aiea 228 Kauai 222 Punahou 218 Waiakea 209.5 Hilo 200.5 Lahainaluna 187 Pearl City 183 Kamehameha-Big Island 173 Small-squad division
11-AND-FEWER PERFORMERS
Team Points Moanalua 262 Mililani 243 Leilehua 228 Kaiser 205 Iolani 192 Kapolei 180 All-state team
Brittiany Broadwater, Radford
Kacie Yano, Punahou
Jenna Neeley, Moanalua
Tiane Camarillo, Kamehameha-Oahu
Tamara Patton, Kamehameha-Oahu
Ashley Uyeshiro, Punahou
Angelica Wright, Moanalua
Brittany, Hamocon, Radford
Lindsey Okumoto, Moanalua
Shawna Lee, Kamehameha-Oahu
Alyssa Kong, Kamehameha
Emi Manuia, Kamehameha
Keisha Pamaylaon, Radford
Lauren Pasion, Punahou
Edward Akahi, Baldwin
Summer Maunakea, Kamehameha-Oahu
David Carter, Radford
Leon Knight, RadfordMost Valuable Cheerleader
Brittiany Broadwater, Radford
Senior Scholarship Recipient
Shawna Lee, Kamehameha-Oahu
Coach of the Year
Dolly Wong, Kamehameha-Oahu
