[ HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL ]
RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@STARBULLETIN.COM
Iolani's Alana Wall put up a shot over Mid-Pacific's Danielle Nafua last night at Mid-Pac Gym. She had a game-high 12 points.
Raiders knock out
Owls with 13-0 run
Basketball teams get into heaps of trouble when they can't answer back, and that was Mid-Pacific's problem against Iolani in last night's Interscholastic League of Honolulu girls opener.
The Raiders broke open a close game in the second quarter with a 13-0 run and eventually cashed in with a 39-25 victory over the host Owls.
Other than that surge, which was sparked by sophomore guard Hennasea Tokumura, the game was evenly played.
"They pressed us into making three turnovers (four altogether in the span) that hurt us," Mid-Pacific coach Darin Lee said after the loss. "They also made a couple of backside picks and got a few easy layups under the basket."
Tokumura, one of Iolani's key returnees, had five points in the decisive run that gave Iolani a 17-6 lead. She also had a steal and dished to Ginger Gravelle for another bucket.
"We tried to move the ball around and get people open off of double teams," said Tokumura, who finished with 11 points. "They struggled on their backside rotation and we took advantage of it. We also tried to get fast breaks when we could."
Alana Wall plugged away in the paint for the Raiders and led all scorers with 12 points. Gravelle, Iolani's only senior, added nine, while Kaz Masutani, Marci Kang and Chelsea Wong contributed with intense defensive pressure.
"We started slow," Iolani coach Glenn Takara said. "Ginger was sick this week and Marci was hurt, so neither one started. But once they got in there, we picked it up. Alana is starting to play up to her potential. We're a young team, still learning to play together and getting comfortable with each other."
Gravelle's 3-pointer near the end of the third quarter gave the Raiders their biggest lead yet -- 28-15 -- and they worked on slowing down the tempo over the final eight minutes.
The Owls, who had four points each in the first and second quarters, got as close as seven -- 28-21 -- when Morgen Sullivan converted a rebound bucket into a three-point play to end the third and Jasmine Vieira hit a 3-pointer to start the fourth.
Vieira scored all of her team-high 10 points in the second half to keep Mid-Pacific close. Sherice Ajifu chipped in with six points for the Owls.
Iolani answered with treys from Tokumura and Meilin Akamu to fatten the lead to 34-23. The Raiders followed up by hitting five of six free throws, including three from Tokumura, to put the finishing touch on the victory.
"We made mistakes that we couldn't recover from," Vieira said. "I could have done a lot better in helping to run plays better. But I think we have a good team and we'll get better as the season goes along."
Lee was glad his Owls -- who also have very few seasoned players -- made Iolani work at the end.
"We matched them in effort, but not in brains," he said. "We didn't execute our offense, and considering that, it's a good sign to know that we were still able to stay with them. Morgen (a 5-foot-10 post) had a tough night. She's a lot better than she showed tonight."
Tokumura is looking forward to the rest of Iolani's season.
"If we continue to work the ball around and play good defense like we did tonight, maybe we can make it to and take states," she said. "We are a very young team, though."
Aside from Gravelle, the only other Raiders upperclassman is Wong, who is a junior.
At Mid-Pacific Institute gym
Iolani (1-0) 4 13 11 11 -- 39 Mid-Pacific (0-1) 4 4 10 7 -- 25
IOLANI-- Kaz Masutani 0, Chelsea Unemori 0, Hennasea Tokumura 11, Alana Matayoshi 2, Ginger Gravelle 9, Marci Kang 0, Alana Wall 12, Meilin Akamu 3, Ashley Reinig 0, Sarah Turgeon 0, Keilyn Fujioka 2, Chelsea Wong 0.
MID-PACIFIC-- Kim Sherman 0, Sherice Ajifu 6, Danielle Mafua 2, Noelle Enright 0, Yuki Sei 0, Miya Quinn 0, Jasmine Vieira 10, Taryn Lum 0, Kristina Lin 0, Kelli Kajiwara 2, Crisi Nihipali 0, Leihoku Pedersen 0, Sarah Andrade 0, Morgen Sullivan 5.
3-point goals: Iolani 4 (Tokumura 2, Gravelle, Akamu), Mid-Pacific 1 (Vieira)
Maryknoll 53, Sacred Hearts 44: The Spartans outscored the Lancers 29-11 in the first half and withstood a 24-17 fourth-quarter rally.
At Sacred Hearts Academy gym
Maryknoll (1-0) 14 15 7 17 -- 53 Sacred Hearts (0-1) 4 7 9 24 -- 44
Leading scorers--Mrykl: Cheryl Lee 11, Whitney Wong 11. SHA: Nicole Lehner 16.
ILH
Division II varsity girlsYesterday
Hawaii Baptist 40, St. Andrew's 38
Punahou 32, Iolani 21
Leading scorers--HBA: Jodi Kamemoto 17. StA: Holly Saito 12, Caasi Nakasone 10. Pun: Karissa Look 10.
OIA preseason
YesterdayVarsity girls
McKinley 73, Waianae 32
Leading scorers--McK: Bre Carson 21, Melody Ababa 14, Chantel Yadao 12.
Junior varsity girls
McKinley 28, Waianae 25
