Elena Oglivie erupted for 16 kills as ‘Iolani rallied past Punahou 20-25, 25-12, 25-16 on Saturday afternoon at the Father Bray Athletic Complex.
“I think we just tried too hard and didn’t execute as well as we could. We need a better mind-set coming in. We know how much they want to beat us,” Oglivie said of her team’s early struggles.
The Raiders’ second win of the Interscholastic League of Honolulu girls volleyball season was a demonstration of resilience. Whether it was too much adrenaline or the electricity of a near-full house, Oglivie and her Raiders teammates started slowly against a young, fearless Buffanblu squad. ‘Iolani committed 11 hitting errors in the opening set (-.118).
The tall, athletic visitors couldn’t stop the home team after that. ‘Iolani committed just two hitting errors in the second set (.462) and three in the third (.220). Sasha Petticord, the lone Raider taller than 6 feet at 6-2, came through with six kills and outside hitter Maria Izabella Sakoda added five. Freshman Mokihana Tufono gave her team a big spark with three kills, two aces and one block, all in the second and third sets.
“It’s crazy, a freshman doing that. She plays with so much confidence. She hypes everybody and influences me to get better,” Oglivie said.
Kristen McDaniel finished with 30 assists, and her two kills and ace were huge pluses in the final set.
“It was a great atmosphere. Punahou brought some really good fans and we have our good fans and supporters,” ‘Iolani coach Kainoa Obrey said. “Everyone’s juices are flowing early and they played a little better than us at first. I was happy our kids settle in and not panic, keep plugging away and good things happen.”
Middle Kamaile Manol and outside hitter Sina Uluave led Punahou (0-1) with seven kills each. Manol also had two of her team’s four blocks. Teana Adams-Kaonohi dished 19 assists and had one kill for the Buffanblu.
“I thought our kids came in ready to play,” Punahou coach Tanya Fuamatu-Anderson said. “We just couldn’t sustain and be consistent.”
The home team opened with a 4-1 lead, but Punahou surged ahead with a 16-7 run. The Buffanblu saw their lead dwindle from six points to 20-19, but closed the set with a 5-1 run, getting two kills from Kaia Dunford and one from Tara Williams.
“Coach (Obrey) just said, ‘Settle down, play our game and we can win it,’ “ Tufono said.
‘Iolani dominated the second set, using a precise serving attack to turn a 5-3 lead into a 22-8 cushion. Oglivie had seven kills and Naya Dong delivered two aces in the game. The Raiders got a big chunk of points with Grace Wee at serve.
Punahou battled back and led the third set 7-5 after a quick-set kill by middle Kaleinani Simeona-French and an ace by Alyssa Curtis. ‘Iolani turned momentum around with a 4-0 run as Punahou committed two hitting errors and a service error.
Leading 11-10, the Raiders went on an 8-0 run, sparked by two kills on dump shots from McDaniel. Oglivie maneuvered for four kills in a row, Tufono roofed Uluave, and McDaniel dropped her only ace as ‘Iolani opened the lead to 19-10 en route to victory.
