A well-rounded Kamehameha-Hawaii volleyball team took care of Kamehameha.
Kamehameha-Hawaii had multiple options on offense, served tough and put up a big block in a 25-16, 25-23 win over host Kamehameha at the KS Cup on Friday.
“They have more range as players, they have more experienced players,” said Kamehameha outside hitter Naone Cannon.
The teams faced off after winning their respective pools on Thursday. Nalu Kahapea had eight kills and four blocks and Addison Enriques added seven kills for third-ranked KS-Hawaii. Pukana Vincent had three blocks for KS-Hawaii, which outblocked sixth-ranked Kamehameha 8-3. KS-Hawaii controlled most of the 45-minute match.
“It kind of made us think more and hit smarter,” Cannon said. “They’re a good blocking team, we had to work around that.”
Nainoa Barlan had seven kills and Cannon added five for Kamehameha. The six-team tournament, which features three teams from California, finishes today.
Serving tough allowed KS-Hawaii blockers to align themselves against Kamehameha hitters. Blocking has been a point of emphasis for the Warriors in the tournament.
“We had a good day serving, missed a little more than what we wanted to,” KS-Hawaii coach Guy Enriques said. “We were able to hit our targets and make it tough.”
KS-Hawaii ran away with Set 1 and led 19-12 in Set 2 before the host Warriors rallied. Barlan had two kills and a block during a 7-2 run that cut the deficit to 21-19.
“We were trying to play steady, but it wasn’t working,” Addison Enriques said. “We were trying to be consistent, but they were doing very good on their serving and we had a hard time passing.”
Kobe Young’s kill and Kainoa Miyamoto’s ace helped Kamehameha tie the match at 23. Addison Enriques followed with a kill to put KS-Hawaii at match point and Isaiah Laeha’s block ended the match.
“They’re much better than what we saw,” coach Enriques said. “We’re going to see an entirely different team tomorrow. They didn’t play well today, but that’s going to happen to any one of us.”
KS Cup scores
>> Hawaii Baptist def. Fountain Valley (Calif.) 25-23, 25-19
>> Edison (Calif.) def. Santa Barbara (Calif.) 25-14, 25-23
>> Hawaii Baptist def. Santa Barbara 20-25, 25-16, 25-21
>> Edison def. Fountain Valley 21-25, 25-17, 25-17