Nine days since their previous battle, the ‘Iolani Raiders refined their system and the results showed on Monday night.
Junior Ryan Van Cantfort pounded five of his match-high 10 kills in the opening set, while Cole Hogland added nine kills and Hugh Hogland tallied eight as ‘Iolani swept Waianae 25-6, 25-17, 25-14 at Father Bray Athletic Center’s upper gym.
The Raiders (12-4) hadn’t had a break this long since early April, when they had a 10-day break between wins over Mid-Pacific and Mary- knoll. They later lost to eventual ILH champion Punahou in four sets, then needed five sets to edge a much- improved Kamehameha squad for the league’s second and final state berth.
‘Iolani coach Jordan Inafuku, a former Kamehameha standout, smiled after the win on Monday. The task, of course, has just begun. ‘Iolani will face OIA champion Mililani on Thursday at Radford’s James Alegre Gymnasium.
“I’m proud of them. They did a nice job. We have a lot of things to work on, but they did a good job of staying focused,” Inafuku said.
The power of ‘Iolani’s bench has been a constant theme.
“Coach always emphasizes that all of us, one through 14, have to be ready to serve,” Van Cantfort said. “It shows how much trust he has in everyone.”
The visiting Seariders were led by 6-foot-2 junior Blaze Kahikina, who had four kills and two blocks. Jared Ulu also had four kills. Jayden Tanabe-Yeager had eight assists, two kills and a block.
“We saw a lot of hard serves at practice by our alumni players,” Kahikina said. “But it didn’t show today.”
Sophomore setter Shane Harimoto dished 15 assists in a balanced ‘Iolani attack.
Waianae had early leads of 2-1 and 3-2 before ‘Iolani caught fire. Nathan Yung’s ace put the home team ahead 4-3 and Waianae never led again. Cole Hogland, a 6-foot-4 junior, pounded two kills and two aces as the Raiders opened an 11-4 lead.
Waianae coach Wilhelm Wagner called time out, but his team continued to struggle with the Raiders’ serve.
“Everybody needed to wake up a little. We were stuck in neutral,” he said.
By the time Kawika Lee (10 assists) dropped two aces, the lead was up to 17-5. After a Van Cantfort kill, it was 22-5.
The Raiders’ serve was a major weapon, racking up six aces without a service error in the first game. They hit .500 with just two hitting errors.
‘Iolani went deep into its bench during the second set. Waianae got within 11-9 after a kill by Ulu, but the Raiders went on another run, with Van Cantfort and Cole Hogland getting their swings. Hogland had four kills and a block in the middle as ‘Iolani closed the second set with a 14-8 run.
By the third set, Waianae began to handle ‘Iolani’s serve more consistently. The Raiders had just one ace with four service errors, but the Seariders still had problems keeping the ball in play, committing 12 hitting errors for the match.
Reserves Ian Severino (three kills) and Mitchell Marabella (one kill, two aces) saw plenty of action, as did setter Trevor Tamura (two assists, one ace). Ethan Wescoatt added one ace and a block.
‘Iolani finished with nine aces and just five service errors. Waianae had no aces and five service errors while hitting .059 against a relentless ‘Iolani block. The Raiders hit .296 for the match with nine errors.
Moanalua 3, Kaiser 1
Nalu DeMello had 22 kills and Duncan Clark and Kalai Leopoldo each added 12 as host Na Menehune beat the Cougars 25-17, 21-25, 30-28, 25-13.
Zackary Miyamoto had 52 assists for Moanalua (14-1), which will host top-seeded Punahou in a quarterfinal Thursday at 7 p.m.
Jon Stanley had 19 kills and Jacob Summers added 16 for Kaiser, which ends its season at 8-6.
Waiakea 3, Kapolei 0
Koby Aiona had 21 kills and Nakana Labrie tallied 33 assists as the host Warriors beat the Hurricanes 26-24, 25-20, 25-16.
Waiakea (12-3) will play No. 4 seed Kamehameha-Maui in a quarterfinal Thursday at 5 p.m. at Moanalua.
Willie Tupua Richardson finished with 13 kills and 10 digs for Kapolei, which ends its season at 11-3.
Waipahu 3, King Kekaulike 0
Bradley Tacata had 12 kills and four aces as the Marauders defeated host Na Alii 25-23, 25-21, 25-19.
Nofoalii Saolotoga finished with 21 assists and Craig Agni had 11 digs for Waipahu (11-4), which will play No. 2 seed Kamehameha-Hawaii in a quarterfinal Thursday at 5 p.m. at Radford.
Nakuluai Morando recorded 12 kills for King Kekaulike, which ends its season at 11-4.