LIHU‘E — The Island School Voyager volleyball team has faced an uphill battle all season. A lack of numbers and experience has sent the Voyagers to a winless record with lopsided scores posted in the record book.
Friday night the Voyagers were once again shutout in the win column by the Kaua‘i Red Raiders, 25-7, 25-15, 25-19, but the young Voyagers team showed signs of improvement, especially late in the game.
“We’re trying to get our team to a competitive level,” Island School head coach Rikki Garma said. “We’re seeing an improvement from our girls. We’re feeling a difference.”
The quest for improvement was best showcased by the Voyagers in the third set. After keeping it close in the second set before Kaua‘i broke away on a point streak to win the set, the Voyagers came out with fire in the final frame.
With Keana Green as the Island School server, the Voyagers jumped out to a 5-0 lead with Green garnering three aces.
Although the Voyagers couldn’t keep the lead long enough to win the set, the aggressive style of play kept the Red Raiders on their heals. The Voyagers netted a total of six aces in the set.
“They’re serving worked well for them in the third,” Kaua‘i head coach Merril Carvalho said. “They’re playing with a ‘We have nothing to lose’ type of attitude.”
Tough serving worked well for the Red Raiders on the night as well. The Kaua‘i girls kept constant pressure on the Voyagers the whole night, causing many unforced errors.
“We made it touch on their passers tonight,” Carvalho said. “When you’re not able to pass well you have to scramble a lot.”
The Red Raiders ran its win streak to four straight games with the win.
The Voyagers had the tough task of taking on a hot Red Raider team. Knowing that they were going to face a tough team, especially with how the season has gone so far, was a tough task for the Voyagers.
“When we start falling behind we start to get a little frustrated but we just got to stay positive,” Voyager player Danielle Caminos said. Caminos led the Voyagers with three kills on the night.
“We’re good at picking each other up. We’re working on staying focused and improving. We don’t care what the score is. We’re focused on fixing our errors.”
In JV action, the Red Raiders also swept their Voyagers counterparts. The Red Raiders cruised to a 25-4, 25-12, 25-10 win.
Over in Waimea, the Waimea Menehune downed the Kapa‘a Warriors, 25-27, 25-14, 25-11, 25-18. In JV action the Menhune beat the Warriors 31-33, 25-19, 25-15.
