LIHU‘E — The Waimea High School girls and the Kapa‘a High School boys earned the Kaua‘i Interscholastic Federation track championships on Friday at Vidinha Stadium. The Menehune girls accumulated 166 points to take the KIF title from the Kaua‘i High
LIHU‘E — The Waimea High School girls and the Kapa‘a High School boys earned the Kaua‘i Interscholastic Federation track championships on Friday at Vidinha Stadium.
The Menehune girls accumulated 166 points to take the KIF title from the Kaua‘i High School girls, who finished with 138 points. Kapa‘a High School and Island School girls’ teams rounded out the field with 83 and 54 points, respectively.
On the boys’ field, the Kapa‘a boys earned 193 points over the challenge of the Kaua‘i boys, who finished with 180 points. Waimea and Island School rounded out the field with 67 and 15 points, respectively.
Kaua‘i coach Richard Matsumoto watched silently as the Red Raider girls’ grip on the KIF title slipped away.
“It’s sad to see the Kaua‘i girls’ KIF winning streak come to an end,” said Matsumoto, who became the Kaua‘i track and field coach in 2007. “It was started with Coach Ron Velasco in 2004. It was a great run. We’ve seen many great athletes go through this program. We’ve seen numerous record-breaking performances and the athletes have given us a lot of wonderful memories.”
Joy Claypoole of Island School is one of the athletes who broke a KIF record Friday, finishing first in the girls 3,000 meters in 11:21.97 and shattering the KIF record of 11:32.98 she set in 2011.
On the boys’ arena, Kaua‘i’s Makepa Lopez-Estacio offered the public a preview of his KIF record-breaking discus tosses throughout the six qualifying meets and the Rotary meet.
Friday, Lopez-Estacio broke the KIF record with his throw of 165 feet in the boys discus, surpassing the KIF record of 151-10 set in 2011 by Keven Marshall Adkisson.
Matsumoto said Lopez-Estacio broke the KIF record three times, surpassing it on his first throw at 151-10 and building to 162-10 on his second throw, reaching 165 on his fourth throw.
On the heels of the KIF record-breaking performances, both qualifying standards, Kaua‘i’s Kawehi Louis-Diamond earned a qualifying standard in the girls 100 meter hurdles at 15.54, with runner-up Kawena Warren of Waimea also getting a qualifying standard at 15.78.
Kapa‘a’s Joshua Cram earned a qualifying standard with his first finish in the boys high jump, where he topped off at 6-0.
Athletes earning consideration standards during the KIF Track and Field Championships include Kaena Kaohelauli‘i of Waimea (12.93) and Chelsie Domingo of Kaua‘i (13.12) in the girls 100 meters, Destin Miguel of Waimea (11.32) in the boys 100 meters, Krista Schnackenberg (5:11.33) and Heidi Herr (5:20.59) of Kaua‘i, and Chan Hsu of Island School (5:22.16) in the girls 1,500 meters, Joshua Herr of Kaua‘i (4:239.78) in the boys 1,500, Louis-Diamond (49.33) and Warren (50.20) in the girls 300 meter hurdles, Storm Haire of Kapa‘a (43.37) in the boys 300 meter hurdles, Schnackenberg (2:28.57) in the girls 800 meter run, Joshua Herr (2:07.00) and Austin Manera of Kaua‘i (2:07.41) in the boys 800, Kaohelauli‘i (27.56) in the girls 200, Christian Sarmiento of Kaua‘i (41-08) and Henry Delos Reyes of Waimea (41-02) in the boys triple jump, Warren (4-08) and Talia Young of Waimea (4-08) in the girls high jump, Tanner Henry of Kapa‘a (5-04) in the boys high jump, Michael “JJ” Alonzo of Kapa‘a (23.00), and Miguel (23.28) in the boys 200 meters, Joshua Herr (9:54.05) in the boys 3,000 meters, Unaloto Masaniai of Kapa‘a (140-05) and Holden Prem of Kapa‘a (133-11) in the boys discus, Lopez-Estacio (43-10) and Masaniai (43-10) in the boys shot put, Allison Culliney of Island School (16-02) and Warren (16-00) in the girls long jump, Sarmiento (21-01) and Delos Reyes (20-02) in the boys long jump, Culliney (32-11) in the girls triple jump, Sarmiento (5-08) and Tanner Henry of Kapa‘a (5-08) in the boys high jump.
The Kapa‘a boys 4×100 relay team of Reese Hicks-Whetsel, Gavin Bryan, Noah LaMadrid and Alonzo (45.04) picked up a consideration standard with its first finish, along with the Kaua‘i Girls 4×400 team of Heidi Herr, Chelsie Domingo, Krista Schnackenberg and Shandee Fernandez-Sugimura (4:35.07) and the Island School girls 4×400 team of Hsu, Jade Murphy, Madison Moore and Claypoole (4:36.22), and the Kaua‘i boys 4×400 team of Sarmiento, Manera, Charles Samuel and Andrew Burrow (3:44.76).
The KIF track and field athletes next participate in the Island Movers Hawai‘i High School Athletic Association track and field championships at the Mililani High School on May 10 and 11.
Info: www.sportshigh.com
