LIHUE — Both teams struggled heavily in a low-scoring first half. But Kapaa High School’s varsity girls basketball team eventually pulled away to defeat Kauai 41-30 at Kauai High School. “[We had] early game jitters. Had to shake out the
LIHUE — Both teams struggled heavily in a low-scoring first half.
But Kapaa High School’s varsity girls basketball team eventually pulled away to defeat Kauai 41-30 at Kauai High School.
“[We had] early game jitters. Had to shake out the cobwebs before we started coming out strong again,” said William Aki, Kapaa head coach “We made a lot of mistakes, but hopefully we can come back from that.”
The Warriors’ offense came alive during the third quarter as Shai-Anne Abigana and Maile Tuttle each knocked down crucial three-pointers to extend Kapaa’s lead.
Kapaa’s supporters became louder and louder as the Warriors’ lead grew bigger with each bucket.
“We slowed everyone down a little bit to set up our offense,” Aki said. “[We] used our perimeter shots instead of trying to go inside all of the time.”
The Red Raiders tried to keep up with Kapaa’s offense, but missed opportunities on fastbreaks undid the team’s chance of staying in the game.
“We’re kind of young as a team,” said Kauai head coach Neil Fagarang. “[After] watching tonight, we’ll make some adjustments. Hopefully it will work out for the next game.”
In addition to inexperience, an undersized roster also became an issue for the Red Raiders.
“We only have eight players all together. It’s hard for those girls,” Fagarang said.
Foul trouble was an issue for both teams early as each team committed more than 10 fouls by halftime.
As a result, the majority of the points scored came from the free throw line during the first half.
“We were trying to press them to try to get the ball stolen away,” Aki said.
By the end of the game, both teams had more than 40 fouls combined.
“We just need to move our feet instead of reaching, but that happens when you get tired,” Fagarang said. “You tend to lean towards the ball instead of moving your feet. That’s one of the things we’ll need to work on.”
Also, Kauai’s Marissa Martinez was temporarily taken out late during the fourth quarter as teammates helped her off of the court.
Fagarang said it was a muscle cramp in her leg and he allowed her to play out the final minutes of the game after a trainer stretched out the muscle.
“It’s what happens when you’re out of shape, and I know we’re out of shape,” Fagarang said. “We need to fix that.”
Although Kapaa came away with a win, Aki said his team needs to work on minimizing fouls and taking care of the ball better before they step onto the court again.
For Kauai, starting the season at home with a loss is disappointing but Fagarang said he hopes his team can work past the mistakes made in time for the team’s next matchup.
“We’ll just come back tomorrow. We’ll fix what we did wrong,” he said. “We’ll work hard at it and see if we can put it together for the next game.”
Kauai will go on the road to face Waimea on Tuesday.
Kapaa, too, will face Waimea one week following its win at Kauai.
