LIHUE — The Kauai Interscholastic Federation boys volleyball program presented an exciting set of matches over the weekend.
On Friday night at its home court, the Clem Gomes Gym, Waimea High School swept its series over the visiting Kapaa High School teams. During the Junior Varsity matches, Waimea emerged a 2:1 winner, 25-22, 22-25 and 15-8.
On the varsity floor, Waimea handed Kapaa its first defeat in the season by winning the series in five sets on scores of 10-25, 25-21, 16-25, 25-16 and 15-9. Back-to-back hits from Dylan Takata kept the Raiders chasing a digit, 21-22
After going through the first round undefeated, this is Kapaa’s first loss in the season.
On Saturday, Island School held off a strong Kauai effort to prevail in five sets, 24-26, 25-14, 16-25, 25-21 and 16-14. A Kauai service error gave the Voyagers the 24-22 bulge, but Island School could not close the door as hits from Kauai’s Camren Holt-Ho, Laurence Ganir and Caleb Schmaeling put away the set, 26-24.
Trailing 18-19, Island School’s Sol Schmidt served up a string of four points that included whacks from Schmidt, and Matthew Dobashi and a Kauai net violation.
The second set rolled behind sustained tenures in the service block from Piko Vaughn who served up to a 24-13 Island School lead, and Logan Reynolds who brought the Voyagers from chasing one, 8-9, to a 12-9 bulge. Poised on the brink, Voyager Dobashi put the set down, 24-14.
Kauai answered in the third set when Kana Potts served up to an 11-3 Kauai lead, the series getting effective smacks from Pierson Fox. Holt-Ho served the Raiders from a 23-16 to the win with hits from himself and Schmaeling, and a Voyager passing error sealing Island School’s fate.
Both teams clashed for the lead in the fifth set. Kauai’s Schmaeling tied the contest at 13 only to have Voyager Reynolds mark point 14. A crowd-rousing Raider block knotted things at 14 before Kauai ran into a hitting and passing error to relinquish the battle, 14-16.
Following the results of Saturday night, all four KIF member schools enter Tuesday night games with 1-win, 1-loss records in the second round. Kauai will travel to the Bernice Hundley Gym to meet Kapaa with the JV game starting at 5 p.m. followed by the varsity game starting 20 minutes after the completion of the JV game.
Island School will make the trek to the Clem Gomes Gym to face Waimea in a since varsity-only contest starting at 6:30 p.m.
