Moanalua beats scrappy Anuenue

Senior Ke’ila Williams attacked from all sides of the court and hit .545 with no errors as Moanalua defeated Anuenue 25-10, 26-24 in an Oahu Interscholastic Association girls volleyball match on Wednesday evening at Moanalua.

Kamalei Krug, Anuenue’s 6-foot-1 all-around attacker, posted a match-high 11 kills. Senior setter Emree Sato finished with 14 assists for Na Menehune (8-1), who hit .478 in the first set, compared with .125 in the second.

Moanalua head coach Alan Cabanting said he played with the lineup in the second set, but Williams was a consistent leader on the court.

“As we go into the post season we would like (Williams) to play a different position,” Cabanting said. “She’s been in the middle because she’s our best middle so far and so in that second set we were able to get her into the opposite position. She did really well in terms of tonight’s game, whether she was in the middle or whether she was on the opposite.”

Moanalua, the two-time defending OIA champion, dominated Set 1 as the Division II Na Koa (3-6) amassed 12 unforced errors. Williams led the charge, hitting .800 in the first set. Na Menehune went on an 11-1 scoring run with sophomore Rainbeau Oliveira serving seven straight points to gain a 15-3 lead. Moanalua piled on the points with floor captain Emily Dulaney’s five kills and Anuenue’s eighth hitting error gave Na Menehune game point at 24-9. Anuenue reached double-digits on Krug’s fifth kill, but Sara Ehnstrom quickly ended the set as her solo kill of the match was shanked off a Na Koa defender.

Anuenue came out in the second set like a different team altogether. It served tougher and forced Moanalua into passing out of system, giving Na Koa more free ball opportunities. Tied at 5-5, Na Menehune pulled away on a 4-0 scoring run with Oliveira behind the service line. Anuenue’s Moana Vaughan-Darval kept her team in the match with three early kills as Na Koa closed the deficit to 10-8. Both teams exchanged points until Moanalua earned another four-point run to lead 19-13. After Krug was stuffed by a triple block at 21-14, Anuenue head coach Pakalana Chan called a timeout.

The break in momentum worked as Na Koa tallied seven straight points capped by middle blocker Kanani Jones’ deep shot into the right corner. With the game tied at 21-21, Moanalua’s Delylah Sanreivi pounded a kill between the blockers and the net, but a service error tied the match again. Sanreivi whiffed her second kill but it was good enough to find the court and give Na Menehune match point. After another Na Koa timeout, Krug hammered her final kill and a Moanalua hitting attempt soared out to tie the set at 24. Anuenue’s back-to-back hitting errors closed the match.

“It’s always been a struggle for my girls as far as getting going,” Chan said. “It’s disheartening to see them in the first set when I know that the second set is what they should have done in the first set. Hopefully they learn from it and grow from it.”

Although Moanalua has continuously been a volleyball powerhouse in the OIA, Anuenue has struggled to earn a win until this season. After three consecutive 0-11 seasons, this year’s Na Koa squad has already notched victories over Kaimuki, McKinley and Roosevelt. And despite Wednesday’s loss, Anuenue has earned a berth into the OIA Division II playoffs for the first time in school history.

“I think this year the girls have been ready and more open to what we have to give them. Every year I hope that every game they will have a win, really,” Chan said. “I think this team is my team that I made it up to the playoffs with their freshmen year as our junior varsity team and I’ve always expected a lot of these girls and it’s just nice that I get to see it.”