Photo gallery: Kamehameha v. Punahou
McKenna Granato unleashed her fury with 21 kills as No. 2 Punahou stunned No. 1 Kamehameha 25-21, 23-25, 15-25, 25-13, 15-13 on Saturday afternoon.
The win boosted Punahou (9-2 overall) to 4-0 in second-round play of the Interscholastic League of Honolulu.
The Buffanblu can seal the second-round title and a state-tournament berth with a win over Mid-Pacific on Tuesday.
"I’m excited for my kids. I told them our focus can’t be so much on wanting to beat the No. 1 team in the state. It should be on us and our journey," coach Tanya Fuamatu-Anderson said.
Punahou overcame 25 kills by Kamehameha outside hitter Tiyana Hallums. Kamehameha setter Alohi Robins-Hardy had 13 kills, 34 assists and four blocks. Kayla Afoa added 11 kills and two blocks.
Kamehameha (10-1) dropped to 3-1 in the second round. The Warriors sealed a state berth by winning the first round, including a two-set sweep of Punahou on Labor Day.
"Last time, we really struggled. We made a lot of hitting errors. Today, we cut down on mental errors and capitalized on their mistakes," said Buffanblu setter Kiani Tuileta, who had 45 assists and five kills.
Kamehameha was ranked fifth nationally in the latest Student Sports Fab 50, but took its first loss in league play.
"A lot of it was Punahou (got) us into spots and we didn’t play our best match, especially in the first set," Kamehameha coach Chris Blake said. "Our girls fought back and I’m proud of them."
A crowd of about 400 endured a hot, humid afternoon at Kekuhaupio Gymnasium.
It was a series of wild momentum swings. A strong block combo of 6-foot Kealani Browne and 6-1 Alohi Robins-Hardy limited Granato to one kill and Remo Gaogao to no kills in the third game. Kamehameha had four blocks in the third.
Punahou countered by moving Granato around and the powerful junior responded with six kills in the fourth set.
