Punahou wins third straight

It was a dynastic Saturday at the Blaisdell Arena.

Punahou’s near-flawless communication and execution carried it to its third straight New City Nissan/HHSAA Division I Boys Volleyball State Championship, 25-21, 25-19, 23-25, 25-16 over Evan Enriques and Kamehameha-Hawaii, just a couple of hours after Hawaii Baptist Academy won its fourth straight in Division II.

"It feels great. It gets sweeter as you keep going," said Punahou junior Micah Ma’a, who pounded 20 kills and is now 3-for-3 for state titles.

"They’re all hard," Punahou coach Rick Tune said. "We played a … I guess the best word to describe that team on the other side of the net is ‘gritty.’ They are such a gritty bunch of kids, well-coached, completely play the game the right way. … Class organization at Kamehameha-Hawaii. We were very thankful to come out on top tonight."

The Warriors became the hard-luck loser to Punahou in the D-I title game for the second time in three years. They turned to their star Enriques, the tournament’s most outstanding player for the second time, to claim Set 3 and keep hopes alive — momentarily. But the Buffanblu used a decisive 7-0 run in Set 4 to put it away and claim the title for the fifth time in six years and the eighth time in the past 10.

Consecutive blocks by Akahi Troske followed by back-to-back kills by Larry "Tui" Tuileta made up the backbone of the key run.

Offensively, Punahou was just too balanced. Its primary arms, Ma’a and Tuileta (16 kills), were supplemented by 10 kills by senior middle Daniel Andrews.

"He’s the best-kept secret in the state," Tune said.

A crowd of 1,487 packed the arena’s lower bowl, while the Buffanblu packed it in on the Warriors’ stellar senior hitter Enriques.

Ma’a and Tuileta combined for 47 digs — including countless on Enriques, who put down 27 kills on 77 swings and hit .260. The three are club teammates at Ka Ulukoa.

"Me and Micah talk about the different shots that he has, and the tendencies that hitters in general have," Tuileta said.

Said Ma’a: "I wanted to send my best friend, Tui, out with a victory. I had my other best friend on the other side (in Evan), that was tough. … My sisters actually told me today they wanted him to win, he’s so close to our family."

KS-Hawaii sought the Big Island Interscholastic Federation’s first boys volleyball title since Hilo won it in 1969, the first year of HHSAA record-keeping in the sport.

After a dramatic comeback win over Moanalua in Friday’s second semifinal, the question became: Did the Warriors — featuring four Enriques brothers coached by their father, Guy — have another in them?

Not quite.

"At this point in the game there’s no excuses," Guy Enriques said. "They’re already excited to be on the big court. Now yesterday’s game if anything should’ve gave us more inspiration.

"We had to do better with our blocking and they passed very well and isolated our blockers. Hard to dig these guys."

Enriques was the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player in 2012, when the Warriors lost in five to the Buffanblu despite Enriques’ 42 kills.

Punahou came out with the poise of a defending champion. After KSH tied it up at 18, the Buffanblu scored four of the next five points, two Ma’a kills. Punahou took the set with the last two points kills by Tuileta.

KSH hung tough for much of Set 2, but fell off the pace after it was 16-all. Ma’a pounded two straight kills for a 22-18 margin and more to claim a 2-0 lead.

The Warriors, playing with their backs to the wall, jumped out to a 5-2 lead in Set 3, forcing a quick timeout from Tune.

Evan Enriques refused to let his team wither. He was responsible for four straight Warriors points, the last of which made it 24-23.

Tuileta hit long on the next play — he asked for a touch but didn’t get it, sending it to a fourth set, where Punahou reasserted control.