The Kamehameha boys wrestling team pretty much dominated individual tournaments in December, and on Saturday the Warriors learned a good reason why.
Punahou hadn’t arrived in force yet.
The six-time state champion Buffanblu beat the Warriors 35-27 in an ILH dual tournament on Saturday at Punahou, the first time the teams have met head-to-head this season. Kamehameha had an edge in the one-on-one battles in December, but when it became a team game the Buffanblu excelled.
"They just outwrestled us today," Kamehameha coach Chris West said. "Everybody’s been saying, ‘Oh, we’re the team to beat, we’re the team to beat.’ I am adamant on saying that you don’t win six straight state championships by being lucky."
Kamehameha destroyed Saint Louis 65-12 in the semifinals, while Punahou beat Pac-Five 52-19. Jordan Kondo had Punahou’s first big win in the final with a 9-4 victory over Skye Yonamine in overtime at 120 pounds to extend the Buffanblu’s dominance in the lighter weights. Yonamine beat Kondo 5-2 in the semifinals of Hawaii Officials Tournament at Leilehua, where Yonamine went on to take the championship.
The Buffanblu pretty much clinched it when Punahou captain Robert Tano lost to Tinei Makaiau 6-3. Makaiau won the officials tournament in December, while Tano finished fourth, but Tano’s ability in the close match put Kamehameha in the position of needing two pins and at least a superior decision in their last three matches, with only Dane Pestano likely to pick up a pin (which he did).
There are no good losses as far as Tano is concerned, even though he is an ILH JV champion in his first full year wrestling varsity. But the first dual tournament of the year was valuable in that it showed him where he stood.
"It was a tough match," Tano said. "The guy was good, but I didn’t wrestle to my potential. We did need it; it was a good opportunity to see how we compare, but we still need to put in a lot of work. We are still far from where we need to be as a team."
Pac-Five beat Saint Louis 51-24 for third place. Punahou and Kamehameha won’t face each other again until Feb. 8. Punahou takes on Pac-Five on Friday at Kamehameha, while the Warriors host St. Francis.
Punahou coach Matt Oney huddled his wrestlers immediately after it was over, and talked at length about their performance. He didn’t once mention the score, because he had no idea what it was or whether his teams won or lost. It is all about the process in the Punahou wrestling room. He was a little surprised when he was told his boys won.
"That’s good for us," Oney said. "I’d like to think we can continue to improve, because we have improved since December, but so has Kamehameha. They are powerful and extremely strong with a great group of leaders. I don’t know what to say, because I didn’t think we won."
Kamehameha won the girls bracket 54-30 over Punahou behind nice performances from Bree Rapoza, Teysha Ahlo, Harmony Pacheco, Taylor Fitzsimmons and Pomai Yamaguchi.
The Warriors also won a dual tournament at Moanalua two weeks ago, but finished second to Pearl City at the officials tournament.
Pac-Five beat ‘Iolani 48-12 for third place Saturday. Punahou and Kamehameha tangle again Jan. 25 at Saint Louis.
"The girls looked pretty deep in talent," Kamehameha coach Bill Venenciano said. "We’re in there, we’re contending, but we are mostly trying to use this regular season to gain momentum for states."
