Joey Martino hammered 15 kills and Ryan Moss pounded 14 as Corona del Mar (Calif.) swept Kamehameha-Hawaii 25-17, 25-23, 25-23 on Saturday on the final day of the Clash of the Titans at Punahou’s Hemmeter Fieldhouse.
Coming off a sweep of host Punahou on Friday, Corona del Mar improved its nonconference mark to 17-2. The Sea Kings, ranked No. 2 by OCVarsity.com, will begin play in the CIF Southern Section’s Bay League when they return to the continent.
"I feel good to be able to come into Hawaii and get out with a couple of victories," coach Steve Conti said. "We got a chance to bond and build some great team chemistry, but it’s also a business trip."
Middle Tommy Brooks, a 6-foot-4 senior, added eight kills and four blocks as the taller squad dealt with a relentless KS-Hawaii defense. Martino (6-3) and Moss (6-7) were resilient, as well.
Corona del Mar continued its efficient offense — setter Matt Ctvrtlik had 33 assists and an ace — on Day 2, at least for one set. The Sea Kings hit .612 and took the opening game easily, but hit just .227 the rest of the way.
Evan Enriques, KSH’s 6-1 senior, had a team-high 16 kills and hit .300 despite facing double teams most of the way.
"They play with a lot heart and a lot of pride. No. 18 (Enriques) is a very smart player. That kid’s a stud. He’s physical when he wants to be and he’s got a very, very high volleyball I.Q.," Conti said. "We doubled on him and they made some adjustments."
Alapaki Iaea added six kills, and setters Avery Enriques (15 assists) and Addison Enriques (14) gained some valuable experience against one of the top teams in the nation. The two setters are freshmen.
For KSH, it was a busy weekend — six matches at the Kamehameha tourney and two more at the Clash. The Warriors, ranked No. 2 in the Star-Advertiser Boys Volleyball Top 10, placed third at Kapalama.
"We wouldn’t change it. It’s just perfect. We’re using a lot more people in our offense now so Evan doesn’t have to swing at as many balls as before," coach Guy Enriques said. "It’s the small things we’ve got to fix and we’ll be right there. Two points and we’re there every single game."
The second set was completely in doubt when junior Emmett Enriques lowered the boom for a kill to bring the Warriors within 22-21. However, a bad set and a net violation let the Sea Kings off the hook, and a kill by Martino ended the threat.
KS-Hawaii had an 18-17 lead in the third set after Evan Enriques delivered a booming spike from the back row. Corona del Mar then went on a 5-0 run, turning to Moss, a high-flying 6-foot-7 junior.
The Warriors scored three points in a row to get within 24-23, but Martino put the game away with another kill.
CDM closed with a .351 hitting percentage along with two aces and four service errors. KS-Hawaii hit .263 with three aces and six service errors.
"Corona is a pretty good team, but our experience up in the mainland, there’s a couple of other better teams," coach Guy Enriques said. "Corona is one of the top five teams in California, but the No. 1 team is Huntington Beach. They’re like a college team. We were right there with them, just like this team. Our freshman setters did a helluva job. It’s hard to be angry with them going up against these great teams."
Huntington Beach handed CDM (17-2) its only two losses.
In Friday’s match, CDM hit .480 against Punahou.
PUNAHOU 3, MIRA COSTA, CALIF., 1
In the late match, Punahou rode a late rally to upend Mira Costa 23-25, 25-20, 18-25, 25-13, 15-4. Larry Tuileta delivered 14 kills and an ace, while Micah Ma‘a added 10 kills and three aces for the top-ranked team in the islands.
"We wanted to put up a fight. It’s Hawaii’s reputation. I wanted to send them back with a loss," Ma‘a said. "Our serving really helped us. It kept us in our groove. Our second set, our coach wanted us to really get after it serving."
Serving prowess was in effect for the Buffanblu, who finished with nine aces and just seven service errors. Daniel Andrews, their 6-7 senior middle, added 10 kills, including four in the final set.
J.B. Kam was another key contributor with four kills and two blocks. Sophomores Wil Stanley (26 assists) and Todd Gruebner (20 assists) had two aces each, while libero Kelsey Yogi had a stellar finish in the back row.
