The odds were stacked against Molokai before it stepped on the Blaisdell Arena court Friday.
Aside from flying into the big city from the countrified air of a Neighbor Island, the Farmers were up against unquestionably the best team of the past decade in Division II boys volleyball.
Hawaii Baptist proved it once again with a 25-16, 25-15, 25-20 sweep of Molokai in the D-II final of the New City Nissan Boys Volleyball State Championships for a sixth consecutive title.
Senior hitter Caleb Fisher finished with 21 kills and senior hitter Brett Miller added 17 for the Eagles. The pair were the recipient of clean sets all night from sophomore Davin Rausch, who had 40 assists with 10 digs.
“We definitely built a lot of chemistry inside and outside of school,” Rausch said. “No matter what mistakes we made, we’re always behind each other.
“All of our hitters are capable of putting balls aways, so I was just setting whichever way the ball was taking me. We knew coming in that this was going to be one of our schools’ most talented teams, so to be able to come together like we did makes it that much more special.”
The Eagles, the D-II champions of the Interscholastic League of Honolulu and the top seed, wrapped up a 15-0 season with their eighth state banner in nine seasons.
Coming into the match, Hawaii Baptist head coach Teoni Obrey was concerned with second-seeded Molokai’s two middles — Kaimana Kahale and Lekilii Burrows.
“We knew their physical presence might give us problems, especially the high balls to the middle,” Obrey said. “I thought we did a real good job of slowing those balls down.
“I’m so happy for our great group of guys. The seniors won it four times and it’s a big thing for our school and our program, a great opportunity for them to continue to grow and bond.”
Kahale put away eight kills for the Farmers (10-1) with four block assists. Burrows added six kills, and Franklin Augustiro came up with nine digs.
“Our match against Damien (Thursday) took a lot out of us emotionally,” said Farmers head coach Hale Domingo, whose team went 8-0 en route to the Maui Interscholastic League title. “Whatever our boys had left in the gas tank, they gave it tonight.
“If this is what it feels like (to make the state final in the bright lights at the Blaisdell), then we’re going to push harder next year. The feeling is electric.”
Hawaii Baptist won the first two sets handily, getting the finishing touches from a Miller kill and a Rausch ace. In the second, Molokai remained in contention until 16-13 before the Eagles’ 9-2 closing run.
In the third, late kills by Michael Sterner and Burrows, and an ace by Sterner got the Farmers to 23-20, but two thundering Fisher kills put the final exclamation points on the victory.
“This was a great experience,” Kahale said. “We had a great run and I love our guys like family.
“Hawaii Baptist came out firing and they played great.”