In just 12 seconds, Kamehameha senior Teshya Alo epitomized the meaning of going out on top.
Alo took out Pearl City’s Sarah Kaaiakamanu in the 139 final by ippon, the shortest victory of the night, her second state title in as many tries. The senior did not compete in her sophomore and junior years to focus on a potential Olympic wrestling career.
“It feels great,” Alo said. “At first I was nervous because I didn’t do judo for two years and I was just coming back.
“So I just had to let it out and I did. It worked out well.”
Alo picked up right where she left off from her judo hiatus and will shift her focus back to wrestling. She has yet to choose between Menlo College in California and King University in Tennessee.
“My thing is don’t let them touch me, I guess. I have to get my grip, I have to get my plan going,” Alo said. “I don’t like to play other people’s games or else I don’t play right, so just play my game and I did.”
Her sister, ‘Iolani sophomore Teniya Alo, injured her shoulder in the 129 quarterfinals against Kalani’s Zoe Tateyama but still got the victory. However, she lost to Moanalua freshman Faith Joy Okubo by disqualification in the form of hansoku make. Okubo lost to McKinley’s Risa Higa in the final.
“Her shoulder popped out,” Teshya Alo said. “It always popped out before, but I kept telling her ‘Don’t do it, it’s gonna get worse,’ but she’s stubborn.”
Roosevelt won the girls division, edging out Pearl City 68-67.
The Rough Riders were led by Menjam Tamang, who defended her state title in the 103 division by defeating Moanalua’s Nicole Shimizu in the final. Also, Kaylah Samia’s 220 division victory over Kealakehe’s Roxie Umu gave Roosevelt its other individual girls title.
“I guess we knew going into it that it was going to be a tight race between three or four schools,” Roosevelt girls coach Ryan Shimokawa said. “I just felt that we got lucky.
“Some of the matches went our way; maybe for some of the others we didn’t, but I think at the end, I’m proud of our team and everyone fought hard this whole tournament. Fortunate to be on top.”
Despite brothers Jayson (121) and Andrew Pagurayan (114) — both defending state champions — not reaching the finals, Kapolei won the boys title with 86 points. ‘Iolani was second with 66.
For Hurricanes coach Marc Narciso, this year’s title holds a special place in his heart.
“Out of the three state titles that we got, this is the most special,” Narciso said. “This alone, I don’t have any words to explain. It’s special. … I told them to come out and play how you always do.”
Ousting Jayson Pagurayan in the semifinals and eventually taking the title was Moanalua freshman Noah Wusstig, who completed an undefeated season by topping ‘Iolani’s Colby Watase in the 121 final.
“I’ve been waiting for this day since I was 7 years old,” Wusstig said. “It was pretty tough competition, but I was pretty sure I would take it. You can’t be overconfident but just believe in yourself.”
