Mid-Pacific's Kaimi Haas celebrates following a point scored against Iolani. Steve Erler | SL

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03091602_3_8_16_midpac_iol_steve_erler-22.jpg - Steve Erler | SL

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Mid-Pacific outlasted Iolani in three sets for its first win of the Interscholastic League of Honolulu Division I season Tuesday night.

A crowd of 150 was on hand at the Raiders' Lower Gymnasium to see the Owls overcome a 0-7 start in set one to win by scores of 23-25, 25-23, and 25-19. Both teams are now 1-1 in league play.

Zion Shepherd finished with a match-high nine kills and Kaimi Haas added seven more with 12 digs to lead the Owls. Burson Wang and Anthony Mills chipped in with five kills each. Justin Wong was a threat in the serving game with six aces and libero Liko Ushiyama had 12 digs. 

"It feels really great because we haven't won a lot last year. I'm pretty happy for this team," said setter Kristofer Ma, who had 25 assists and three kills. The Owls went 3-13 in the previous season.

Set two was a back-and-forth battle as neither team led by more than three points. Mid-Pacific was able to pull ahead late with five of the set's final seven points to force a game three. With momentum on their side the Owls were able to complete the comeback in the third set and win the match. 

"Winning that second set was a big booster for the boys," said Mid-Pacific coach Kent Ma. "It's just a matter of believing and having confidence in yourselves." 

First-year Iolani coach Sean Carney was impressed with the Owls' performance.

"That's a really tough Mid-Pac team," he said. "I think that's the biggest and most well-rounded Mid-Pac team that I've seen in a while. I bet you they're going to be competitive throughout the whole year." 

Although his team came up on the losing end of a close match, Carney viewed Tuesday's contest as a valuable learning experience for his young team. Twelve players on the Raiders' roster are playing on their first year in varsity. 

The Raiders were also not at full strength with 6-foot-9 Hugh Hogland dealing with the flu and a hand injury. He had four kills and a solo block in the first set before taking the rest of the night off, which allowed more playing time for Iolani's younger players. 

"Hugh is a great advantage for us if he's in the game, but we need to learn to be a team that doesn't have to rely on him," Carney said. 

Ryan Van Cantfort emerged as the top offensive weapon down the stretch with five kills and three blocks. Ethan Wescoatt, Matthew Parke and Cole Hogland added three kills each.

The Raiders' setting duo of Shane Harimoto and Trevor Tamura combined for 21 assists and libero Evan Minami had 19 digs and five aces.