Moanalua's Delylah Sanerivi puts down a kill from the middle of the court over Kalani's Maya Hamaoka. Peter Caldwell | SL

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_17092244_1709_Kalani_033.jpg - Peter Caldwell | SL

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KAHALA — In a match where nearly every ball got dug up, it was Moanalua's offense that came alive.

Na Menehune, ranked eighth in the ScoringLive/Hawaiian Electric Girls Volleyball Power Rankings, outlasted host Kalani in a match that had a combined 114 digs to remain unbeaten Thursday night.

Seven different players registered kills to help Moanalua down Kalani, 25-18, 25-17, to improve to 8-0 in the Oahu Interscholastic Association Eastern Division standings.

Moanalua coach Alan Cabanting said that his team had the proper focus heading into the match thanks to a three-set win over defending OIA D1 champion Kahuku on Tuesday.

"That helped us a ton and helped us gain confidence in the way we play," he said. "We kind of understood that it was going to be a defensive battle. Mindset wise, we knew we had to be ready to hit the ball two to three more times."

With setters Emily Dulaney and Sara Ehnstrom getting in sync with all the hitters, Na Menehune were able to notch nearly double the amount of kills as the Falcons, 29 to 15.

"As we're progressing through the season, we're repping more and more, the timing between the setters and hitters are really starting to come along and they're getting more and more confident with each other," said Cabanting.

Leading the offense for Moananlua was freshman outside hitter Tayli Ikenaga, who had eight kills to go with eight digs and two aces. Cabanting said Ikenaga is really starting to come into her own as the season progresses.

"I can't say enough about Tayli," said Cabanting. "Surprisingly enough, she was also a good hitter, so it was a plus for us. We knew she was going to be a great defender, great passer, that's what she did playing club. I just didn't realize how good of hitter she could be so it's a bonus for us."

Delylah Sanerivi and Jeslyn Spencer each had five kills while Ehnstrom and Dulaney chipped in four apiece to round out Na Menehune's leading hitters. Libero Hula Crisostomo was a steady presence in the back row with a match-high 26 digs.

Although her team dropped to 6-2 and saw its four-game winning streak come to a close, Kalani coach Janeen Waialae was proud of her girls' resiliency against Moanalua.

"The one thing that I'm most proud of this squad is their perseverance and their grit," said Waialae. "The spread could be big, the spread could be close, but they're going to max out every point."

Shaena Noda led the Falcons with a match-high nine kills. Angela Pacheco and Maya Hamaoka each added three more while setter Kelsie Nakashima had 14 assists and libero Asia Jhun had 23 digs.