Stacy Kaneshiro | ScoringLive
October 13, 2022, 12:41am
Waianae outlasts Kalaheo to advance to OIA quarterfinals
Michael Lasquero | SLKALIHI - Leleapaoo Krug, Larryn-Alexis Joseph Rodrigues and Shyla Wagner combined for 38 kills and Waianae outlasted Kalaheo, 23-25, 25-21, 25-21, 20-25 and 15-8, to advance to Thursday's quarterfinals of the Oahu Interscholastic Association Division girls' volleyball tournament.
The Seariders (9-3), the West's fourth seed, barely kept their season alive and will play Eastern Division champion Kahuku (10-0) in the second match of a doubleheader at the Red Raiders' gym. The Mustangs (5-6), the fifth seed in the East, saw their season come to an end at the Richard Kitamura Gymnasium at Farrington, host of the first-round matches.
Joseph-Rodrigues got her 12th kill of the night with an assist from setter/outside hitter Haiti Tautuaa to end the deciding fifth set. Tautuaa led her team with 30 assists.
It was Waianae's third consecutive five-set match. The Seariders dropped their last two regular-season matches to Radford and Leilehua. Pushed to a fifth set again, the Seariders prevailed this time.
"It was stressful but we just had to calm down and focus in on ourselves and push hard," said Tautuaa, a Pittsburgh commit, who also had eight kills and an ace.
This will be the second consecutive season the Seariders will play perennial power Kahuku in the quarterfinals. Last year, the Red Raiders needed five sets to turn back the Seariders.
"We went to five sets with them," Tautuaa said. "I think we're ready this year."
Waianae took a 2-1 lead after three set, but Kalaheo wasn't ready to call it a night. With the fourth set tied at 11, the Mustangs went on a 3-0 run aided by two kills from Maile Seeger, who led her team with 16 kills. Seeger got the final two kills of the set in a 25-20 win to tie the match at 2.
The momentum seemed to swing to the Mustangs as they opened the fifth set with a service ace by Jazzahlei Satele. But Tautuaa ignited a 5-0 run by setting Wagner for two kills to start the run and then setting Krug for another. A block by Krug and Leicel Kepoo-Caspino made it 4-1 before a hitting error by Kalaheo made it 5-1.
Kalaheo pulled to 5-3, but Krug had successive kills and Tehani Faasuamanu followed with successive aces during the run and the Seariders never looked back. Krug led Waianae with 15 kills, while Wagner added 11.
Madison Millard had 13 kills and Jadalynn Satele added 12 for the Mustangs. Jaazzahlei Satele paced her team with 39 assists.
