Kamehameha denies Iolani in five sets to extend ILH postseason

Greg Yamamoto | SL

Fifth times the charm.

Kamehameha handed Iolani its first loss in league play and pushed the end of the ILH Division I season by at least one more game with a heart-pulsing win that went down to the wire, 22-25, 25-22, 25-14, 21-25, and 15-13.

The win was the first time in four tries for the Warriors, who need to defeat the Raiders not once, but twice more in order to win the ILH D1 title and seeded berth into the upcoming HHSAA tournament.

Both teams are headed to states regardless, but the atmosphere and level of intensity had it feeling like a game with a lot at stake.

Kalaweloilehua Chock had 24 kills and 18 digs and Kamanao Goldestein added 18 kills and 17 digs to lead the way for Kamehameha, who outhit Iolani percentage-wise, .261 to .217, while outswinging the home team 180 attacks to 161.

Four Warriors hit for double-figures, with Kalamaku Crabbe and Bella Amey also chipping in 12 and 10 kills each.

Iolani won the first set, then dropped the the middle sets to face its first set deficit in iLH play, as Kamehameha caught fire in both sets, hitting .372 in the third and .484 in the fourth.

The Raiders rallied to take the fourth set, forcing a winner-take-all fifth.

In the final set, both teams went point for point, until the Warriors jumped out to a 14-11 lead, and looked poised to take the match before the Raiders stormed back to close within a point at 14-13.

A rally on the final point ended with an attack by the Warriors going off the block, where it was ultimately ruled just out, giving the Kamehameha the victory.

The duo of Taimane Ainuu and Poema Kalama-Kingma combined for 34 of Iolani's 55 kills.

Up front, the Raiders outblocked the Warriors, 21 to 16, led by Ainuu and Annaura Reid-Gillet, who each had six block assists apiece, but Kamehameha served up 10 aces to just six for the home team.

The two teams will face off against at Iolani on Sat, Oct 19 at 3 p.m. Should Kamehameha win that contest, a winner-take-all match to decide the overall ILH Division I champion would take place on Tue, Oct 21, time to be determined.