A tougher division hasn't slowed the Kaiser girls volleyball team this season.

Nikki Taylor had five kills and Courtney Phillips and Taylor Kaalele added four apiece as the Cougars swept visiting Kailua 25-12, 25-23 to win their fifth straight match in the rugged Oahu Interscholastic Association Red East Division on Thursday.

"As a team we played well," Kaiser junior setter/opposite Jolie Au said. "There could have been better communication, but that's just something that needs to be worked on. Overall, everyone did their job. And if someone was down, other people picked up the slack."

Kaiser (7-1) ascended to Division I competition this season after a successful showing in Division II. Last season, the Cougars - the OIA's top team - lost in the state DII quarterfinals to Word of Life. Kaiser has returned three starters - Au, middle Haley Durham and outside hitter Taylor.

"This year's team is similiar in a lot of ways," Kaiser head coach Ernest Noborikawa said. "We hit hard, our block is a little better this year and we're tall in the front. The girls from the junior varsity have filled in very well as defensive specialists this year.

"We're very comparable to last year," Noborikawa added.

The Surfriders lost their fourth straight and fell to 1-7. Kailua is coming off a season where it advanced to the Division II state quarterfinals, losing to eventual champion Hawaii Baptist Academy. Kailua has returned one starter, middle/outside hitter Anolani Ramos-McCorriston.

"We don't have any six-footers," Kailua coach Mani Taufaasau said.

Despite its size disadvantage, Kailua held leads of 8-5 in Set 1, and 23-20 in Set 2 before falling to Kaiser.

The Cougars have three players 6-feet and taller - 6-0 middles Haley Durham and Phillips, and 6-2 outside hitter Taylor. Kailua has no player taller than 5-9 outside hitter/middle Deborah Tuuga.

"We played them up and up," Taufaasau said. "I was happy with that."

The Cougars stung Kailua with solid serving in the first set, and rallied late in Set 2 behind Taylor Kaalele, a senior setter/outside hitter who transferred from Kailua. Kaalele had two kills to seal the win.

Kaalele's "court sense is very good," Noborikawa said. "She's a very well-rounded player. She knows the game very well."

Noborikawa said Kaalele has done a solid job filling the role left by talented outside hitter/middle blocker Madison Pedrone, who transferred to La Quinta High in Palm Springs for her junior season.

"We're lucky to have her," Noborikawa said of Kaalele.

In Set 2, Kaalele highlighted a 5-1 run when she scored on a well-placed, two-handed push to cut Kaiser's deficit to 21-20.

After Kailua scored the next two points, Kaiser sealed the game with a 5-0 burst spiced by Kaalele's kill that rolled on the top of the net before falling on the opposing floor. Taylor ended the match with a kill over the double block.

"I told my girls, 'More ball control and play bigger defense on the net,' " Taufaasau said. "I was telling my girls to have hard serves, and because we're a small team to have a big defense. That's what we work on majority of the time."

Kaiser rode the hot serving of Shannon Kim to rally in Set 1. The junior defensive specialist served eight straight points and helped turn a 8-6 deficit into a 14-8 Kaiser lead.

During the key surge, Kim registered an ace, Phillips had two block assists and Taylor added two kills.

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