In two years' time, Vander Eberhard has gone from Waimea on the Big Island to New York City and back.

Eberhard, a sophomore on the Hawaii Preparatory Academy boys' basketball team, hasn't skipped a beat since he returned from the Big Apple. The 6-foot-7 power forward is averaging nearly 19 points per game this winter for Ka Makani, who sit in first place atop the BIIF's Division II standings.

HPA coach Fred Wawner was clear in his assessment of Eberhard's role for his squad.

"He's our most talented guy, for sure," said Wawner, who is in his 16^th season as coach while also serving as HPA's Head of School.

Wawner said Eberhard was previously enrolled in HPA as a middle schooler before he took his talents to acclaimed prep basketball powerhouse Christ the King, a Catholic private school in the borough of Queens.

The school has produced a number of well-known basketball stars, including Jayson Williams, Lamar Odom, Speedy Claxton and Jose Alvarado. Eberhard played his freshman season there but returned to HPA in time for this school year. He has been a welcomed (re)addition, to say the least.

"He has the opportunity to go and have that experience and I think that was invaluable for him. I think it exposed him to all the talent that's out there and the level of intensity, the level of preparation that goes into a skill-based sport like basketball and so I think he really takes that approach," Wawner said.

Eberhard is meticulous in his attention to detail, which even carries over when accounting for his recovery between practices and games.

"He takes care of his body. For a young guy he's really attentive to trying to be at his best and I think just being around and being exposed to all the talent and all the pride from his time in New York – it's almost like he kind of got to see basketball at its finest – so I think there's certainly a lot of little things he can take away from that experience and add to his tool kit, so I think he's definitely tried to do that," Wawner said.

And it's quite the tool kid Eberhard possesses.

"He's just a bundle of energy. He plays extremely hard, he's a high-level athlete who's still got a ton of potential and he's starting to understand all the different ways he can impact the game, but I think you would notice his energy and his skillset around the rim because he's an explosive athlete," Wawner said.

Wawner went on to describe Eberhard as a basketball junkie.

"He absolutely loves basketball. I mean, he eats, sleeps and breathes basketball so he's extremely motivated and does everything he can to improve every day while being extremely coachable and excitable," Wawner said.

Eberhard's athleticism has allowed him to excel both offensively and defensively for Ka Makani this season.

"He can string together a series of explosive plays on both ends and now it's about having him understand the consistency part – bringing that on every play and how he can, more than most kids, really impact the game on every play and that's a big responsibility and it kind of takes a while to figure that out and he's only in the 10^th grade so it's going to take some time, but he's just growing in many ways and just continuing to get better and better," Wawner expressed.

Prior to the BIIF regular season, Eberhard recorded at least four preseason games with at least 22 points, including a 26-point game against Division-I Kamehameha-Hawaii..

Wawner pointed out HPA's influx of youth this season. Only four of Ka Makani's 15 players are seniors. The rest of their roster is made up for six juniors, three sophomores and two freshmen.

As the season has progressed, so have Eberhard and Ka Makani.

"We didn't really start together until the beginning of November. You could watch one of our games in early December and now and you can see the way he's starting to see how he can impact the game – and he certainly does for us," Wawner said.

HPA went 3-0 during a crucial stretch of games last week that saw them beat then-one-loss Honokaa, 77-60, on Jan. 13. Eberhard netted a game-high 26 points, including three made 3-pointers, in the road win over the Dragons.

Three days later Eberhard tallied 18 points to help Ka Makani rally to a 64-52 win over defending Division-II state champion Kohala.

"We have so much respect for that team and so I can't really talk about Vander without talking about all our kids, but I think ultimately our advantage in all these games is we have some size and some skilled guys in (senior forward) Cam Root and Vander and our kids understand if they anchor us, everything else comes from that," Wawner said.

HPA held a four-point lead on the Cowboys after three quarters and pulled away in the final stanza – largely due to the play of Eberhard and Root inside; The duo combined to score 29 points in the win.

"That fourth quarter we got the ball in to the paint and got the ball in their hands and that's when we made plays and that's certainly when we're going to be at our best and Vander was a key in that," Wawner said.

HPA kept its momentum going with a 63-44 win over Pahoa Saturday. Eberhard contributed 13 points to help his team conclude a solid week of play.

"He was, at times, just a true force on both ends and that's what we'll need him to be. It was a challenging week and a good week for us to see what's working, what's not and learning while you're still winning is a good thing, so we saw some good growth last week," Wawner said.

Ka Makani leapfrogged both Kohala and Honokaa into first place with two weeks remaining in the BIIF regular season. Wawner praised his team's poise to pull out the victories, but cautioned his team to look forward, not back.

"It was huge. Those are teams that we respect and need to compete with and so for us to have them all in the same week was a little unique, but for us to come out of that with three hard-fought wins was good. That said, the only way those are important is if we keep playing well. We're a young group, which is great and exciting, but we've got to be focused on today and not let ourselves get caught up with looking back," Wawner said.

HPA followed up its big week by rallying to a 54-42 win over Waiakea Tuesday night that saw Eberhard tally 10 points.

Eberhard and Ka Makani (7-1) continue league play Saturday when they visit Kau.

BOYS BASKETBALL

Mystique Akina-Watson, Kahuku — Scored 19 points, including four 3-pointers, with three steals, one rebound and a block in a win over Farrington 

Trey Ambrozich, University Lab — Scored 22 points in a win over Kamehameha 

Jordan Babcock, Kekaulike — Scored 32 points, including six 3-pointers, in a loss to Baldwin 

Makai Barr, Kamehameha — Scored 23 points in a loss to Punahou 

Joseph Bienek, Kailua — Scored 23 points in a win over Farrington 

Hazyn Botelho, Kamehameha — Scored 20 points in a loss to Maryknoll 

Amadeus Browning, Roosevelt — Scored 20 points in a win over Kalani 

Kyran Canete, Pahoa — Scored 33 points in a loss to Hawaii Prep 

Bromo Dorn, Seabury Hall — Scored 28 points with five rebounds, four assists and four steals in a win over Kulanihakoi, scored 23 points in a win over Lanai and scored 29 points in a win over Lanai 

Roman Gabriel, Mililani — Scored 22 points in a win over Aiea and scored 19 points in a win over Nanakuli 

Austin Green, Kapaa — Scored 19 points, including five 3-pointers, in a win over Waimea and scored 20 points in a loss to Kauai

Camren Holt-Ho, Kauai — Scored 18 points in a win over Kapaa

Kawohi Huihui, Kamehameha-Hawaii — Scored 24 points in a win over Keaau

Reese Jenkins, Kauai — Scored 19 points in a win over Kapaa

Daniel Kaohelaulii-Kala, Waimea — Scored 21 points in a win over Island School

Dylan Kobayashi, Kalani — Scored 23 points, including five 3-pointers, in a loss to Roosevelt 

Imai Kramer, Kamehameha-Maui — Scored 26 points in a win over Lahainaluna 

Dylan Kuia, Baldwin — Scored 33 points in a win over Kekaulike 

Mycah Lucas, Hanalani — Scored 19 points in a loss to Hawaii Baptist 

Logan Mason, Mid-Pacific — Scored 21 points, including four 3-pointers, in a loss to Maryknoll 

Nahiku Nahale-a, Kamehameha — Scored 21 points in a loss to Maryknoll 

Ronin Naihe, Kahuku — Scored 28 points with six rebounds, five steals and two blocks in a win over Castle and scored 23 points with six rebounds, four steals and one block in a win over Farrington 

DeMarion Olloway, Kealakehe — Scored 23 points in a win over Kau and scored 20 points in a loss to Konawaena 

Kamalu Pabre, Kealakehe — Scored 20 points, including four 3-pointers, in a win over Kau 

Sebastian Peterson, Seabury Hall — Scored 20 points in a win over Lanai 

Mar Ruiz, Waimea — Scored 19 points in a loss to Kapaa 

Shyne Salvador, Kamehameha — Scored 24 points, including four 3-pointers, in a loss to University Lab 

Isaac Salvador-Libron, Kohala — Scored 21 points in a win over Hilo and scored 18 points in a loss to Honokaa 

Kainoa Santos, Damien — Scored 29 points with seven rebounds and an assist in a win over Hawaii Baptist 

Tanoa Scanlan, Punahou — Scored 30 points in a win over Kamehameha and scored 26 points in a win over Maryknoll 

Isaiah Sucher, Maui Prep — Scored 20 points in a loss to Kihei Charter 

Kukia Tagabi, Honokaa — Scored 30 points in a loss to Hawaii Prep 

Casey Talana, Baldwin — Scored 29 points in a win over Kekaulike 

Skyler Unten, Kailua — Scored 22 points in a win over Kalani 

Michael Vigil, Kihei Charter — Scored 23 points in a win over Maui Prep 

Tyree Wilson, Leilehua — Scored 20 points in a win over Campbell 

Nixis Yamauchi, Maryknoll — Scored 23 points in a win over Mid-Pacific and scored 24 points in a win over Kamehameha 

BOYS SOCCER

Anthony Ancheta, Iolani — Scored two goals in a win over Punahou 

Basketball is but one part of Hailey Ryann Visaya's life.

When the Kamehameha-Maui senior is not on the court, she often spends time fine-tuning her musical talents as a pianist. In between, Visaya finds time to crochet.

Visaya, a fourth-year varsity player and first-year starter for the Warriors, put her basketball talents on full display last week in a lopsided win over Lahainaluna. Visaya knocked down eight 3-pointers and tallied a career-high 30 points against the Lunas on Jan. 14.

"That was her breakout game," Kamehameha-Maui coach Lance DeSilva said of Visaya, a 5-foot-5 shooting guard.

"I give her the green light – all the girls, but especially her. I tell her to ‘never pass up a shot no matter how much times you miss,' but so just happened that Lahainaluna game it was dropping for her and that was good for her confidence," DeSilva said.

Visaya was already coming off a 21-point night in a win over Baldwin four days prior. Her back-to-back game-high efforts were in stark contrast to her production in KS-Maui's two contests before that. Visaya was held to one point in a loss to Maui High on Jan. 7 and just four points two days later against Lahainaluna.

"The funny thing about that Maui High game is we were up by 13 points going into the fourth quarter, but three of our girls got cramps – Hailey was one of them – they all came out and we lost the lead," DeSilva detailed.

Despite being held a single point by the Sabers, DeSilva continued to encourage Visaya to pull the trigger.

"I don't want her to lose confidence so I would never tell her to stop shooting. I don't care if she goes 0 for 8, she's still gotta shoot because once she becomes hesitant, that's no good for us. What she did against Lahainaluna, she's capable of doing that, so when she gets hot, she gets hot," DeSilva said.

DeSilva pointed to a game against Lahainaluna last season when Visaya connected on "four or five" 3-pointers in a three-minute span as evidence of just that.

In the most recent meeting against the Lunas, DeSilva noted that even though she hit eight triples, Visaya did her so within the flow of the offense and wasn't forcing shots.

"It's not like she shot twenty 3s – she might have missed two or three – so she was pretty efficient. In the offense and in the rotation she was getting open looks. Some of it was on fast breaks, some of them she set up and we have other girls that can drive and dish so if she's open, she's shooting. It was all within the offense, but she'll find her spots, especially against a zone defense," DeSilva said.

In addition to her shooting ability, Visaya is also one of the Warriors' primary ball handlers. Furthermore, she also plays a key role defensively.

"She's a very skilled ball handler, she play very good on-ball defense and she can shoot. She's quietly putting a good season together, but we're not the deepest team so Hailey's playing a lot more significant minutes than last year and I ask a lot of her so staying healthy is going to be important for us and for Hailey, because she's one of our ball handlers we have to balance out how much effort she has to put on defense so we rarely play man (defense) this year, instead we play a lot of zone and then some box-and-1, or diamond-and-2," DeSilva said.  

Visaya, along with fellow-senior Haven DeSilva – the coach's daughter – have been tabbed as team captains this winter.

"Hailey's really a quiet person. She does what you ask her to do as best as she can do it. She doesn't ever complain, she doesn't give any hassles – there's no huffing or puffing or rolling her eyes – she doesn't talk much but she just smiles. She's just a very good kid and a great player to have on the team; I can only say good things about her," Lance DeSilva said.

In the hopes of nudging Visaya to become more vocal in her leadership, DeSilva has been creative in his ways to put her in positions of authority. For instance, during community service at a senior center, he assigned Visaya to serve as the caller for friendly games of bingo for kupuna.

"I try to force her out of her quietness so I make her yell out the numbers and everybody gets a kick out of it," DeSilva laughed.

For Visaya's first three seasons on the team, she played alongside her older sister, Shanti Rae, a 2024 graduate. DeSilva noted that the siblings are quite contrasting in terms of personality. 

"Shanti was the voice of the two and as the older sister, almost a protector type. Shanti was the more aggressive one, while Hailey was the less aggressive, quieter one but it was neat because they always had each other to lean on and there was a familiarity between them. Now that Shanti's not there, Hailey's had to step up and it's been neat to see her go from being the little sister to just being a teammate. Now she's the one that the younger girls are talking to and hanging out with and learning from," DeSilva said.  

Outside of basketball, Visaya is a talented musician and even operates a small business, selling items that she crochets in her free time.

"She makes dolls and hats and beanies and animal characters and she sells it at the market. She also plays the piano and performs at recitals, so she's a very talented young lady," DeSilva said.

As a team Kamehameha-Maui has won their last four games since the five-point loss to Maui High and sit in second place behind the undefeated Sabers in the MIL Division I standings.

Visaya and the Warriors (9-2) close out the MIL regular season Friday night against Maui High.  

GIRLS BASKETBALL 

Carly Akaka, Hilo — Scored 14 points in a win over Christian Liberty 

Brooklyn Barrett, Le Jardin — Scored 15 points in a loss to Hawaiian Mission and scored 15 points in a win over St. Andrew's

Shailan Benevides, Kamehameha-Hawaii — Scored 19 points in a win over Kealakehe 

Kate-Lynn Colipano, Kekaulike — Scored 22 points in a win over Baldwin 

Jazlyn Corpuz, Kauai — Scored 14 points in a loss to Kapaa 

Juseana Delatori, Lahainaluna — Scored 17 points in a loss to Kamehameha-Maui 

Nihoa Dunn, Kamehameha — Scored 18 points in a win over Maryknoll, scored 21 points with 13 rebounds, four blocks, two steals and an assist in a win over Iolani and scored 14 points in a win over Maryknoll 

Kacie Febo-Santiago, Kamehameha-Hawaii — Scored 23 points in a win over Kealakehe 

Anuhea Ferreira, Hilo — Scored 20 points in a win over Christian Liberty 

Miyah Galdeira, Kailua — Scored 24 points with three assists, two steals and a rebound in a loss to Kahuku 

Myah Galdeira, Kailua — Scored 20 points in a win over Moanalua 

Trinity Guillen, Kapaa — Scored 19 points in a win over Kauai 

Pua Herrington, Maryknoll — Scored 17 points in a loss to Kamehameha, scored 19 points in a win over Punahou and scored 15 points in a loss to Kamehameha 

Kukui Kalalau, Hana — Scored 16 points in a loss to Haleakala Waldorf

Makana Kamakeeaina, Kahuku — Scored 25 points with 14 rebounds, three steals and two assists in a win over Kailua 

Justice Kekauoha, Iolani — Scored 15 points with five rebounds, one assist, one steal and a block in a loss to Kamehameha 

Brooke Kurasaki, Mililani — Scored 15 points with six steals, five rebounds and an assist in a win over Campbell 

Sienna Lamblack, Hawaii Baptist — Scored 17 points in a win over Mid-Pacific 

Jahquel Liana, Nanakuli — Scored 19 points, including five 3-pointers, in a win over Aiea 

Shailoh Liilii, Moanalua — Scored 18 points in a win over Kailua 

Sophia Moniz, Pahoa — Scored 24 points in a win over Kau 

Kapomaikai Nakakura, Kamehameha — Scored 14 points, including four 3-pointers, in a win over Maryknoll and scored 18 points, including four 3-pointers, in a win over Maryknoll

Jazmyn Navarro, Kau — Scored 22 points in a loss to Pahoa and scored 37 points in a win over Hawaii Prep 

Jayda Okuhara, Hanalani — Scored 19 points, including five 3-pointers, in a win over Punahou II 

Kylie Oshita, University Lab — Scored 16 points in a loss to Hawaii Baptist and scored 14 points with six rebounds, two assists and two steals in a loss to Sacred Hearts 

Cayden Parado, Campbell — Scored 11 points with 10 rebounds, one assist, one steal and a block in a loss to Mililani 

Dorian Pokipala, Castle — Scored 15 points in a win over McKinley 

Sierra Ramos, Hawaii Baptist — Scored 16 points, including four 3-pointers, in a win over Kamehameha II 

Taira Samiano, Kapaa — Scored 19 points in a win over Kauai and scored 20 points in a win over Island School 

Cayeelah Semisi-Hunkin, Sacred Hearts — Scored 12 points with 11 rebounds and two steals in a win over University Lab 

Rayah Soriano, Iolani — Scored 17 points, including five 3-pointers, in a win over Punahou 

Kelis Tavares, Hawaiian Mission — Scored 14 points in a win over Le Jardin 

Kaya Texeira, Waiakea — Scored 17 points in a win over Hilo 

Tori Tokuda, Mid-Pacific — Scored 16 points in a loss to Hawaii Baptist 

Halia Vicoy-Fuimaono, Island School — Scored 14 points in a loss to Waimea 

Posia Wily, Kahuku — Scored 22 points with five rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block in a win over Kailua 

Ava Yoshimura, Iolani II — Scored 23 points, including seven 3-pointers, in a win over Punahou II 

GIRLS SOCCER

Kaia Borje-Peeples, Moanalua — Scored two goals in a win over Leilehua 

Jaslene Cayetano, Mililani — Scored a goal and assisted on another in a win over Campbell 

Talin Fermahin, Aiea — Scored the lone goal in a win over Farrington 

Kaitlyn Ferreria, Moanalua — Scored the lone goal in a win over Kapolei 

Nashalia Kane, Campbell — Scored two goals in a win over Kalaheo 

Nohea Lansdale, Hawaii Prep — Scored three goals in a win over Kau 

Leila Leano, Mililani — Scored two goals in a win over Kapolei 

Kamalei Leong, Kailua — Scored four goals in a win over Radford and scored the lone goal in a win over Waialua 

Melanie Navarro, Campbell — Scored two goals in a win over Kahuku 

Kylena Paredes, Mid-Pacific — Scored two goals in a win over Damien 

Anyah Pedro, Mid-Pacific — Scored two goals in a win over Damien 

Kylah Racca, Kauai — Scored two goals in a win over Island School 

Aisyss Respicio-Ragocos, Kamehameha-Hawaii — Scored two goals in a win over Kau 

Titan Rupano-Parada-Kaawaloa, Hilo — Scored a goal and assisted on three others in a win over Konawaena 

Aneala Sibayan, Hilo — Scored three goals and assisted on another in a win over Konawaena 

Miyah Suster, Campbell — Scored the lone goal in a win over Kaiser 

Sabre Telles, Radford — Scored three goals in a win over Farrington and scored three goals in a win over Roosevelt 

Taylor Thomas, Moanalua — Scored two goals in a win over Leilehua 

Leia Tupper, Campbell — Scored two goals in a win over Kalaheo 

Coral Turner, Kauai — Scored three goals in a win over Kapaa

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