The Big Island Interscholastic Federation (BIIF) spring season continued over the last few days across the island, with playoffs for all sports right around the corner.
VOLLEYBALL: PAHOA 3, KA‘U 0
Pahoa High’s boys varsity volleyball team dominated what was projected to be a neck-and-neck bout, sweeping Ka‘u High to end the regular season and confirm the Daggers’ No. 2 standing in BIIF Division II on Monday night in Pahoa town.
Pahoa handled Ka‘u in straight sets of 25-22, 25-17 and 25-18.
The Daggers closed out of league play at 9-1, their only loss being to undefeated Konawaena High (8-0) in March. Pahoa will receive the No. 2 seed in the playoffs, and byes for the first two rounds — entering in the semifinals and hosting its matchup.
Ka‘u dropped to 7-2, but it is still guaranteed a top-four playoff seed and first-round bye. The Trojans will look to end their season with a win at their final game tonight in Pahala against Christian Liberty Academy (1-7).
BIIF DII playoffs will begin April 25 as the No. 8 and No. 7 seeds clash with the No. 5 and No. 6 seeds, respectively, at each high seed’s home court.
The quarterfinals will take place two days later, with the No. 3 and No. 4 teams hosting the winners of each first-round match.
Semifinals will be the night of April 29 at Konawaena and Pahoa, then, the final will be at 5 p.m. on May 1 at Hilo High — followed by the DI final.
KANU 3, CLA 2
Kanu ‘o ka ‘Aina Charter won its second straight five-set match, outlasting home-standing Christian Liberty Academy on Monday night in Kea‘au.
The lead bounced back and forth — as the Canefire claimed the first set 25-22, Kanu won the second 25-21, CLA dominated the third 25-14 and Kanu snatched the final two sets 25-17 and 16-14.
Kanu (2-7) is now within reach of a program-first BIIF DII playoff run. In order to have a shot at entering the No. 8 standing, Kanu will need to win its season finale — a rivalry game against No. 8 Ka ‘Umeke Ka‘eo PCS (2-6) on Saturday in Waimea.
CLA dropped to 1-7, and will need to win both of its upcoming games in order to maintain any hope of entering the playoffs. Tonight, the Canefire will play away at Ka‘u, then will end the regular season on Friday with a home game against Makua Lani Christian (0-8).
PARKER 3, HONOKA‘A 0
Parker School made light work of a short trip across district lines, sweeping Honoka‘a High on Monday in Hamakua.
The Bulls prevailed in straight sets of 25-16, 25-14 and 25-18.
Now 6-3 and standing at No. 4 in BIIF DII, Parker’s next matchup and season finale will determine if it stays in the top four. Tonight in Kapa‘au, the Bulls will take on No. 5 Kohala High (5-3) — with the winner taking the No. 4 seed.
Monday was the Dragons’ fourth straight loss, dropping them to a 3-5 record and a shakey No. 7 standing. With two tough opponents ahead — Hawaii Prep (4-4) on Thursday and Konawaena on Friday — Honoka‘a is at risk of falling into a tie for No. 8, which could mean having to take part in a play-in match. However, winning either of their final two matches would greatly solidify the Dragons in the playoff hunt.
KSH 3, KEALAKEHE 0
Kamehameha Schools-Hawai‘i boys volleyball handled business Monday night on the road against the Waveriders at Kealakehe High School, winning in three sets.
The Warriors won the first set 25-18, then the second 25-19. Kealakehe pushed KSH in a competitive final frame, but the Warriors escaped with a narrow 27-25 set victory to seal the deal.
Now at 10-1 and in full control of the BIIF Division I standings, KSH will likely hold the No. 1 seed in the upcoming BIIF tournament. The Warriors will next play second-place Hilo in their final regular season match at 6 p.m. tonight on the Vikings’ home court.
The Waveriders (3-7) still sit in third in DI, and will try to push for a playoff spot with their next matchup against Waiakea at 6 p.m. Monday at Kealakehe High School.
SOFTBALL: KEALAKEHE 16, KEA‘AU 1
Kealakehe softball continued its dominant 2024 season with a convincing win over Kea‘au on Monday at the Cougars’ home field — 16-1 through four innings. It was the fourth time this season in which the Waveriders won in run-rule fashion.
Kealakehe finished with eight hits to Kea‘au’s one. Rihanna Joaquin led both teams with two hits and five RBI — one being a three-run home run to centerfield in the bottom of the third, and the other a two-run double in the ensuing inning.
Teammate Emalia Emmsley additionally homered to center, scoring the first run for the Waveriders in the first inning. Malia Polimino, Freeda Tosie, Caitlyn Nakamura, Kelsie Clark and Zuleika Isisaki also logged hits.
Emmsley also pitched in the circle for Kealakehe — throwing for four innings and striking out eight.
On the Cougars side, Reyna Pettypool notched their only hit. Aliyah Iiams pitched for Kea‘au.
Now at 8-0 and averaging over 14 runs per game, the Waveriders are the only unbeaten team left on the island. They’ll look to keep it going against division rival Hilo at 11 a.m. Saturday at Kealakehe High School.
The Cougars (1-7) will return to the diamond at 1 p.m. today against Pahoa in Kea‘au.
HILO 21, PAHOA 11
Hilo prevailed over Pahoa after a high-scoring, hard-slugging battle, plating 12 runs in the final three innings to overcome a deficit on Monday afternoon.
The Vikings established an early lead, plating five runs on four hits and four walks in the bottom of the first inning after stfiling the Daggers in the top frame. Hilo’s defense dealt Pahoa another fruitless frame in the top second, then the Vikings stepped upto the plate and added four more runs in the bottom — boosted by Madison Waiki’s two-run homer.
Down 9-0, the Daggers rallied for a gargantuan top third frame, during which Pahoa plated all 11 of its runs and Jaylynn Kaawaloa-Alidon hit a grand slam.
The Vikings, however, were also unwilling to go down without a fight. Hilo snatched back its momentum and recuperated, affording the Daggers no hits for the remainder of the game while more than doubling their own score.
Hilo closed out its regular season with a 6-2 record and standing at No. 3 in BIIF DI. Based on current standings, Hilo and Waiakea will face off in next week’s BIIF DI semifinals.
Pahoa dropped to 2-5, but will look to end on a positive note with its final two matchups at Kea‘au and Kohala this week.
KOHALA 16, KEA‘AU 6
Kohala softball handled business against Kea‘au for the second time this season, winning 16-6 in convincing fashion in Saturday in Kapaau.
The Cowgirls (4-4) now sit at .500 and hold the No. 2 spot in the BIIF Division II standings. They will next play their last matchup of the regular season against Pahoa at 1 p.m. Friday at Walter Victor.
Kea‘au (1-7) have lost seven straight, and will try to end its regular season on a high note against the Daggers at 1 p.m. today at the Cougars’ home field.
BASEBALL: HILO 6, PAHOA 0
Though the Daggers put up a fight, they could not stop the undefeated juggernaut that is the Hilo High baseball team, as the Vikings prevailed 6-0.
Hilo (9-0) is one win away from its second undefeated regular season in a row, if it can win its next game. The Vikings will complete their regular season at 11 a.m. on Saturday morning, hosting Division II’s Konawaena High (6-2).
Pahoa slumped to 3-5 in its second straight loss, and will fall out of playoff contention if it doesn’t win one of its next two games. The Daggers will play against Kea‘au High (2-7) at 3 p.m. today on the Cougars’ home field. Pahoa’s season finale will be against Kohala High (0-8) on Friday afternoon at Walter Victor Baseball Complex in Hilo.
KEA‘AU 7, KEALAKEHE 6
Kea‘au baseball edged Kealakehe 7-6 for its second straight win Monday afternoon on the windward side of the island — moving to 2-6 on the year. The Waveriders dropped to 2-8.
Kea‘au will next play Pahoa at 3 p.m. today at home, while Kealakehe has no remaining regular season games, per Per Scoring Live.
KEA‘AU 8, KOHALA 5
In the second matchup of the doubleheader between the two schools, Kea‘au baseball beat Kohala 8-5 to earn its first win of the year on Saturday in Kapaau.
Now at 2-6 overall, the Cougars will look to ride their new momentum against Pahoa at 3 p.m. today in Kea‘au. The Cowboys (0-9) are still in search of a win, and will next play the Daggers at 3 p.m. Friday at Walter Victor.