This week was filled with the scent of intensity between students and faculty as the Poi Bowl raged on. With a total of four events, the final score was 3-1. The students were the victors.

The first event, volleyall, took place on Monday, April 4. Both teams were stacked with three players on each team.  Representing the faculty were Coach Bala Spencer, Mr. Kyle Fujii and Mr. Ka’eo Lau Hee. The students’ team consisted of volleyball stars Ginger Long, Bobbi Kalama and Taylor Awai.

The students pulled out an early lead as they took the first set. The faculty did not let that discourage them and pulled out a win on the second set. Due to time constraints, the winner of the last set was the first to five points. With hunger for a win, the faculty pulled ahead and won the last set making them the champions of the volleyball challenge.

“The girls definitely gave us chance, and if there was more time, the girls would have turned it up and gave us a whooping,” Coach Bala said.

The next day, the battlefield was moved indoors to Ke’eaumokupapa’iaheahe dining hall where faculty and students fought for control on the Wii game Just Dance.

Ms. Levi Mason and Academies Principal Jay-R Kaawa were the representatives for the faculty while sophomores Reid Cairme and Amber Kama looked for a win for the student body.

This challenge tested the competitors’ ability to follow along with choreography displayed on the big screen. This display of arm flailing and stumbling was a sight to behold.

Cairme destroyed his competition and proved that the students of Kamehameha Schools Maui knew how to get down and groove. He was crowned the victor of that challenge and pulled out a win for the students.

The faculty members were good sports and congratulated the students who bested them, but had some pointers for next year. “They should play more of a dancy song,” Ms. Mason said. “I think that it would be a lot better if more people participated as well, if we had more rounds.”

The challenge for Wednesday was the Belly Bump Obstacle Pickup. Faculty and students wore gigantic blow up tubes around their bodies leaving them exposed from the arms up and the legs down. Participants included Kumu Ladd Akeo and Ms. Margo Carmody for the staff, and juniors Makana Pundyke and Kupono Cabanas for the students.

The rules were simple. Competitors had to remain in a circle and pick up as many obstacles as they possibly could. While doing so, competitors were allowed to bump other competitors to throw them off balance or knock them down.

The starting point was the counseling center. From there, participants had to race to the circle in the middle of the quad and begin the pickup.

The students flew out of the counseling center with ease and got to the circle far before the faculty did, thus giving them the upper hand. When the faculty arrived in the circle, the good-natured brawling began, and each person scrambled to scoop up as many objects as possible.

At the end of the challenge, it was Makana Pundyke who emerged victorious with a total of 11 objects picked up. This victory put another point on the scoreboard for the student body.

“I just went out there and got down to business,” Pundyke said. “Pono and I worked together as a team, and we pulled out a win for the students.” 

This victory put the week’s score at 2-1, with the students in the lead. This meant that the faculty would have to win the next challenge in order to stay in the competition.

Judgment Day, or rather Thursday,  finally arrived with the Ice Cream Eating Challenge. Students pulled out two of their fastest eaters, junior Ken Kanemitsu and sophomore Steven Barut. The faculty representatives were none other than 9-10 Principal Lance Cagasan and Kumu Kalei Aarona-Lorenzo.

The participants sat at their respective tables and were greeted with a brick of vanilla ice cream. This challenge would be a difficult feat for most people to accomplish, but once the challenge started; there was no stopping these brave souls.

The rules of the game were short and sweet; whoever eats all their ice cream first wins. Each individual dove into their monstrous blocks of creamy deliciousness trying to best the other team, all except Kumu Kalei who ate at a slow and clean pace.

After much trial and tribulation, Ken Kanemitsu lifted his plate up high, cementing a sweet victory and filling end to the Poi Bowl. The ice cream-scarred faces congratulated each other as the students were declared the winners of Poi Bowl.

Not all was lost for the faculty,  for Kumu Kalei was given the award of “Cleanest Eater,” which of course was made up on the spot.

Students and staff agreed the Poi Bowl was a success this year, the goal of having fun achieved.