The KS Maui Warriors won in three quick sets against the King Kekaulike Nā Aliʻi at Kaʻulaheanuiokamoku Gymnasium on April 4, 2013. The Warriors kept a large lead throughout most of the game.
“The results show that they [Warriors] came out to play hard,” KSM Head Coach Robert Brede said. “I was able to sit back and watch the boys play.”
Nā Aliʻi and the Warriors started going point for point until Nā Aliʻi began to make some errors. It allowed the Warriors to get ahead by a few points.
When King Kekaulike hit 13 points, the Warriors kept them there, scoring a streak of seven points before Nā Aliʻi could score again. The Warriors took the first set, 25-15.
“Having them make those errors gave us momentum,” Coach Brede said.
Both teams came out aggressively again in the second set, again starting off by scoring point for point, with the teams tying at 6, 8 and 9 points each. Errors made by Nā Aliʻi gave the Warriors the edge though, allowing them to score 20 points by the time King Kekaulike scored 13. Teams traded off points again, but the Warriors were already ahead and won, 25-15, with another 10-point lead.
Sophomore libero Walter Kaeo had some impressive serves, strong and well-placed.
“We gave them some tough serves, which disrupted their placement,” Coach Brede said.
In the absence of starter Kahiau Andrade, for the first time this season, senior Kolby Ah Sau took the spotlight blocking, tipping, roofing, and slamming the ball in the front row. Andrade was out ill.
“It feels really good to lead,” outside hitter Kolby Ah Sau said. “It shows that we played at a high level and made the other team work to make points while they gave us points.”
The third set looked like a runaway for the Warriors as they quickly built their lead to 20-10. King Kekaulike was unable to score 10 points until the Warriors had hit 20 points, with streaks of three and four points. At the Warriors’ twenty-fourth point, Nā Aliʻi staged a comeback scoring eight times by serving towards the Warriors’ weak spots in the back.
King Kekaulike came up to 21 points before Kamehameha Maui closed them out and won 25-21.
“We started to make a lot of mental mistakes,” Coach Brede said. “We weren’t completely covering their area.”
The Warriors were off to a bad start before the game with Andrade out and team members showing up late, causing the Warriors to make last-minute changes to their lineup.
“Kolby filled in for Kahiau tonight,” Coach Brede said. “He showed great intensity and consistency.”
The next boys volleyball game will be at Maui High School at 6:15 p.m. on Tuesday, April 9.
