Rodriguez helps Moanalua roll by Leilehua and into OIA finalBy Paul Honda
4/25/23, Honolulu Star-Advertiser
ANDREW LEE / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISER
Moanalua’s Zachary Yewchuk, left, slammed a kill against Leilehua’s Zarien Carvalho (6) and Jhase Yee-Madrona (5) during Monday’s OIA Boys Volleyball match at Radford.
ANDREW LEE / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISERMoanalua’s Zachary Yewchuk, left, slammed a kill against Leilehua’s Zarien Carvalho (6) and Jhase Yee-Madrona (5) during Monday’s OIA Boys Volleyball match at Radford.
Kai Rodriguez powered 22 kills in 25 attempts without a hitting error as Moanalua overwhelmed Leilehua 25-11, 25-18, 25-13 in the semifinals of the OIA boys volleyball playoffs on Monday night at James Alegre Gymnasium.
Justin Todd tallied eight kills, Keola Demello had seven kills and three blocks, and Zack Yewchuk had four kills and three aces for Moanalua, now 14-0 in league play.
“When we’re in it and everything’s working, it’s nice to have that many attackers ready to set. It’s difficult to stop,” Moanalua coach Alan Cabanting said. “Leilehua was pushing us.”
It was clear sailing for Rodriguez from the start, with nine kills in 11 attempts during Set 1.
“Not going into this, I was not expecting that, but our setters picked up on it pretty quick that I was on and kept feeding me,” said Rodriguez, a 6-foot-3 senior.
Moanalua will play Mililanifor the OIA Division I crown on Wednesday night at Alegre gym.OIA West runner-up Leilehua defeated Kahuku in four sets to reach the semifinals. Christian Johansen led the Mules (10-2) with seven kills and added an ace. Ghreysen Scully chipped in six kills and Jhase Yee-Madrona added five kills. Khendel Scully had 15 assists, three kills and one ace.
“I feel good. They’re a very good team, kept us out of system. We had our momentum (in the second set) and we gave them the momentum back,” Leilehua coach Larry Cantero said.
It was the Mules’ first time playing Moanalua and its core of UH signees: Rodriguez, the 6-7 Todd and the 6-7 Yewchuk.
“They’re very physical. They can hit almost any shot, so you’ve got to be ready for any shot. If you guess wrong, they’re going to make you hurt,” Cantero said.
Leilehua had a wrinkle that Moanalua had not seen all season.
“They were throwing the ball into the corner. Usually, we’re a little more pass, set, attack. They kind of put us on our heels a little bit more, so we had to adjust quickly,” Cabanting said.
“It was unexpected at first,” Rodriguez said. “But we picked it up quick and we were getting it down.”
In Set 2, the Mules got into sync and had a 12-9 lead as their loyal following raised the volume. Moanalua turned it around with a 16-6 run. Demello had two of his blocks, while Rodriguez added two right-side kills.
Moanalua setters Malu Wilcox (20 assists) and AJ Matsumoto (23 assists) were on point. Matsumoto had two aces in Set 3, and Rodriguez closed the match with his lone ace.
“We got a lot better, much closer as a team,” Rodriguez said. “I think we’re ready (for the championship match).”
Leilehua plays Roosevelt for third place on Tuesday.
“We’ve got to bounce back, be more consistent. We would like the better seed (for the state tournament),” Cantero said.
Mililani 3, Roosevelt 1The Trojans advanced to the final with a 25-23, 21-25, 25-21, 25-19 win over the Rough Riders. Manase Fetulimoeata and Kapena Kanuch led Mililani with 14 kills each. They also combined for two of their team’s three aces.
Maika Cardenas added nine kills, while Ethan George and Tyler Duranceau chipped in four each. Carson Nakamura delivered 38 assists as the Trojans prevailed despite the absence of outside hitter Evan Foki. He missed the game due to a knee injury that flared up over the weekend, one that he first suffered years ago playing Pop Warner football.
“I’m excited. With a man that we had down in Evan, it was nice to see that we were still able to recover in that situation,” Trojans coach Gabriel Maunupau said. “I’m ecstatic and super proud of our kids. Evan’s knee is a little swollen, so I didn’t want to jeopardize him. Ethan, the kid’s been my utility. He stepped up (in preseason) when we went to Big Island. He came up big again here.”
Moanalua and Mililani had a preseason match that was beneficial, Maunupau noted.
“They’re always tough. They have so many go-to hitters when they’re in trouble, when they’re passing bad. They’re going to challenge us in every facet of the game,” he said. “We’ve got to be aggressive no matter what the situation is.”
Ford Lyons had 16 kills and Justin Toyama added 11 for Roosevelt, the East runner-up. Trace Nakaahiki tallied eight kills and Nathanael Yo had seven. Danny Lieu dished our 43 assists and had one block.
Roosevelt’s momentum faded in set three. With the game tied at 6, Mililani went on a 9-1 run, taking advantage of Rough Rider hitting errors and net violations for a 15-7 lead.
The Rough Riders rallied within 23-21, but Kanuch closed it out with back-to-back kills. Kanuch had five kills in the pivotal set.
Roosevelt finished the third game with six hitting errors, four service errors and two net violations. Mililani had just six hitting errors and no service errors to take a 2-1 edge in the match.
