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A little shuffle in the starting lineup was perfectly fine for defending state champion Punahou — especially with Cameron Porter in stealth mode.
The 6-foot-1 senior drilled eight of his 15 kills in the opening set as Punahou swept Kamehameha 25-19, 25-18, 25-22 on Thursday night at Kekuhaupio Gymnasium.
Kamehameha had its share of gritty runs, but overall, longtime Punahou coach Rick Tune and his veteran staff did most of their coaching while seated against the ILH title-contending Warriors.
“I think Coach’s got trust in all of us,” said Porter, the returning Star-Advertiser All-State Player of the Year. “We can definitely clean some things up, but I think overall, we know the game plan. He knows what we’re focusing on so he doesn’t have to worry about us too much. When we come in for timeouts, he’s got plans for us and doesn’t have to say too much.”
Punahou improved to 3-0 in ILH play (7-2 overall). Kamehameha is 0-1 in league play.
Nalu Akana came off the bench for eight kills and 16 assists. Tanoa Scanlan also stepped into action late in the first set and finished with seven kills and one block. Keola Todd-Perry tallied six kills, while Tyson Kikuchi dished a team-high 21 assists with one ace.
Punahou’s roster includes nine players who are 6-3 or taller.
“The biggest thing the boys did tonight that I’m super proud of is they rooted for each other. In the first set, we had a couple different guys on the court and the guys that they replaced were cheering the loudest for them and helping them out,” Tune said. “And when those guys came back on the court, it was the same. Just developing that culture that we need to sustain those really tough matches is critical to the success of this program.”
Junior Rylan Reiny led Kamehameha with nine kills. Classmate Noah Nuuhiwa tallied 23 assists, three kills, one ace and one block. Senior Keahi Sniffen had five kills, and junior Cooper Long chipped in four kills and two blocks.
Punahou went 4-2 in the Best of the West tournament (San Diego) two weeks ago. The Buffanblu beat Los Alamitos, Eastlake and Mater Dei in best-of-three matches, then lost to Corona del Mar in two sets. After a loss to Bishop’s in three sets, Punahou edged La Costa (Calif.) in three sets.
The Buffanblu opened ILH play with sweeps of Mid-Pacific and, on Wednesday, Hawaii Baptist. They visit ‘Iolani at noon on Saturday.
Kamehameha went 1-5 in the Best of the West tourney, posting a win over Del Norte (San Diego). ILH matches with ‘Iolani, Mid-Pacific and Saint Louis were postponed due to inclement weather.
“At Best of the West, it was a bit of a struggle terminating pins, so we’ve been really focusing on passing. We’ve got five talented middles 6-4 and taller,” Kamehameha coach Sava Agpoon said. “I was excited with the passing tonight. It can only get better from here.”
The Warriors are scheduled to host Saint Louis at 10 a.m. on Saturday. After that, they visit Hawaii Baptist at 6 p.m. on Tuesday.
Punahou has won 13 state championships under Tune. In 2024, Kamehameha ended Punahou’s string of eight state titles in a row. Last year, Punahou regained the crown.
Kamehameha had a solid start defensively with two roofs, but still trailed early, 9-6. By then, Porter was mixing his shots between power and finesse. After a Kamehameha hitting error, Porter had accumulated six kills and an ace as the Buffanblu extended their lead to 13-8.
With William Niethammer at the back line, Punahou’s biggest margin was six points.
Kills by Kaej Kahana and Sniffen brought the Warriors within 18-15, but they got no closer. The visitors closed the opening set with a 7-4 run, ending it with a kill by Scanlan.
Kawai Koahou had 10 assists for the Buffanblu in the opening game.
With Akana on the floor, Punahou was lethal with a 6-2 attack in the second set. Kamehameha kept it tight at 10-all, but Koahou had an ace and Scanlan roofed Noah Usher as Punahou opened a 15-11 lead.
Reiny answered with a kill for Kamehameha, but after back-to-back Warriors service errors, Punahou’s lead was 17-12.
Kamehameha pulled within 19-17 on an ace by Nuuhiwa, but Punahou closed the second set with a 6-1 run. Niethammer’s first ace gave the Buffanblu a 2-0 lead in the match.
The home team had its first sustained resistance in set three with a 10-9 lead. However, Todd-Perry roofed Long, and Porter had two aces and a back-row kill on a feed from Akana. Punahou led 14-10.
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The 6-foot-1 senior drilled eight of his 15 kills in the opening set as Punahou swept Kamehameha 25-19, 25-18, 25-22 on Thursday night at Kekuhaupio Gymnasium.
Kamehameha had its share of gritty runs, but overall, longtime Punahou coach Rick Tune and his veteran staff did most of their coaching while seated against the ILH title-contending Warriors.
“I think Coach’s got trust in all of us,” said Porter, the returning Star-Advertiser All-State Player of the Year. “We can definitely clean some things up, but I think overall, we know the game plan. He knows what we’re focusing on so he doesn’t have to worry about us too much. When we come in for timeouts, he’s got plans for us and doesn’t have to say too much.”
Punahou improved to 3-0 in ILH play (7-2 overall). Kamehameha is 0-1 in league play.
Nalu Akana came off the bench for eight kills and 16 assists. Tanoa Scanlan also stepped into action late in the first set and finished with seven kills and one block. Keola Todd-Perry tallied six kills, while Tyson Kikuchi dished a team-high 21 assists with one ace.
Punahou’s roster includes nine players who are 6-3 or taller.
“The biggest thing the boys did tonight that I’m super proud of is they rooted for each other. In the first set, we had a couple different guys on the court and the guys that they replaced were cheering the loudest for them and helping them out,” Tune said. “And when those guys came back on the court, it was the same. Just developing that culture that we need to sustain those really tough matches is critical to the success of this program.”
Junior Rylan Reiny led Kamehameha with nine kills. Classmate Noah Nuuhiwa tallied 23 assists, three kills, one ace and one block. Senior Keahi Sniffen had five kills, and junior Cooper Long chipped in four kills and two blocks.
Punahou went 4-2 in the Best of the West tournament (San Diego) two weeks ago. The Buffanblu beat Los Alamitos, Eastlake and Mater Dei in best-of-three matches, then lost to Corona del Mar in two sets. After a loss to Bishop’s in three sets, Punahou edged La Costa (Calif.) in three sets.
The Buffanblu opened ILH play with sweeps of Mid-Pacific and, on Wednesday, Hawaii Baptist. They visit ‘Iolani at noon on Saturday.
Kamehameha went 1-5 in the Best of the West tourney, posting a win over Del Norte (San Diego). ILH matches with ‘Iolani, Mid-Pacific and Saint Louis were postponed due to inclement weather.
“At Best of the West, it was a bit of a struggle terminating pins, so we’ve been really focusing on passing. We’ve got five talented middles 6-4 and taller,” Kamehameha coach Sava Agpoon said. “I was excited with the passing tonight. It can only get better from here.”
The Warriors are scheduled to host Saint Louis at 10 a.m. on Saturday. After that, they visit Hawaii Baptist at 6 p.m. on Tuesday.
Punahou has won 13 state championships under Tune. In 2024, Kamehameha ended Punahou’s string of eight state titles in a row. Last year, Punahou regained the crown.
Kamehameha had a solid start defensively with two roofs, but still trailed early, 9-6. By then, Porter was mixing his shots between power and finesse. After a Kamehameha hitting error, Porter had accumulated six kills and an ace as the Buffanblu extended their lead to 13-8.
With William Niethammer at the back line, Punahou’s biggest margin was six points.
Kills by Kaej Kahana and Sniffen brought the Warriors within 18-15, but they got no closer. The visitors closed the opening set with a 7-4 run, ending it with a kill by Scanlan.
Kawai Koahou had 10 assists for the Buffanblu in the opening game.
With Akana on the floor, Punahou was lethal with a 6-2 attack in the second set. Kamehameha kept it tight at 10-all, but Koahou had an ace and Scanlan roofed Noah Usher as Punahou opened a 15-11 lead.
Reiny answered with a kill for Kamehameha, but after back-to-back Warriors service errors, Punahou’s lead was 17-12.
Kamehameha pulled within 19-17 on an ace by Nuuhiwa, but Punahou closed the second set with a 6-1 run. Niethammer’s first ace gave the Buffanblu a 2-0 lead in the match.
The home team had its first sustained resistance in set three with a 10-9 lead. However, Todd-Perry roofed Long, and Porter had two aces and a back-row kill on a feed from Akana. Punahou led 14-10.
Hawaii Prep World
For high school sports record books, visit .
Continue reading...
