Tehani Kaaihue Steps Up Her Energy As A Team Leader
By Jack Danilewicz
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Complacency has never been an issue for Tehani Kaaihue.
After a solid first season on the Hurricane varsity girls volleyball team last fall as a sophomore, she returned to the program in August with a heightened sense of urgency, as she could hear her eligibility clock ticking.
“She really came back looking like she wanted to be a dominant volleyball player,” Kapolei coach Naidah Gamurot said of Kaaihue, an outside hitter. “She plays full tilt all of the time. We saw inklings of it last year. This year, she’s turned into a real team leader. She has a great attitude, and she’s always pushing the girls. She leads us in all categories. She’s been very, very consistent.”
Consistency has been a point of emphasis at Kapolei since the day the Hurricanes opened fall camp in late August. A rash of injuries out of the gate had limited their progress in that regard, but the steady leadership of Kaaihue and a now-healthy roster has Gamurot’s team thinking about the upcoming post-season. The top six teams from the Red West make the Oahu Interscholastic Association’s playoffs. With a 4-3 record entering last weekend, the Hurricanes were in fifth place and on schedule to be included in the post-season.
“The girls are starting to trust each other,” Gamurot said.“Before we were trying to compensate for one another instead of playing our game. They get along well. It’s a matter of playing volleyball together now. We were on a roller coaster ride for awhile, but that gave us an opportunity to iron out some kinks, and now I think we’re ready to play at a consistent level.”
If anything, the Red West race has proved unpredictable to date, which can only translate into good news for an up-and-coming program like Kapolei. Traditional powers Pearl City and Aiea, which had won seven Red West titles in the last 11 years entering this season, had uncharacteristically combined for just three wins at the midway point of the regular season. Kapolei, which visits Leilehua on Thursday in a key league game, closes out its regular season next week with matches at home against Radford Oct. 9 and at Mililani Oct. 11. Every game is critical for the Hurricanes, whose playoff seeding will be determined by the outcome of its final games.
The regular-season stretch run begins with Thursday’s match at 6 p.m. at Leilehua which has been one of the league’s surprises after a 6-1 start. The Mules also won the first match between the teams at Kapolei, 25-20, 25-23 on Sept. 11.
“We were having one of our ‘roller coaster matches’ the first time we played them,” Gamurot said. “They’re going to be tough. They play even volleyball all the way through. They’ve been consistent since Day One. If we’re consistent, it can be a good match.”
In addition to Kaaihue, Kapolei also has had stellar seasons from outside hitters Marie Nataniela and Courtney Seminavage. Together, the threesome started for Kapolei as sophomores last fall. Outside hitter Kai’ili Smith, setter Tahnee Foki, middle blocker Kai Clark, libero Brande Yago, defensive specialist Emily Patacsil, all-around specialist Rayna Dayton and Maryknoll transfer Shaira Allosada also figure big in Kapolei’s rotation.
“Our defense is coming together, and because of that, we’ve been able to run our own offense. Everyone is improving as the season goes on. More so than the physical, it has been the mental and emotional aspect. We’ve matured on the court - you can see it - and we’re not so much on a roller coaster ride anymore. The kids have been able to pull themselves back up (from a challenging sequence).”
The OIA playoffs begin Oct. 17 with first-round matchups.
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