Photos: Chase Eveleth ’25
Hemmeter Fieldhouse- Unfortunately for the Buff ‘n Blue, Iolani still has Punahou’s number.
Despite the raucous crowd inside Hemmeter Fieldhouse, Iolani handled business to improve to 4-0 on the season, but not without a fight from Punahou. In a hard-fought rivalry game, Punahou showed grit and resilience, pushing their opponents to the brink in every set. The energy from the home crowd was evident, creating an atmosphere that seemed primed for a comeback. However, Iolani’s precision and poise under pressure prevailed in the end.
Iolani jumped out to an early lead in set one by capitalizing on Punahou errors. Offensively, the Buff ‘n Blue were able to feed their middle hitters and cash in on kills. This sparked a run near the end of the set with 5 straight points for Punahou, including 2 service aces by defensive specialist Cierra Prieto-Henna ‘26. However, the Raiders took advantage of Punahou’s high hands up on their blocks and scored a lot of kills off the block en route to winning the first set 25-21.
The second set followed a similar script as Punahou found themselves down seven points at one point. They fought back in the end, only to fall just short 25-22.
The Buff ‘n Blue weren’t ready to fold, though. In the third set, the energy and noise went through the roof after Middle Blocker Evelyn Kilisi ‘26 bounced one inside the 10-foot line for a great kill. Hope for a reverse sweep was in the air after Punahou grabbed the third set 25-22.
In a thrilling fourth set, the margin was close all the way to the 25-point mark. After making a couple of service errors earlier on in the set, Iolani got their act together and not only stopped making service errors, but started to dig up Punahou’s aerial attack and got their main hitters the ball to put it down. In a game any volleyball fan would’ve loved, Iolani escaped the fourth set 25-23.
Punahou Outside Hitter True Takemoto ‘26 commented on how they will prepare for the next game:
“Consistency is key, and in order for us to get these key wins, we need to be consistent in not just our play but in our communication as well. When we work together as a team and not as individuals, we’re hard to beat. Right now, our focus is on Mid-Pac and how to improve each and every time we step on the court.”
Next week on September 17 the Iolani Raiders will be back in front of their home crowd against the Kamehameha Warriors. This is a rematch of their earlier matchup where Iolani went on the road and stole one from the Warriors in four sets.
On that same day, the Punahou Buff ‘n Blue look to avenge their last home loss as the Mid-Pacific owls enter Hemmeter Fieldhouse. Punahou took care of the Owls the last time these two met at Mid-Pacific. The Buff ‘n Blue will need to get back in the win column to make a run for that top spot in the ILH with less than a month left of the regular season.