Wapahani celebrates a point against Wes-Del during their game at Wapahani High School Thursday.
Wapahani’s Skyler VanNote hits against Wes-Del during their game at Wapahani High School Thursday.
SELMA – A strong start to a highly-anticipated match worried Wapahani coach Jared Richardson just a little bit.
As he explains it, Wapahani has been prone to “game-two blues,” meaning the Raiders are liable to let down after a good opening set. And with a talented — but very young — squad, it was fair to wonder how the team would respond, especially after a seven-point deficit early in that second set.
Class 2A second-ranked Wapahani righted the ship by dominating at the net and cruised the rest of the way in taking down No. 1 Wes-Del 25-18, 25-22, 25-16 in Mid-Eastern Conference play — the first of several possible matches between the teams.
“We’ve been known to drop off, and I think we really didn’t want to do that this game,” said sophomore Skyler VanNote, who led the Raiders with 12 kills and 20 digs. “We wanted to show that we’re No. 1 in 2A.”
It was quite the statement by Wapahani (3-0, 3-0 MEC), which used its height advantage to the tune of 14 blocks, seven of which came from junior Chase Curry.
With 6-foot freshman Estella Davis, 5-10 sophomore Annie Schuck, the 6-foot VanNote and 5-11 Curry at the net, Wes-Del (3-1, 3-1) found it difficult to find any sort of rhythm.
“We knew we were going to have some problems with front-row height and how we were going to match up,” Wes-Del coach Biff Wilson said. “But it was the fourth match of the year, and you hope to learn.”
The Warriors, who were swept just once in 38 matches last season en route to the Class A state title, appeared to hit their stride in that second set. After not having a kill in the first set, Wes-Del star Alysa Sutton (12 kills, 17 digs) sparked the Warriors to a 10-3 lead.
But behind Davis (eight kills), the Raiders quickly rallied to pull ahead, eventually winning seven of the final nine points in the set and then rolling in the third set.
And though they’re young, they’re quickly building chemistry — a much more important sign than any result in their third match of the season.
“I just think that we’re such a close-knit team,” Curry said. “We pick each other up, so we were able to build off that.”
Since Wapahani slid back down from Class 3A and Wes-Del bumped up from Class A, the teams will be in the same sectional. Curry called it, “a big game, but still just a game,” though it was about as intense as an early-season match could be.
“Both teams knew that tonight, this fight is going to last all year long,” Richardson said. “There could be more matchups. I think that’s the biggest thing; both teams know the potential for the future.”
Contact sports features writer Ryan O’Gara at (765) 213-5829. Follow him on Twitter @RyanOGaraTSP.