Author Archives: Sean Aronson

Unprecedented

Thursday, March 5th, 2009

Molokai athletic history is made with Girls State Basketball Title
By Sean Aronson

Long credits the entire team with the victory, saying their camaraderie and tightness was infectious.  During the season, the Farmers travelled considerably and played just three of their 22 games at home in “The Barn”.  That kind of schedule prepared the team well for rigors of a week-long tournament.  

Long says playing in two early season tournaments on Oahu was particularly beneficial, especially when the majority of MIL teams were not competitive with the Farmers this season.

“That was huge,” says Long.  

It may also explain how the girls remained so relaxed throughout the tournament. In fact, Long and Assistant Coach Mike Hooper were slightly concerned before the state title game because the girls were so loose the day of the championship game.  They said they worried about the focus of the team, but when the ball was tipped all worries disappeared.

“We became more relaxed as the week went along,” says point guard Hooper-Juario. “We learned to take the time to slow down the pace of the game to suit our needs.”

The team was so relaxed; it turns out, that they forgot to eat lunch and instead played their 5pm game without having eaten since breakfast at 10am.  Long says he was dying of starvation, but only realized it after all the excitement and hoopla dissipated.

“I think we were all just so caught up in the moment,” says Long.
Hooper-Juario, a junior, was the leading scorer on a team that included just one senior.  The starting five will all be returning next year, and several key players off the bench will also return to defend their state title.

Despite playing in Oahu, the Farmers enjoyed a lot of crowd support, thanks in part to Molokai being the underdog and that they were playing a private school, Kamehameha of Hawaii.

“Anytime we are playing a private school, the crowd seems to favor of us,” says Long.

With the score tied and a little more than two minutes to go, the Farmers defense clamped down big time.  As Kamehameha guards ran the clock down, the Molokai girls fought through screens and never let their player get out of sight, says Long.  Adolpho had two huge blocks during this sequence and after turnovers by both teams on subsequent possessions; the ball came back to Molokai with less than 30 seconds to go.  Adolpho, after two failed attempts, put back the game winner with 12 seconds to go.  When Kamehameha three-point attempt clanked off the rim, the Molokai girls stormed the court.

They were State Champions!

The last state high school team title for Molokai was when the baseball team won back to back championships in 1999 and 2000.

Players and coaches would like to thank the Molokai fans and the MHS athletic department for their support throughout the season.

As for next year, Long isn’t making any predictions, but he does have one change he’ll be sure to make on the coaching end.

“We need to allow some of the goofiness; it certainly doesn’t seem to hurt.”

Hard Work, High Expectations

Tuesday, March 3rd, 2009

MIL champs head to Honolulu with quiet confidence.
By Sean Aronson

,” says Rapanot. “We now need to prove we can advance at this level.”

Last year, the Farmers fell in their first game to Hawaii Baptist School.  

This year, because of restructuring to the divisions, there are many new teams contending.  Former powerhouses like Farrington and Aiea, both of Oahu, were bumped up to Division I, because of their size. Newcomers such as Castle High and Word of Life are unknowns.

The team has played through some hardships as well.  They have been without senior Micah Ritte-Manangan for most of the season.  Ritte-Manangan, an MIL selection last year, has been sidelined with a severe ankle injury.  In the past few weeks he has been shooting around a bit and was expected to get the green light to begin practicing this week.

Whether he will be available for Thursday’s game is a mystery, but at a recent practice he assured coaches and players that he was ready to go.

“We’ve been playing well without him, and that’s a testament to our players,” says DeRouin.  “But there is no doubt he would be huge spark for this team.”

All of the players agreed that having been to the states previously, helps take some of their nervousness away.  They are less inclined to be intimidated by the larger basketball courts and the hoopla that surrounds the state tourney.

It was also help that the boys started their season by playing Division I teams like Baldwin and Lahainaluna from Maui.  And even though they didn’t win those games, it introduced them to the high level they will have to play at to be successful in Honolulu.

“This team is much more balanced than last year – both physically and mentally,” says DeRouin.

To follow the progress of the boy’s team at States, visit our website – www.themolokaidispatch.com – where we’ll be posting daily updates of the team’s time in Oahu.