Sports

A Class Act

Wednesday, March 11th, 2009

Molokai boys finish fourth at Hawaii’s state basketball tournament.
By Sean Aronson

It may not have ended with arms raised and a trophy hoisted, but 2009 was a successful season any way you slice it for the Molokai boys basketball team.

“This was a great night for basketball and a greater night for Molokai,” said Head Coach Lee DeRouin following his team’s defeat in the semifinals of the state tournament.  

It was the first time Molokai boys finished in the top four since 1988, when teams competed in one big tournament.  In 2007 the state tournament was divided into two divisions, with the Farmers playing in the smaller of the two.

Molokai was one of 12 teams selected for the Div II state championships.  They earned a first round bye, which means they were automatically into a quarterfinal matchup with Pahoa High School from Hawaii Island.  They won that game, setting up a semifinal contest with Castle High School from Kaneohe, Oahu.

Semifinals
After a great comeback in their previous game, Molokai could not perform another miracle in Honolulu – but they came pretty darn close. The Farmers, the number four seed, challenged the number one seed, Castle, and put up a great fight last week, losing 57-44.

“We left everything on the court,” said Kinohi Kelly-Paleka, a senior who had four points in the loss.

After a ferocious first half by Castle, which saw them hit eight three-pointers, the Farmers were down 15, 35-20.  But they stormed out of the second half, holding the Castle Knights to just four points in the third quarter while cutting the lead to seven.

But in the fourth quarter, Molokai seemed to lose a little of their luster as close shots did not fall and balls bounced off their hands.  Turnovers were also a problem, as several key possessions were squandered with errant passes and sloppy dribbling.

With a little more than three minutes to go and trailing by eight, the Farmers forced an offensive foul on Castle and it appeared a comeback was in the making.  Senior Scottie Rapanot hit a short jumper and Molokai had cut the lead to six. After a foul on a Castle player and a missed three pointer by Micah Ritte-Managan, the deficit was back to nine with fewer than two minutes to play.

Molokai was forced to foul on the ensuing possessions and Castle hit their foul shots.  When several Molokai three-pointers clanked off the rim, the reality of defeat settled on the faces of the players and coaches and DeRouin called a timeout to gather his team.

“I told them to go out their and finish the game with class,” said DeRouin.

Despite their trademark defense, the hot-shooting Knights kept Molokai guessing with good inside-out penetration and constant motion on the perimeter.  Castle also had an outstanding point guard in Michael Santos, an all tournament selection.

Santos had great ball control and was adept at slowing the pace of the game down, just when the Farmers were looking to cut into the deficit.  Several times it was Santos’ guard play that prevented a total collapse for Castle.  And it was his foul shooting down the stretch that sealed the victory.

The one place Molokai did have an advantage was in the rebounding category, combining for 21 offensive boards and an overall advantage of 15 (48-33).  Despite Castle having a taller and larger center, the Farmers were dominant in the front-court, with senior Joseph Akaka scoring at will under the basket.

Akaka, one of the most consistent players in the Maui Interscholastic League (MIL) this year, was the only Farmer to be included on the all-tournament team. He averaged 16.3 points and 12 rebounds in the Farmers' three games in Oahu.

Quarterfinal Game
The previous night, the Farmers defeated a tough team from Hawaii Island.  Pahoa was the Big Island League runner-up and featured a player, Jonathan Viernes, who had scored 33 points the night before.

Molokai did a great job of containing Viernes, but still found themselves down 30-26 at halftime.  

After Kinohi Kelly-Paleka hit a jumper in the lane, and a Pahoa turnover, Joseph Akaka had a layup to bring them within three. At that point the determination of the Farmers was evident and their defensive intensity was too much for Pahoa.  They held the Pahoa Daggers scoreless for the next six minutes, combining a full-court press and tenacious in-your-face-defense.

With good guard play and slowed down offense, the Farmers held their small lead in the fourth quarter to secure their victory and advance to the semi-finals for the first time in twenty years.

Third-Place Game
After their semifinal defeat, the Farmers were understandably less than enthusiastic about their next game.  But the chance to play at the Blaisdell Arena held enough excitement to get the Farmers amped for the third place game against the Kohala Cowboys, of Oahu.

After a slow start, the Farmers found their rhythm in the second quarter, but still found themselves down 12 at half.  Kohala came out blazing in the third and ran the lead to 26.  Molokai had a tremendous comeback in the fourth, outscoring the Cowboys 23-12, but still lost by a score of 70-55.

The big bright spot for the Farmers was the play of senior Micah Ritte-Managan. An all-MIL selection in 2008, Ritte-Managan had been injured nearly the entire season and struggled to find his shooting touch in the first two games of the playoffs.  After shooting a dismal one for 11 in the Castle game, he converted on five of eight field goals to score 15 in the loss.

Next Year
Molokai loses five players to graduation – Scottie Rapanot, Joseph Akaka, Kinohi Kelly-Paleka, Micah Ritte-Manangan and Daniel Espaniola.  All five saw significant time for the Farmers, with Rapanot and Akaka forming the nucleus of the team. Ritte-Manangan was hurt for much of the season, but saw playing time at states.

Kelly-Paleka was arguably the MVP for the Farmers in their defeat over Pahoa, sparking their comeback and scoring several key baskets down the stretch. And while Espaniola did not see as much playing time as the others, he was vocal on the bench and often gave the team a much-needed emotional spark.

Junior starters returning will be guards Herbert Antolin and Kawaiola Kalipi.  Coming off the bench, returnees include Alvin Ringor, Julien Bumatay and Keoni Kahoalii. Sophomore sensation Kamakana Duvachelle-Andrade and Ryan Rapanot rounded out the crew.

DeRouin said the loss of the seniors will be tough, but he is confident the team can return to the state tournament with a strong squad next year.

A Second Family

Wednesday, March 11th, 2009

Boy’s basketball team is close-knit in victory and defeat.
By Sean Aronson

The next night brought an even bigger Molokai fan base and this time, the fans taped two ‘Go Molokai’ signs to the wall.  But their opponent, Castle High School, is a local favorite and they too had a crowd to match that of the Farmers.  

After a first half that saw the opposing team hit eight three pointers and Molokai miss a half dozen easy shots, the Farmers were down fifteen.  The crowd looked sullen, but knew their boys wouldn’t give up without a fight.  They were proven right when the team stormed out of the locker room and brought the crowd to their feet with a spirited third quarter comeback.

Things got heated as the Farmers climbed all the way back to within six points. After a mad scramble for the ball, a Castle player rose to his feet looking to taunt a Molokai player, Scottie Rapanot.  Rapanot, bigger and certainly stronger than the skinny guard, just walked away without a word or so much as a dirty look.

It was the perfect image for a team that never allows it to get involved in the taunting and mind games so often found in basketball.  And this resistance is made even more admirable when you consider the hard-nosed intensity Molokai plays with.

Their on-court tenacity is something to behold.  Every loose ball, every rebound sees a Farmer or two or three darting to the floor or boards to secure the ball. More times than I can remember, I overheard fans comment about the ferocious focus with which Molokai plays.  It can be seen in the eyes of every player, on every possession.

That kind of passion can not be taught, but it can be fostered, and Coach Lee DeRouin has done just that in his short time with the program. He and Assistant Coach Lester Delos Reyes (a stand-out player in his own MHS days), have brought discipline and drive to this team.

This is epitomized by their chant of ‘1, 2, 3, hard work’ every time they leave a huddle.

I’d like to thank the entire team and coaching staff for letting me witness their passion on and off the court, and for a short time, feeling like a member of their family.

Mahalo Nui Loa,
Sean

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.