Wrestling Shines at MILs

Photo by Jason Hayase

By The Molokai Dispatch Staff

At the Maui Interscholastic League (MIL) wrestling championships, Molokai athletes dominated the mat. The Molokai High School Farmers ended up with five first place finishes, and 13 athletes qualifying for the state championships.
For the girls, nine out of 10 athletes scored in the top three places, all of whom qualified for states.
Hila’a Kapuni, Waile’a Ward and Masina Borden-Phillips all took home first place in their divisions, with Kindly Sproat and Stephanie Gandeza in second, and Anjolie Manabe, Kiara Hanaoka, Skye Kaawa-Caparida and Tiale Tancayo taking third.
Borden-Phillips, the number one seeded wrestler in the state for her division, explained that “wrestling is more than just a sport. It’s a way of life. I’m proud of everyone and how they performed at MILs. Even though some didn’t get the results that they wanted, they never gave up.”
Going into the finals, the Molokai girls were in first place in the team competition, and hoped to make school history as the first overall team champions for Molokai. Ultimately, the Lady Farmers fell just short of first place, taking second by only a margin of 13 points. With this second place, the girls tied the 2014 team for the best team finish for Molokai.
On the boys side, Aiden Augustiro and Jona Dudoit were crowned champions as well, with Reyn Raguindin taking second and Elisha Horner taking third.
For first year assistant coach Rizpah Torres-Umi, the team’s performance was one to remember.
“Having joined the coaching staff this year I was impressed by every single one of these wrestlers,” said Torres-Umi. “I always try to instill in them that being a good wrestler is beyond the mat. They should be so proud of themselves. They made their families and Molokai so proud.”
The MHS wrestling team competed in the Texaco Wrestling State Championships Feb. 21 and 22 at the Neal Blaisedell Arena. Check out next week’s issue of the Molokai Dispatch for results.