LAHAINALUNA INVITATIONAL: LAHAINALUNA 45, Cowichan (B.C.) 28 - December 19, 2011

First day of the Lahainaluna Invitational basketball tournament. Got there in time to see Hilo knock off Baldwin in a close game. Hilo’s not that tall but they have all local players, quick, with handles and can shoot.

Nice surprise. One of the players, Jalen Carvalho, is the son of David Carvalho (Lahainaluna c/o ’86). As a senior at Lahainaluna, he led the boys volleyball and basketball teams to MIL titles. His older son Jayce was a basketball and baseball standout at Kamehameha Schools Hawaii and is currently a freshman on the HPU baseball team. Good to see David doing well.

Tonight’s shooting was different. Dan Williams asked if I could upload pictures of the game at halftime, to be e-mailed to Wayne Seaman, the media/PR guy for the tournament, who would then send it to Cowichan’s home newspaper. So instead of taking my customary spot under the Lunas’ basket, I spent the first half on the Cowichan end and shooting primarily Cowichan players! It felt strange, since I don’t know any of the Cowichan players. I did get some nice shots and at halftime, helped Dan upload and e-mail them to Wayne.

These are the three shots that I e-mailed:

The game was close in the first half with Cowichan leading after one quarter and then Lahainaluna taking a slight lead at the half. I felt kind of embarrassed for the refereeing again, which totally favored the home team. A lot of times the Cowichan players were left with bewildered looks on their faces, palms turned upward after a call.

The Lunas came out in the second half, turning on the defensive pressure and eventually pulling away for the win.

Next up is Hilo. This should be a good test to see how the boys measure up.

For the Maui News coverage of the tournament, click here.

For more photos click here.

For the Canadian news articles, click here and here.

Updates on Other Lahainaluna Sports: December 10 - 20, 2011

As I can't be at all places at one time, here are some updates on other sports that I was not able to cover:

• Lahainaluna swimming participated in its first meet on December 10, 2011. Senior Josh Gaastra did very well. For the Maui News article, click here.
• On December 17, 2011, Lahainaluna girls soccer posted a big win over St. Anthonly, led by Avery LaClergue and Casey Vanderlaan. For the Maui News article, click here.
• Also on December 17, 2011, the Lahainaluna wrestling team made a tremendous showing on Oahu, with the boys winning the Officials Tournament. For the Maui News article, click here.
• On December 20, 2011, three Lahainaluna girls wrestlers earned first-place finishes in a wrestling tournament at Punahou on Oahu. For the Maui News article, click here.
• Also on December 20, 2011, the Lahainaluna boys soccer team suffered its first defeat at Kamehameha Schools Maui. For the Maui News article, click here.

MIL Girls Basketball: LAHAINALUNA 62, Kamehameha Schools Maui 20 - December 17, 2011

The finale of another long Saturday: Lahainaluna versus Kamehameha Schools Maui. The Lady Lunas dominated from the start. Was interesting to see how the Warriors' Ashley Singson-Tanoue would play. Last year, her freshman season was cut short when she broke her collarbone trying to wrestle a jump ball away from Ana Lauese in the Seabury Hall Wahine Classic preseason tournament. You could tell she was trying to get back at Ana physically with some physical play, but Lauese just shook it off. Not sure if she even noticed it. All Singson-Tanoue did was put herself into foul trouble.

For more photos, click here.

MIL JV Boys Basketball: Lahainaluna v. Seabury Hall - December 17, 2011

After the varsity boys' win over Seabury Hall for the consolation championship of the St. Anthony Invitational, I rushed to Lahaina to catch the boys JV game, also against Seabury Hall. By the time I got to the Civic Center, it was already the 4th quarter. The boys had a comfortable lead, so I was able to shoot players that normally don't see much playing time.

For more photos from this game, click here.

MIL Girls Basketball: LAHAINALUNA 53, Baldwin 11 - December 15, 2011

The Lady Lunas officially opened their MIL regular season with an ugly 53-11 win over Baldwin. The offense was not as crisp as we'd seen in the preseason - perhaps because this was their first game in 12 days. Coach Rickard employed a platoon substitution system, often substituting 5 at a time. Lunas led 19-0 after 1 quarter. Most of Baldwin's points came off of free throws after the Lunas went over the foul limit and into bonus time.

For more photos, click here.

St. Anthony Invitational Basketball Tournament: LAHAINALUNA 52, Seabury Hall 40 - December 17, 2011

After picking up my wife and in-laws at the airport, I head straight for War Memorial to catch the Lunas' final game in the St. Anthony Invitational. This was for the consolation championship (5th place) against Seabury Hall. Lau Tauese, Spencer Perieff and Feleti Taufa suited up and played in this game. The Lunas' controlled the game throughout and won 52-40.

For more photos, click here.