Wrestling

Punahou’s Zander Manuel is gunning for a first state title. Unexpectedly. After upsetting second-seeded Vance Keliihoomalu in the 182-pound division of the Texaco/HHHSA Wrestling State Championships at Blaisdell Arena on Thursday, Manuel heads to the final later in the afternoon against Kamehameha’s Kainalu Huddy, the top seed. Keliihoomalu was disqualified after an illegal headbutt in the final seconds after he fell way behind and was visibly frustrated. “I came into this match with the coaches telling me to wrestle my […]

It’s a Lahainaluna boy vs. a Leilehua lad in the 138-pound final. As expected, Kawehi Gillcoat and Kaena Desantos, the Nos. 1 and 2 seeds who are ranked Nos. 7 and 9 in Hawaii Prep World’s pound-for-pound rankings, are going to see who survives Thursday for the title at the Texaco/HHSAA Wrestling State Championships. In the semifinals, Gillcoat pinned Mililani’s Elijah Diamond, and Desantos edged Kamehameha’s Kanai Tapia 5-3. “I want to win it,” said Gillcoat, who is a four-time […]

Wednesday was not a good day for Moanalua’s Alana Dela Pena. The OIA champion and fourth seed in the 184-pound bracket at the Texaco/HHSAA State Wrestling championships, Dela Pena suffered a severe injury in her ankle when she landed wrong while being taken down by Aiea’s Jalyssa Ingram in a first-round match. Trainers and other responders worked quickly to immobilize her leg, put it in a splint and get her on a stretcher and out of the building to a […]

The 2019 Texaco/HHSAA State Wrestling Championships take place Feb. 20 and 21 on another Wednesday/Thursday combination. Hawaii Prep World will provide up-to-the-minute coverage throughout the entire two days beginning with the first qualifying matches on Wednesday that start at 10 a.m. >> CLICK HERE FOR THE DAY 2 BLOG. Our main state tournament wrestling page can be found here. BOYS TEAM STANDINGS AFTER DAY 1: 1. Kamehameha, 105; 2. Punahou, 75; t3. Baldwin, Lahainaluna, 70; 5. Moanalua, 60.5; 6. Kapolei, […]

When the bus breaks down, it’s always good to have trusty parents nearby. The day began in the dark for many of the teams in the Texaco/HHSAA Wrestling State Championships. That included Kalani and Kaiser, which met at their respective schools by 5:30 a.m. to share a bus ride to the tourney. A short while later, the bus broke down near Kalani, Kaiser assistant coach Nick Hironaka said. His team got help from parents who were en route to the […]

Baldwin’s Tianna Fernandez was in trouble, but she got out of it. The No. 8 pound-for-pound wrestler in the Hawaii Prep World rankings found a way to beat Brianna Funakoshi of Aiea in the 102-pound division, 10-6, in the second overtime period to advance to Thursday’s semifinals at the Texaco/HHSAA State Wrestling Championships. “Me and her were going at it in the beginning of season,” Fernandez said. “She’s really good and tall and fast and she can drop levels in […]

Punahou’s Legend Matautia got through the first round, pinning Kaimuki’s Harry Lloyd at 1:43 of their 220-pound match at the Texaco/HHSAA Wrestling State Championships on Wednesday. The top-seeded Matautia remembers seeing Lloyd wrestle for Damien, when Lloyd was in the 285-pound division. “I was pretty surprised when I saw that he (slimmed down),” Matautia said about Lloyd, who had some pretty big upsets when he was with the Monarchs before his transfer. If he ends up making it to the […]

He is 10 pounds heavier and no longer an underdog off the radar. Rysan Leong made quick work in his preliminary match on Wednesday afternoon, opening a 5-0 lead before pinning his foe, Vinny Schmidt of Campbell. Leong, the top seed in the 170 weight class, has a proverbial bull’s eye on his back in 2019, but in ’18, he wowed Blaisdell Arena. He was an OIA runner-up at 160, then went on a sensational run at the Chevron/HHSAA State […]