It was the third straight win for the Na Ali’I boys after winning at D.T. Fleming Beach and Hookipa Beach Park. For the Na Ali’I girls, it went down to the final heat for the second straight contest.

King Kekaulike was leading Maui Christian by one point, and Maui Prep was another two points back before the girls no. 3 final.

Bella Kuailani, a senior, took control early with a couple of five-point rides in the challenging shifting, overhead conditions. Her two-wave total of 10.57 held up over Thayne Colpas of Maui Christian and Layla Merrill of Maui Prep.

“I was aware of how close it was,” Kuailani said. “There was a lot of pressure, but I just had to lock in. The conditions that were out there were pretty tricky. I could tell a lot of the girls were having a hard time. I think the main thing was just for me to pick off the good ones and thankfully I did and it worked out.”

Kanoa Kuailani of King Kekaulike goes vertical above the lip, and won the boys No. 4. Photo courtesy Ernie Black

Kuailani escaped catastrophe in her semifinal heat thanks to help from her brother, Kanoa, and her father, Kapena. Before she even caught a wave, her surf leash broke and her board was swept almost to shore. Kanoa was able to grab her surfboard before it washed on the lava rocks while Bella was swimming to try and retrieve her board.

Her father had another leash, which Kanoa threw to her as she grabbed her surfboard. By the time she paddled back out to the lineup, only five minutes remained in the 15-minute heat.

“I was like scared and nervous, and also worried,” Kuailani said. “After I got my board back, thankfully, my brother was there and my dad was by the shore to give me a leash. When I got back out there, I was really under pressure and kind of just scratching for whatever I could get so I could get the score that I needed to advance.”

Kuailani was able to catch three waves and placed third to advance to the girls No. 3 final.

“Thankfully, I moved on to the final, and it definitely motivated me to do better,” she said. “We really needed this win for our team to get on top. It was also a lot of motivation from my teammates. They’re very supportive and I’m just thankful, mahalo ke akua, that I pulled through.”

Sochi Henderson of King Kekaulike took girls No. 4. Photo courtesy Ernie Black

Ayla Daian and Sochi Henderson were the other two Na Ali’I girls to win. Daian won No. 2 and Henderson took No. 4.

Daian, a freshman, got the Na Ali’I girls off to a great start by winning the first final of the day. For Daian, it was her third straight win at No .2. Mikaia Barnes of Maui Christian went ahead early with a 7.17, the highest score of the heat.

“(Barnes) is like my biggest competitor; I was really intimidated,” Daian said. “She started off with a really strong wave, so I was like, ‘OK, I have to do something.'”

Later in the heat, Daian was able to post a couple six-point rides, which gave her a 12.23-11.67 edge over Barnes.

“I didn’t know where to sit because I never really surf here,” Daian said. “Today it actually had some size. It was probably the biggest I’ve ever surfed here.”

Max Schwartz of Kihei Charter managed to win boys No. 5 in challenging conditions. Photo courtesy Ernie Black

Kingston Panebianco’s win at No. 2 clinched the boys title for King Kekaulike. His teammate, Teiva Keomaniboth, followed with a victory at No. 3. The other Na Ali’i to win was Bella’s brother, Kanoa, at No. 4.

“It was good to win,” Panebianco said. “Honestly, I just went out there trying to catch two good waves and, you know, not fall. It was probably the best and the biggest I’ve ever surfed it, especially in a heat — you don’t normally get conditions like that.

The other winners included Kahlil Pineres-Schooley of Seabury Hall (boys No. 1); Max Schwartz of Kihei Charter (boys No. 5); Sloane Jucker of Maui Prep (girls No. 1); and Sophie Bunch of Maui Christian (girls No. 5). It was Jucker’s third victory of the season, and the second wins for Bunch and Schwartz.

The final contest that determines the team champions will be Saturday at Hookipa.

Team Standings after three surf contests

Sophia Bunch of Maui Christian rides an inside wave in claiming the girls No. 5. Photo courtesy Ernie Black

Boys — 1. King Kekaulike, 39; 2. Kihei Charter, 33; 3. Maui Prep, 28; 4. Maui Christian, 26; 5. Seabury Hall, 25; 6. Baldwin, 24; 7. Hana, 19; 8. Kamehameha, 13; 8. Kulanihakoi, 13; 10. Maui High, 7; 11. Haleakala Waldorf, 6; 12. Lahainaluna, 5.

Girls — 1. King Kekaulike, 36; 2. Maui Christian, 35; 3. Maui Prep, 31; 4. Baldwin, 22; 5. Kihei Charter, 22; 6. Haleakala Waldorf, 20; 6. Kulanihakoi, 20; 8. Lahainaluna, 18; 9. Seabury Hall, 17; 10. Maui High, 9; 11. Kamehameha, 4.

Boys results

Team scores — 1. King Kekaulike, 56; 2. Kihei Charter, 49; 3. Maui Prep, 45; 4. Baldwin, 42; 5. Seabury Hall, 41; 6. Hana, 38; 6. Maui Christian, 38; 8. Kulanihakoi, 22; 9. Haleakala Waldorf, 20; 10. Kamehameha Maui 19; 11. Maui High, 6; 12. Lahainaluna, 4.

No. 1 — 1. Kahlil Pineres-Schooley, Seabury Hall, 14.20; 2. Zolten Poulsen, Maui Prep, 12.84; 3. Chase Burnes, King Kekaulike, 12.43; 4. Memphis Brown, Haleakala Waldorf, 11.86; 5. Aiden Haas, Kihei Charter, 9.00; 6. Kanoa Gaffney, Hana, 8.83.

Kahlil Pineres-Schooley of Seabury Hall claimed his first win of the year at boys No. 1. Photo courtesy Ernie Black

No. 2 — 1. Kingston Panebianco, King Kekaulike, 11.97; 2. Marley Franco, Haleakala Waldorf, 10.10; 3. Ezra Offergeld, Maui Prep, 10.07; 4. Rex Ang, Baldwin, 9.87; 5. Blake Gebb, Seabury Hall, 9.17; 6. Jayden Craig, Kihei Charter, 7.03;

No.3 — 1. Teiva Keomaniboth, King Kekaulike, 12.80; 2. Miki Przeciechowski, Kihei Charter, 9.83; 3. T.J. Hehemann, Maui Prep, 8.33 4. Huy Vu, Baldwin, 7.60; 5. Noah Dvorak, Maui Christian, 7.57; 6. Cru Spalding, Kamehameha, 0.

No. 4 — 1. Kanoa Kuailani, King Kekaulike, 12.33; 2. Jude Mathers, Maui Christian, 8.20; 3. Noah Haas, Kihei Charter, 7.83; 4. Maxwell Aaron, Hana, 6.93; 5. Lane Solano, Seabury Hall, 6.61; 6. Ayden Truong, Baldwin, 6.16.

No. 5 — 1. Max Schwartz, Kihei Charter, 9.50; 2. Dylan Molina, Baldwin, 9.43; 3. Imiloa Nelson, Hana, 8.07; 4. Jack Hill, Maui Christian, 7.34; 5. Jack Leone, Maui Prep, 6.27; 6. Beck Riemenschneider, King Kekaulike, 4.00.

Girls Results

Team scores — 1. King Kekaulike, 59; 2. Maui Christian, 56; 3. Maui Prep, 52; 4. Kihei Charter, 45; 5. Haleakala, 34; 6. Lahainaluna, 23; 6. Baldwin, 23; 8. Seabury Hall, 16; 9. Kulanihakoi, 15; 10. Maui High, 6.

No. 1 — 1. Sloane Jucker, Maui Prep, 15.33; 2. Layla James, Kihei Charter, 6.93; 3. Lila Sloan, Maui Christian, 5.33; 4. Chrislyn Simpson-Kane, King Kekaulike, 5.27; 5. Graye Smith, Baldwin, 5.24; 6. Gianna Pogni, Lahainaluna, 4.16.

No. 2 — 1. Ayla Daian, King Kekaulike, 12.23; 2. Mikaia Barnes, Maui Christian, 11.67; 3. Imani Caserta, Maui Prep, 9.16; 4. Kelea DaCaro, Kihei Charter, 2.97; 5. Alexa Johnson, Kulanihakoi, 1.17; 6. Talei Laury-Schaefer, Haleakala Waldorf, 0.

No. 3 — 1. Bella Kuailani, King Kekaulike, 10.57; 2. Thayane Colpas, Maui Christian, 7.33; 3. Zenara Dattola, Kihei Charter, 7.17; 4. Layla Merrill, Maui Prep, 5.50; 5. Oliana Schur, Lahainaluna, 2.23; 6. Bella Molina, Kulanihakoi, 2.00.

No. 4 — 1. Sochi Hendrson, King Kekaulike, 12.84; 2. Talia Sloan, Maui Christian, 11.27; 3. Alyssa Condrey, Maui Prep, 7.00; 4. Natalie Riggs, Kihei Charter, 4.80; 5. Isadora Casare, 4.33.

No. 5 — 1. Sophia Bunch, Maui Christian, 10.67; 2. Kaya Przecieshowski, King Kekaulike, 7.57; 3. Ilana Caserta, Maui Prep, 6.50; 4. Mia Kondo-Long, Baldwin, 4.27; 5. Gisele Miller, Lahainaluna, 3.60; 6. Isabella Salamone, Haleakala Waldorf, 3.43.

Sloane Jucker of Maui Prep rides a rare left. She won the girls No.1 for the third time. Photo courtesy Ernie Black

Kingston Panebianco of King Kekaulike won at boys No. 2 and clinched the title for Na Alii. Photo courtesy Ernie Black

Teiva Keomaniboth of King Kekaulike cranks a big turn to win boys No. 3. Photo courtesy Ernie Black

Bella Kuailani of King Kekaulike takes a late drop in winning the girls No. 3. Photo courtesy Ernie Black