Seabury Hall wins school’s first HHSAA girls volleyball title
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The Seabury Hall girls volleyball team ended its season second to none, leaving no unfinished business on the court this year. The Spartans’ job is done.
Entering the Hawaii High School Athletic Association 2026 Girls Volleyball State Championships on Oct. 27-30 with the No. 1 seed, the Spartans dominated like they did throughout the regular season, steamrolling their way into Friday’s championship match against No. 3-seeded Waipahu at the Stan Sheriff Center on Oahu.
Defeating Waipahu 3-1 for the title, it was the perfect ending for Seabury, capping off a 19-0 season with the school's first-ever state championship in girls volleyball.
"It was honestly just the most unreal feeling for everyone on the team," said junior Tulsi Erlemann, Seabury's defensive specialist. "It was like all of our hard work that we've been working for for two years just paid off. We were so hungry for it after we came so close last year. It just felt amazing."
Seabury finished the 2025 season runner-up, falling just short in a five-set championship match that saw the Spartans lose the fifth set by two points. They were on a mission not to let that happen again this season.
"It just felt like unfinished business, you know," junior Dillon McLellan said. "We knew that this year it was our time to really avenge ourselves from last year. I would say last year definitely left a big hole in our season, just didn’t feel like the job was done yet."
In fact, Seabury Hall was so determined that the Spartans posted 14 victories in straight sets this year and never even saw a fifth set over the course of their 19 wins.
"I feel like our mentality the entire time was, 'Let's go out, show them who we are and try to sweep every single team,'" said setter Destiny Keomaka-Wood, the team's lone senior.
Members of the Seabury Hall girls volleyball team react after winning the state championship by defeating Waipahu 3-1 on Friday, Oct. 30. Photo courtesy Zhaiden-Cyris Lizada/HHSAA
In the championship match, Seabury was leading Waipahu 24-17 in the fourth set before Waipahu scored on an attack error, cutting the Spartans' lead to 24-18.
On the next rally, Seabury hit into a Waipahu block, but Erlemann made "the most incredible cover move," Spartans coach Lecca Roberts said.
In a play Roberts described as "total magic," Erlemann's save helped set up Spartans junior hitter Milaniakai Padilla for the championship-clinching kill with an assist from Keomaka-Wood. The point gave Seabury a 25-18, 25-18, 12-25, 25-18 victory and set off the Spartans' celebration.
"It's been really awesome to bring home a state championship, not only for our school and our team, but for the whole Maui community," Keomaka-Wood said. "It's really cool we get to be the first team to do it out of DI and DII."
In the championship match, Padilla recorded a game-high 21 kills with 12 digs and two aces. McLellan also had a stellar title match with 16 kills, 10 digs, four blocks and two aces, and Kamalei Stewart recorded 10 kills and two blocks.
Keomaka-Wood managed the Spartans' hitters while compiling 39 assists in the match, and Erlemann led the defense with a match-high 25 digs. Roberts said Erlemann has grown a lot over the last few years as she's matured into "a true leader" for the team.
"I would say in this tournament, and specifically in the state final, Tulsi was really the one that was holding that team together," Roberts said. "She was the one in the huddle with me saying, 'Hey girls, we got this.' She was on the court, 'Two more points! Two more points!' You could hear her being loud; you could hear her talking the whole time.'"
Seabury Hall's Tulsi Erlemann reacts to a point during Friday's state championship match. Photo courtesy Zhaiden-Cyris Lizada/HHSAA
Roberts said Erlemann has made great progress at the service line, always seems to be in the right place and turned in many "full-send" digs where she sacrificed her body to get to the ball. Stewart was a new addition to the team this year, and Roberts said Stewart picked up the Spartans' fast-paced style of play even though it didn't come easy at first.
"It was Oct. 9 and something just clicked," Roberts said, as she explained that they changed a couple small drills in the gym and Stewart saw great gains in play.
"I feel like we have just seen the beginning of this kid," Roberts said. "She is going to be a tremendous asset moving forward."
Kamalei Stewart (22) celebrates a point with her teammates during the HHSAA championship. Photo courtesy Zhaiden-Cyris Lizada/HHSAA
Showing the Spartans' depth, McLellan, Stewart, Erlemann and Keomaka-Wood were all named to the 2026 Division II All Tournament Team, and Padilla was recognized as the tournament's most outstanding player.
"It was definitely a huge honor," McLellan said of making the All Tournament Team. "Receiving awards like that is always a surprise."
For the Spartans' libero, it was an extra-special surprise.
"It was super exciting because last year I didn't get it and my other teammates did, so that made me more hungry for it this year," Erlemann said. "It was just great to be on that list with so many other amazing players."
The path to the state championship match included contests against Kaiser in the quarterfinals and Le Jardin in the semifinals.
Against Kaiser, Padilla posted a match-high 28 kills and 21 digs as Seabury won 3-1.
"She had an incredible tournament," Roberts said before relaying a story about the junior standout who has already committed to play for Stanford's beach volleyball team in fall 2028.
Roberts said that after the Maui Interscholastic League tournament this year, not many people heard Padilla say it, but her words were unmistakable.
"She was looking down at her medal, and under her breath was like, 'Well, job's not done,' so she knew the assignment," Roberts said.
Photo courtesy Zhaiden-Cyris Lizada/HHSAA
And she wasn't the only one. Against Kaiser, McLellan recorded 15 kills, nine digs and one ace, while hitting .387. Roberts said it's been fun watching McLellan in practice because "she goes hard," but then McLellan gets in the game and somehow finds a way to elevate her game even further.
"You think you've seen it all, and then game time comes and there's just this different level," Roberts said. "Like there's a button she pushes. I don't know where she finds it because it's kind of wild. She has this incredible other gear that she can find, and she found it for sure in that state final and across the tournament."
Keomaka-Wood also posted 48 assists, four kills and two aces, and Erlemann added 19 digs and two aces while Stewart had eight kills and one block. Roberts said Keomaka has learned how to play chess with the other teams' blockers, while setting the Spartans' offense up for success.
"She really has grown into a tremendous, tremendous leader," Roberts said.
Seabury Hall senior Destiny Keomaka-Wood sets the ball to one of her teammates in the championship match against Waipahu on Friday, Oct. 30. Photo courtesy Zhaiden-Cyris Lizada/HHSAA
In addition to winning the school's first championship, it was also the first for coach Roberts, who graduated from Seabury Hall and played on the Spartans' first volleyball team to win a Maui Interscholastic League championship.
The Spartans said that, looking back years from now, they think they'll remember the team's closeness and the energy they had the most.
For Roberts, she hopes the community knows that Seabury's championship was the product of the team's hard work and determination, as well as the support they've received across the entire volleyball community leading up to this point.
For Roberts, Seabury's first championship was years in the making, if not longer, and it was a complete team effort that pushed the team through injuries and adversity with many different Spartans stepping up along the way.
While the team is trying to take some time to enjoy the moment, some attention is already turning to the 2027 season, especially with Keomaka-Wood being the team's only graduating senior.
According to Seabury Hall's players and coach, they might be done for now, but they aren't pau just yet.
"Yes, you could say the job's done. We have our first banner, but I don't think we're stopping here,” Roberts said.
"We're already preparing ourselves for next season," McLellan said.
Seabury Hall libero Tulsi Erlemann (front center) and her teammates celebrate a point during Friday's state championship match against Waipahu at the Stan Sheriff Center on Oahu. The Spartans won 3-1 to claim the school's first state title. Photo courtesy Zhaiden-Cyris Lizada/HHSAA
Seabury Hall roster
Players on the Seabury Hall girls volleyball team include:
Danielle Myers
Tulsi Erlemann
Zoe Nagle
Isla Carlsen
Stormy Smith
Milaniakai Padilla
Destiny Keomaka-Wood
Lo'eau Noa
Jaya Greenband
Francesca Scapolo
Malu Abrantes
Teegan Ibarra
Dillon McLellan
Joy Jordan-Thobe
Kamalei Stewart
The road to a perfect season
The Seabury Hall girls volleyball team went 19-0 en route to winning the 2026 Hawaii High School Athletic Association Division II State Championship.
Date Opponent Result
8/26 Haleakala Waldorf 3-0
9/2 Kihei Charter 3-0
9/4 Molokai 3-1
9/5 Molokai 3-1
9/9 Kihei Charter 3-0
9/11 Hana 3-0
9/16 Kulanihakoi 3-0
9/17 Hana 3-0
9/30 Haleakala Waldorf 3-0
10/2 Maui Prep 3-0
10/9 Lanai 3-0
10/10 Lanai 3-1
10/14 Maui Prep 3-0
10/16 Kulanihakoi 3-0
10/22 Maui Prep 3-0
10/23 Hana* 3-0
10/28 Kaiser 3-1
10/29 Le Jardin 3-0
10/30 Waipahu** 3-1
* MIL Championship
** HHSAA Championship