Hawaii Baptist Academy gathers to celebrate a win against Hanalani. Sylvia Lee | SL

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040114_SL-BVB-HBA_HAN5X0A1347.jpg - Sylvia Lee | SL

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MILILANI — A quartet of underclassmen shouldered the load Tuesday afternoon to lead Hawaii Baptist to a straight-set win at Hanalani. The scores were 25-15 and 25-16.

Sophomore middle hitter Brett Miller put down a match-high six kills and freshman Nicolas Caballes recorded five kills as the reigning three-time Division II state champion Eagles improved to 6-0 in the Interscholastic League of Honolulu.

"We're happy with the win," HBA coach Teoni Obrey said. "We're working on getting better, being efficient and giving a consistent effort and just being all-around good teammates."

Sophomores Caleb Fisher and Issac Liva added four kills apiece for HBA, which has yet to drop a set this season.

"We're young and inexperienced, so we have a lot of guys in new roles with new responsibilities, so we're getting better," Obrey said.

The Eagles served tough, recording nine aces to six errors. Joshua Kishaba, Fisher and Liva each notched two aces.

"We're just working on execution and just being consistent — like I said, that's huge for us," Obrey said. "Our sideout-efficiency, as well as our serving, is something that we stress."

Hawaii Baptist used a 7-1 run to seize an early 8-2 lead and went on a 6-2 run later in the set to take a 14-6 advantage. Miller put away back-to-back kills to ignite a 5-2 run to close out the opening set.

"He's getting better," Obrey said of Miller. "It's kind of exciting to see how he will progress over the next few years. He definitely is getting better and he works hard, too, so it's a great thing to have."

The Eagles separated early in game two, using a 9-3 lead on a Kellen Takatsuka kill from the left side. Hanalani pulled within 14-11 on an HBA hitting error, but could get no closer. HBA closed out the game and the match on an 11-5 run that ended with a Liva kill from the right side.

Obrey, whose squad is made up of just five seniors, said he's seen improvement in nearly every facet this season.

"It's exciting, because in the preseason we struggled just finding our roles and as the season progressed, we've started to settle in and it's been some good stuff," Obrey said.

Hanalani, which fell to 5-3 on the season, suffered its second straight loss. The Royals, who entered the game in third place, did not have a varsity team the past two seasons.

"That in my 10 or 11 years, that's the best Hanalani team," Obrey said. "They kept on fighting and they have some volleyball players, so it's going to be exciting to see them progress over the next few years."

HBA hosts University High at 11:30 a.m. Saturday. Hanalani next plays Tuesday against Hawaiian Mission.