Konawaena stars sweep BIIF honors after unbeaten title run

Konawaena and Kohala turned the BIIF girls basketball awards into a referendum on sustained excellence, with the island’s most established programs again setting the standard. Konawaena’s unbeaten Division I run and Kohala’s championship momentum produced the top individual and coaching honors, reinforcing why South Kona and Kapaʻau remain the center of girls basketball on Hawaiʻi Island.

Konawaena senior guard Mikela Salazar-Harrell was named Division I Player of the Year after leading the Wildcats in scoring and steering the offense as a pass-first guard who consistently made the right play. She averaged nearly 14 points per game in BIIF play, scored in double figures 10 times and reached a season-high 21 points against Pāhoa in December. Her balance of scoring and distribution helped Konawaena overwhelm league opponents and stay in control from start to finish.

That team structure showed up in the numbers. Konawaena averaged nearly 64 points per game in BIIF play while allowing fewer than 13, then finished 13-0 in league action and 22-3 overall. Bobbie Awa was named Division I Coach of the Year after guiding the Wildcats to a second straight unbeaten conference season, capped by a 53-16 win over Waiākea in the BIIF Division I championship at Hilo Civic on Jan. 28, 2026. The Wildcats later beat Moanalua 41-29 in the HHSAA quarterfinals before falling 42-41 to ʻIolani in the semifinals on Feb. 5, 2026, after leading by 12 entering the fourth quarter.

Kohala’s awards told a similar story in Division II. Adriana Soriano was named Player of the Year, and coach Beau Cazimero earned Coach of the Year honors after another championship run. Soriano averaged more than 15 points per game in 2025-26, building on a 2024-25 season in which she averaged 12.4 points overall, scored 23 against Sacred Hearts and helped Kohala capture its first BIIF girls basketball title since 1991. The repeat recognition showed that Kohala’s breakthrough was not a one-off.

The island’s depth reached beyond the headline winners. Konawaena guard Kaylie Yamasaki made ScoringLive’s All-Hawaii Third Team, while Salazar-Harrell and Soriano were both named to the Second Team on March 22. Konawaena teammates Caysea Kaupu, Kiilei Leleiwī and Angeline Molina received honorable mention recognition, and Waiākea freshman Arieana Doran also drew notice after averaging nearly 13 points per game and scoring 30 against HPA. Together, the honors pointed to a BIIF landscape where the best programs keep replenishing talent, and where the next title race already looks like a contest between schools that have learned how to win every year.