Until last year, it hadn’t happened in forever. Now lightning can strike two years in a row.
Kawehi Gillcoat completed the MIL slam last season on his way to a runner-up finish at states, and now it is Coby Ravida’s turn.
The Baldwin lightweight is the top seed at 120 pounds in this weekend’s MIL Championships at Kamehameha-Maui. He won his first two championships at 106 pounds before stepping up and taking the gold at 113 last year.
Ravida’s brother Tobey is the top seed at 113 pounds and is in line to join his brother as a repeater after winning at 106 pounds last year.
Lahainaluna has a little bit of history of its own to make, with Kanoa Lanoza and Jesse Dudoit going for their third league title. Dudoit is the top seed at 145 after winning at 134 and 122 the last two years. Lanoza didn’t get the benefit of the a top seed, falling to No. 2 behind Baldwin’s Kahiliwala Joy at 145 pounds despite winning titles at 122 the last two years.
The most celebrated wrestlers in the tournament are on the girls side, with three athletes going for the slam.
The road got considerably easier for two of them, as cousins Nanea Estrella of Lahianaluna and Baldwin’s Waipulani Estrella-Beauchamp declared the family feud over and moved to different weight classes.
Estrella is the top seed at 132 and Estrella-Beauchamp is at 138. They are the top two wrestlers in Hawaii Prep World’s Pound-for-Pound rankings. Jahnea Miguel of Baldwin is also going for the slam, getting the top seed as the reigning champion at 138 after winning previous titles at 145 and 132.
Shayna Kamaka of Baldwin and Lahianaluna’s Fayannie Rosario and Shannon Jaramillo are going for their third titles. Kamaka is the top seed at 168 and Jaramillo is in the top spot at 184. Rosario got a tough draw at 155, being placed second in a three-girl bracket behind Baldwin’s Kaceylee Pua in the latest list on trackwrestling.com.
Other girls bidding for a repeat include Liana Ferreira of Baldwin as the top seed at 97 and Hana’s Tuu Halakahi at 225.
The match of the tournament could come at 117 pounds, where both Alicia Frank of Lahainaluna and Molokai’s Keeya Bicoy are trying to repeat. Bicoy earned the top seed in the 3-girl bracket with Frank second. Bicoy has pinned Frank twice this season.
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