Hawaii State Meet

Punahou Boys Use Depth To Secure First State Title In 23 Years

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

Hunter Shields won the 3-mile boys championship race at the Hawaii state cross country championships and Maui High teammates Damon Wakfield and Adam Hakola finished third and fourth on Saturday at Seabury Hall. 

Running on their home island, Maui High didn't have the depth at No. 5, however, to pull off a repeat of its 2018 state championship. 

Punahou did, and won the state title thanks to fifth man Nicholas Pugliese, a freshman who finished 15th overall.  It was the school's first boys championship since 1996 and 12th overall.

Shields' winning time was 16:15.6. Adam Harder of Hanalani, the 2018 state champion, finished second. 

Emily Naylor, a sophomore from Kalaheo, improved from 99th place at the state meet a year ago to first place.

Naylor ran 19:37.87 and won the girls race by 28 seconds. 

Punahou put four runners in the top six and five in the top nine on the way to a dominant team victory with 26 points. It was the Buff N Blues' 14th girls championship in 15 years.

Team Champions - 

Division 1 - Punahou boys 41 points, Punahou girls 26 points

Division 2 - Seabury Hall boys 47 points, Hawaii Baptist Academy girls 29 points