Moanalua established itself as the early favorite in the O'ahu Interscholastic Association girls volleyball race yesterday, sweeping past visiting Roosevelt, 26-24, 25-21.

Na Menehune improved to 2-0 in the OIA's Red Conference Eastern Division with their second straight victory over a perennial contender. Moanalua swept Kalani on Wednesday.

Roosevelt, which defeated defending OIA champ Kahuku on the road Wednesday, fell to 1-1.

Na Menehune trailed 10-4 in the first game yesterday and then 12-6 in the second before rallying past the Rough Riders.

"It helps that we had a tough preseason schedule," Moanalua coach Tommy Lake said. "We played Mira Costa (Manhattan Beach, Calif.), the No. 1 team in the country; we played Kamehameha, Punahou, Kahuku ... a lot of tough teams."

Roosevelt, the defending OIA runner-up, is another tough team. The Rough Riders used three aces to jump to a 10-4 lead in the first game, but Na Menehune crept back behind a balanced attack led by Kaleinani Kabalis, Melanie Manutai and Sarah Robinson and tied it at 11.

The game remained tight and was tied at 24 before Moanalua won it on a kill by Robinson and a Roosevelt spike that hit the antennae.

Game 2 started equally tight before the Rough Riders went on a 6-0 run to lead 12-6.

As he did in the first game, Lake did not panic and eschewed calling a timeout.

"He expects us to have teamwork and pull through it," said Kabalis, a 5-foot-7 junior who finished with seven kills. "We just try to stay positive and get two points at a time — even if we're down 10 points, we just push for two, and then try to get two more. We don't let down and keep pushing all the way."

Kabalis, one of the state's most explosive hitters, showed off her defensive skills during the second-game comeback. She had three digs and two kills to help Na Menehune tie it at 13, then had two kills as Moanalua went up 22-19.

After Roosevelt closed to 23-21 on a Menehune error, the Rough Riders served out and — with Kabalis digging a rocket spike by Mele Yamashiro — Bri Amian ended it with a kill down the left side.

"They out-scrapped us and out-transitioned us; it wasn't based on one point," Roosevelt coach Bryan Camello said. "They're well-coached, and they kept putting pressure on us."

Robinson led Moanalua with a match-high nine kills, and Manutai added six kills.

PUNAHOU WINS TITLE AT WASHINGTON TOURNEY

Punahou's girls defeated Bishop Blanchet (Seattle), 25-14, 25-17, Friday night in the championship match of the Emerald City Invitational at Sammamish, Wash.

The Buffanblu won seven other matches to get to the title match, dropping only one game along the way. The eight-team tournament included two teams — Emerald Ridge (South Hill) and White River (Buckley) — that played in Washington's state tournament last year.

Reach Wes Nakama at wnakama@honoluluadvertiser.com.