Kauai
Balladeer’s Blog continues its examination of the grand and exciting Hawaiian epic about the goddesses Pele and Hi’iaka.
PART SEVENTEEN
After the feast of dog meat served up by their mortal hosts, Hi’iaka and Wahine engaged in conversation with those hosts regarding some of the gods of Hawaii. They discussed Kahikona, the god of fishermen … Limaloa, the god of mirages and illusions … And Nomaka’o, the goddess who was the older sister of Pele but had been reduced to serving as Pele’s chambermaid after being conquered by the volcano and fire goddess.
Eventually the ladies went to sleep, as did the seer Malaeha’akoa and his wife, in whose Kauai home the travelers were staying.
The next morning etiquette permitted Malaeha’akoa to ask his honored guests what had brought them to his home. He was grateful to Hi’iaka for restoring his ability to walk and was anxious to offer her any help he could. The goddess explained the quest she and the mortal woman Wahine had come on – to secure and escort Kauai’s Prince Lohiau back to the Big Island of Hawaii to be the mate of the goddess Pele. Yet upon arriving on Kauai they had spotted the spirit of Lohiau roaming the cliffs above the village of Haena. Continue reading
FINAL FOUR – FIRST BERTH – The 8 seeds – the GILLETTE COLLEGE PRONGHORNS – stunned the nation yesterday with their upset win over the top seeded TRINITY VALLEY COLLEGE CARDINALS. The Pronghorns led the Cardinals in this Battle Royal by a slender margin of 36-34 at Halftime. After the break the action was just as fierce, but in the end Gillette College walked away with an 87-83 victory. Kavell Bigby- Williams led the Pronghorns into the Final Four with a Double- Double of 19 points and 20 rebounds. 
FINAL FOUR – SECOND BERTH – This game pitted the 7 seeds – the HUTCHINSON COLLEGE BLUE DRAGONS – against the 2nd seeded NORTHWEST FLORIDA STATE RAIDERS, the defending national champions. The Blue Dragons set the hardcourt on fire with an upset of their own, clubbing the Raiders into submission by a score of 55-28 at the midpoint. In the 2nd Half both teams scored in the 60s as Hutchinson College advanced to the Final Four with a Century Club level tally of 116-90. Samajae Haynes-Jones tossed in 33 points for the Blue Dragons. 
GHOSTWATCH (1992) – This was a British made for t.v. movie that aired on Halloween Night in 1992. Ghostwatch is a nice – albeit boring – little novelty item for the way it anticipated the paranormal “reality” (LMAO) shows of today. 
DAY ONE – GAME ONE – This Region’s 4 seeds – the MID-AMERICA CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY EVANGELS – played the 5th seeded PARK UNIVERSITY PIRATES. It would be tough to beat this game for tip-off to final buzzer intensity. The game was tied 13 times and the lead was exchanged 8 times as the Evangels eked out a 42-40 lead at Halftime and then went on to win by a final score of 88-86. Bryon Miller led Mid-America Christian in scoring with 26 points. 
DAY ONE – GAME TWO – The TALLADEGA COLLEGE TORNADOES came in as the 2 seed and faced the 7th seeded WESTMONT COLLEGE WARRIORS. The Tornadoes got almost more than they could handle from the Warriors, who actually led Talladega College 33-31 at the break. In the 2nd Half the Tornadoes came from behind for a tight 63-61 victory led by Nigel Jones’ Double- Double of 20 points and 11 rebounds. 
Balladeer’s Blog continues its examination of the grand and exciting Hawaiian epic about the goddesses Pele and Hi’iaka. 
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME – The lone remaining 2 seeds – the INDIANA WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY WILDCATS – fought for the championship against the lone remaining 1 seeds – the UNIVERSITY OF SAINT FRANCIS (IN) COUGARS. Yes, it was an all Crossroads League title tilt as these two familiar foes fought it out. The Wildcats held a 32-26 lead at Halftime but had to hold off a furious 2nd Half rally by the Cougars for a 69-66 triumph! Bob Peters tossed in 20 points to lead Indiana Wesleyan to its second title in three years. * THE WILDCATS ARE CHAMPIONS OF NAIA DIVISION TWO * 
FINAL FOUR: FIRST SEMIFINAL – This was a tale of two Halves as the 2 seeds – the INDIANA WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY WILDCATS – took on their Region’s 1 seeds – the DAVENPORT UNIVERSITY PANTHERS. 
ROUND TWO RESUMES – Yesterday the 2nd Round continued in D2. The 4th seeded STONEHILL COLLEGE SKYHAWKS did battle with their Region’s 8 seeds – the SOUTHERN NEW HAMPSHIRE UNIVERSITY PENMEN. The Penmen stunned the Skyhawks out of the gate and by Halftime had built up a 37-21 lead. Stonehill College came fighting back in the 2nd Half and forced Overtime with a 65-65 tie to end Regulation. In the extra session the Skyhawks won it by a tight score of 75-74. Adam Bramanti led Stonehill with 21 points. 
RAILSPLITTERS ADVANCE – The LINCOLN MEMORIAL UNIVERSITY RAILSPLITTERS – the 1 seeds in their Region – took the court against the 4th seeded QUEENS UNIVERSITY OF CHARLOTTE ROYALS. The Railsplitters notched a 43-31 advantage over the Royals by the break. From there Lincoln Memorial University proceeded to blow out Queens U of Charlotte to the tune of 95-67. Gerel Simmons contributed 25 points to lead the Railsplitters in scoring. 
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME – The top seeded HILLSDALE FREE WILL BAPTIST COLLEGE SAINTS did battle with the 3 seeds – the GRACE BIBLE COLLEGE TIGERS – for the NCCAA title. The 1st Half ended with the Saints holding a 43-35 lead but the Tigers came roaring back to force Overtime through a 77-77 tie to end Regulation. In the extra session Hillsdale thoroughly outperformed Grace and won the game 97-84. Trey Sneed led the Saints with 27 points and 9 rebounds and his teammate Antonio Wilson contributed 26 points of his own. * THE SAINTS ARE NCCAA2 CHAMPIONS * 
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME – The top two seeds in this Tournament faced each other for the 2016 Championship. The 1 seeds – the ROCK VALLEY COLLEGE GOLDEN EAGLES – managed a slender 41-39 Halftime lead over the 2nd seeded ROCHESTER TECHNICAL COLLEGE YELLOW JACKETS. After the break the Golden Eagles steadily put more distance between themselves and the Yellow Jackets, ultimately winning by a score of 88-75. Rock Valley College was led to their second title in three years by L.T. Davis with 25 points. * THE GOLDEN EAGLES ARE NJCAA3 CHAMPIONS * 
