The Keaau curse is no more.
Ivory Ayers etched her name into Cougars lore Saturday, pinning Konawaena’s Kapoina Bailey in the first all-BIIF final at the HHSAA wrestling championships in Honolulu, delivering her school its first gold medal in state competition.
Ayers’ victory was a breakthrough for her league as well, ending the BIIF’s three-year gold drought at states.
The skid was broken, for all intents and purposes, earlier in the day in the 168-pound semifinals, where Ayers, a senior and the No. 2 seed, earned her third of four pins at the tournament, while Bailey surprised top-seeded Saydie Kala of Baldwin 5-3.