Iolani Alumni

In a 24-7 loss to Oregon State, Raynold Stowers ‘04 led the team in rushing, but finished with just 26 yards on 11 carries for the Utah Utes who struggled in the second half after losing starting quarterback Brian Johnson to a shoulder injury late in the second quarter.

Raynold received a majority of the carries throughout the game, but couldn’t find his groove as the Beaver defense swarmed the line of scrimmage and shut down the Utes running game, holding them to 18 total yards. Despite the low production, Raynold is likely to have more opportunities in upcoming weeks as Utah will be without sophomore running back Matt Asiata for the rest of the season due to a broken leg which he suffered early in the first half.

Utah (0-1) will have a little more than a week to recover before facing the Air Force Academy in their home opener on September 8th.

If you were in school during the ’80s… I’m sure you remember this:

Japanese singer/songwriter Angela Aki ‘96 is featured on this month’s cover of entertainment and culture magazine Eye-Ai. She is set to release her second album, “Today“, under the Sony Music label on September 19th, 2007 — a follow-up to her 2006 release “Home” which sold over 500,000 copies and reached #2 on the Oricon Top 200 Weekly Music Chart.

Born and raised in Japan, Angela moved to Hawaii at the age of 15. She is the daughter of Kiyoshi Aki, the owner/co-founder of AEON Institute of Language Education, one of the “Big Four” Eikaiwa (English conversation) schools in Japan.

Visit the Angela Aki Official Website »

Finally healthy after battling through shoulder injuries in his first three seasons, Rayold Stowers ‘04, a redshirt junior at the University of Utah, has been named the starting tailback for the Utes in their season opener on Thursday night against Oregon State.

Raynold earned the starting role over backups Matt Asiata, Darryl Poston and Darrell Mack (redshirting) with a good showing in the spring and a strong fall camp, but, according to head coach Kyle Whittingham, the trio will share carries come game time and “Whichever one is the most efficient will get the most carries.”

In an interview with the Salt Lake Tribune, Raynold said, “Hopefully I’ll set the tempo and make us all look good. All four of us have worked so hard to get it so we knew whichever one of us would get it would be ready. I’m glad I get the opportunity.”

Thursday night’s game at Oregon State will be televised live on Fox Sports Pacific (Oceanic 246) at 4:00pm HST.

[Photo: Honolulu Advertiser]

In their home opener at Kozuki Stadium, the Iolani Raider Football fell behind early and struggled against the Kalaheo ground attack, giving up 232 total yards and four rushing touchdowns, to earn their first loss of the season.

Quarterback Cody VonAppen, son of former UH head Coach Fred VonAppen, led the way for Kalaheo, rushing for 97 yards and three touchdowns.

Iolani quarterback Kela Marciel threw for 265 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions, but was hit hard in the pocket in the middle of the fourth and forced to leave the game. Sophomore backup Jarrett Arakawa entered on the next series to lead the team on a 63 yard scoring drive to cut the lead to three with under three minutes remaining, but didn’t get another opportunity as the Mustangs recovered the onside kick and were able to run out the clock on their final possession.

The Raiders (1-1) were without two key defensive starters, Peter Takara ‘08 and Christian Siania ‘08, due to injury and hope to have them back by the start of the regular season. Their next game will be against the Waianae Seariders on Friday, August 31 at Raymond Torii Stadium in Waianae at 7:00pm.

More from the Honolulu Advertiser »

[Photo: Honolulu Advertiser]

Kila Ka’aihue ‘02 (Wichita Wranglers - AA) - In his second stint with the Royals Double-A club, Kila has produced consistently at the plate batting .244 (50 for 205) with 9 home runs and 30 RBI through 58 games. He is currently in the midst of a four game hot streak in which he’s 6 for 12 with 3 doubles, 2 home runs and 5 RBI.

Kala Ka’aihue ‘03 (Mississippi Braves - AA) - Since being promoted to Double-A Mississippi in early August, Kala has struggled at the plate through his first 25 games, batting just .125 (11 for 88) with no home runs and 7 RBI. During his time in Single-A, Kala batted .298, led the league in home runs (22) and was among the top-3 in RBI.

Michael “Ian” Mopas ‘06 (GCL Twins - Rookie) - Ian got off to a slow start in his first three appearances, giving up 7 earned runs in just 5.0 total innings. He has since improved, making two more appearances for the club and giving up just one hit and no runs in 2.1 innings. On the season, Ian has an ERA of 9.95 with 3 strikeouts.

Keoni DeRenne ‘97 (York Revolution - Independant) - Through 60 games with the Revolution, Keoni is batting .302 (71 for 235) with 4 home runs 24 RBI and 40 runs scored. He has just 17 strikeouts to his 29 walks and has accumulated 16 stolen bases.

Jamie Cheng (wife of Norman Cheng ‘95) and Bree (Kurihara) Komagome ‘95, owners of Elements Spa & Salon in Honolulu, were recently featured in the Honolulu Star Bulletin for “Thinking Out of the Box” as they celebrated their second anniversary at their location on Kapolani Boulevard.

In 2005, Cheng and Komagome, both attorneys, left the law world to open “Elements”, taking over an existing break-even venture and turning it into a successful small business which now offers a unique mix of products and services including “everything from cut and color to hair extensions, waxing, makeup application and lessons, and massage and facial therapies.”

Visit their website at ElementsHawaii.com »

[Photo: Honolulu Star Bulletin]

The Iolani Raider football team got off to a quick start Saturday night against the Kaiser Cougars, going up 34-0 after the first quarter, and never looked back.

Starting quarterback Kela Marciel went 8-8 for 104 yards and two touchdowns in one quarter of work while senior running back Justin Yamamoto (shown) found the endzone twice on just five carries.

Iolani’s next game will be against the Kalaheo Mustangs on Saturday, August 25th at 2:00pm at Kozuki Stadium.

Hightlight of the Night: Senior placekicker Kodi Look, daughter of head coach Wendell Look, entered the game in the first quarter and converted on all three of her extra point opportunities.

More from the Honolulu Advertiser »

[Photo: Honolulu Advertiser]

Event Date: Saturday, August 18th, 2007

Hunt down those tickets that came in the mail a few weeks ago and head over to Aloha Stadium to watch the 44th Annual Father Bray Memorial Football Classic this Saturday, August 18th.

Not only will you get to see two of the state’s top contenders for the Division II title face off in their first games of the season, but you’ll also have the added bonus of watching head coach Wendell Look ‘78 take on his former player and current Kaiser head coach Pat Samsonas ‘93 in the feature game which kicks off at 7:30pm.

Samsonas, a former student, player and assistant coach at Iolani School, is now in his third season at Kaiser after taking over as the head coach prior to the 2005 season. His staff also includes two other former Iolani players, Akoni Ah Yat ‘97 and Jay Marcouiller ‘02.

NOTE: If you can make it down a little early, the school is hosting a Pre-Game Tailgate Reception from 5:30-7:15pm just inside of Gate 5.

While current Iolani players will be competing for the title in the 25th Annual Ann Kang Invitational Volleyball Tournament which begins today, several of the tournament’s alumni will be in action throughout the mainland competing for their teams as they prepare for their upcoming NCAA season.

• Kapua Kamana’o ‘07 - Saint Mary’s College
• Marya Kaminski ‘07 - Washington University, St. Louis
• Miyoko Petit ‘07 - Harvard University
• Megan Burton ‘06 - Saint Mary’s College
• Chelsea Ching ‘06 - Azusa Pacific
• Leigh Sumida ‘06 - University of Puget Sound
• Kelli Grobe ‘05 - Princeton University
• Jenny Kennedy ‘05 - University of California - Davis
• Ashley Aratani ‘04 - University of Washington

Times have definitely changed…

According to the recent Summer Edition of the Iolani Bulletin, more students from the Class of 2007 will be attending the University of Southern California (26) than the University of Hawaii (25). Interesting, considering the cost between the schools differs by $15,038 PER SEMESTER.

Here’s the list of expected tuition costs for the upcoming 2007 Fall Semester for the Iolani Class of 2007’s Top 4 most popular schools (not including fees or room and board):

• University of Southern California - 26 students - $17,606
• University of Hawaii at Manoa - 25 students - $2,568
• Santa Clara University - 15 students - $16,500
• Loyola Marymount University - 13 students - $15,584

Organized by former UH volleyball standout and longtime Iolani teacher and coach Ann Kang, the Iolani Invitational Volleyball Tournament will mark its 25th anniversary this year when play begins on August 15th.

Twenty teams from Hawaii and California will compete for the title in the nationally recognized tournament which opens on Wednesday and Thursday with pool play and continues on Friday and Saturday with the Championship and Consolation brackets.

The teams participating in this year’s tournament include Iolani (A and B), Punahou, Kamehameha, HBA, Sacred Hearts, Waianae, Moanalua, Kapolei, Kauai, and Molokai from Hawaii as well as Redondo, La Canada, Marlborough, Brentwood, Oxnard, Dana Hills, Corona Del Mar, Capistrano Valley and Santa Barbara from California.

See the complete schedule for the 2007 Ann Kang Invitational »

Raynold Stowers ‘04, a redshirt junior at the University of Utah, enters this year’s camp as one of four players in contention for the starting role at tailback this upcoming season. After suffering through shoulder injuries in 2004 and 2005, he played sparingly last season, appearing in seven games and rushing 5 times for 23 yards with one touchdown. Finally healthy, Raynold impressed in spring workouts and has done well early in fall camp, prompting praise from head coach Kyle Whittingham. “Ray Stowers had a nice day and Darryl Poston came in great. Those (along with new recruit Matt Asiata) are the top three right now.”

Kiran Kepo’o ‘06, a “gray shirt” quarterback at the University of Hawaii, enrolled in school full-time this past semester and, despite doing well in spring workouts, is expected to red-shirt this upcoming season.

Heisman Trophy candidate Colt Brennan has already locked down the starting job (obviously) and returnees Tyler Graunke and Inoke Funaki, who each saw playing time last season, are likely to secure the backup roles. Next season, with the departure of a few seniors, Kiran will have an opportunity to compete for a starting role as a red-shirt freshman with four years of remaining eligibility.

With over a decade of experience and $150 million in closed transactions, Trevor Benn ‘92 recently formed Benn Pacific Group, a boutique full-service brokerage and consulting company.

“Our goal is to leverage our experience, knowledge and contacts to provide our clients with exceptional opportunities in real estate,” Benn said in recent profile in Hawaii Business magazine.

Currently Benn Pacific is the exclusive listing brokerage for the Regency on BeachWalk and the Ilikai Hotel, with several other large projects in the works…

[Photo: Wife, Rae (Ifuku) Benn '92 and children, Tyler & Malia]

Duke Hashimoto ‘02, a member of Real Salt Lake of the MLS, was placed on the Season Ending Injury list on June 28th after undergoing successful surgery to repair a tear in the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee, an injury he suffered during a practice session a few weeks prior.

In his second season, Hashimoto has yet to see action in an MLS regular season contest, but has been a regular for Real Salt Lake during international friendly, MLS Reserve Division, and Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup affairs. He was acquired by Real Salt Lake last May in a trade with the Columbus Crew after the Ohio club drafted him in the fourth round (38th overall) of the 2006 MLS SuperDraft.

Hashimoto is a graduate of Southern Methodist University where he amassed with goals and 20 assists in 71 contests during his stellar career. In his final season in 2005, he was named the Conference USA Offensive Player of the Year and was voted to the NSCAA/adidas All-America Second Team.