Iolani Alumni

The No.2 ranked Iolani Girls Volleyball team opens the 2007 Hawaii State Volleyball Tournament today with an opening round game against the Mililani Trojans at 6:00pm at Hilo Civic Auditorium.

Mililani finished in 4th in the OIA Red Division falling to Kahuku in the semifinals and Roosevelt in the 3rd Place game of the OIA Tournament. Should the Raiders get past the Trojans, they will still be a long way from the championship as they’ll face MIL Champion Kamehameha-Maui in the quarterfinals and either Punahou or OIA Champion Moanalua in the semis.

Their prize for making it to the final game could be a possible FOURTH showdown with the top-ranked Kamehameha Warriors…

See the complete Division I bracket »

In his first real action since starting the first two games of the season, Utah tailback Raynold Stowers ‘04 rushed for 123 yards on 11 carries in a 27-3 win over Colorado State this past Saturday.

Stowers opened the game with a 15-yard touchdown reception to put the Utes up 7-0 early in the first quarter then closed out the game with a one yard plunge with 3:11 left in the fourth. His performance against the Rams marks his first 100+ yard game of his career and his first two touchdowns of the season.

Since opening the season with losses in three of their first four games, Utah has won five straight and is now 6-3 with wins over UCLA and Louisville. The Utes are on bye this coming week and return to action against Wyoming on November 10th at home.

Read more from “The Daily Utah Chronicle” »

[Photo: The Daily Utah Chronicle]

Despite falling to the Kamehameha Warriors 35-21 on Friday night, the Iolani Football team captured their third consecutive ILH Division II title with losses by Pac-5 and Damien which put them two games ahead of their closest competitor with just one game remaining.

Iolani will also receive a seeded berth and opening round bye in the 2007 Hawaii Football State Tournament which begins on November 17th. After their final regular season game at home this Friday against Punahou, the Raiders will face the winner of the opening round game between the KIF Champion and the OIA White Division runner-up (on Nov. 17th). Iolani will host that semifinal matchup at Kozuki Stadium on November 24th.

Read more from the Honolulu Advertiser »

[Photo: Honolulu Advertiser]

Today marks the end of the first quarter for the 2007-08 school year. Students, faculty and staff have the day off for “Fall Break” and will return to the campus on Monday for the start of the second quarter.

Here’s what’s coming up next week:

• Homecoming Week - The Homecoming festivities will be in full effect all of next week with designated dress-up days, lunchtime assemblies, lip-sync performances, class cheers (at Cheerfest) and ending with the game vs. Punahou on Friday, post-game Ho’olaule’a and annual “Burning of the I”. The Homecoming Dance will follow on Saturday. (Homecoming T-Shirts - with the design shown - are for sale and available in the Student Activities Office (SAO) from Student Activities Director Mr. Kirk Uejio ‘98.)
• Girls Volleyball to Hilo - As the ILH runners-up, the Iolani Girls Volleyball team secured a spot in the 2007 Hawaii State Volleyball Tournament which will be held in Hilo. The team will practice for one day on Monday, head to the Big Island on Tuesday and open play in the first round on Wednesday.
• ILH Basketball Opens Practice - For the first time ever (?), both the Iolani Girls and Boys Basketball Teams will open practice a few weeks early and, more significantly, start at the same time. Previously, the winter basketball season started in mid-November and was exclusive to the boys teams. This year, the girls season has moved from the spring to the winter to run concurrently with the boys prompting an earlier start.

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After appearing in 26 games last season, Utah sophomore Hennasea Tokumura ‘06 is hoping to improve on her performance and earn her way into the regular rotation this season. As a freshman, the 5-4 point guard shot 34.6% from the field (21.4% from three) with 22 assists and 24 turnovers in 7.7 minutes per game.

Despite having gained valuable experience in her first year, Hennasea will have her work cut out for this season when she goes head-to-head with senior transfer Leilani Mitchell, a 2006 Honorable Mention All-American and finalist for the Nancy Lieberman Award, given to the nation’s top point guard.

Next month, the Utes will be in Hawaii to compete in the Oahu Classic from November 22 - 24. They will face Division I opponents Marist, Akron and Nebraska in match-play format (non-tournament) at a site yet to be determined.

Washington State senior guard Derrick Low ‘04 was announced as one of 50 candidates for the prestigious 2007-08 John R. Wooden Award which is given to the top collegiate basketball player in the country.

Candidates are selected based on their individual performance and team record from the preceding season. Transfers, freshmen, and medical redshirts are not eligible for this preseason list, but will be evaluated and considered for both the Midseason Top 30 list and the National Ballot. In January, the Wooden Award committee will release the Midseason Top 30 list, followed by the distribution of the National Ballot to more than 1,000 voters in early March. The 10-player Wooden Award All-American Team will be announced the Tuesday after the “Elite Eight” round of the NCAA Tournament is completed.

The 2008 Award Ceremony will be held at The Los Angeles Athletic Club the weekend of April 11-13, 2008 and will include the top 5 male and female candidates for the award. Previous winners include such notables as Larry Bird (’79), Michael Jordan (’84), Tim Duncan (’97), and last year’s recipients, Kevin Durant (2005 Iolani Classic Participant) of Texas and Candace Parker of Tennessee.

See entire list of Preseason Wooden Award Candidates »

From The Stanford Daily:

“Taking home only its second Husky Dino Cup title in 12 years, Stanford men’s volleyball opened its exhibition season last weekend with a bang.

Playing across the border in Canada, the Cardinal won the round-robin tournament with three victories against the University of Calgary, the University of Alberta and the University of the Pacific. Stanford beat Calgary in four games, Alberta in five and Pacific in four.”

“The biggest win of the weekend came when the Cardinal outlasted the University of Alberta squad on Friday. Coming into the match, Alberta had an astounding 24-game win streak against Stanford’s conference, the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF). The MPSF is the most dominant in all of NCAA men’s volleyball, so Stanford came into the match facing daunting odds.

However, the Cardinal was able to put together one of its best performances in years, and came away with the win after a dramatic fifth game.”

“Sophomore setter Kawika Shoji ‘06 was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player, while sophomore right-side hitter Evan Romero had more kills than any other player in the tournament. He was named to the all-tournament team along with freshman libero Jordan Inafuku (Kamehameha ‘07).”

Read the entire article from The Stanford Daily »

[Photo: The Stanford Daily]

On Friday afternoon, the Iolani Football team picked up their first loss of the season against Division II competition when they fell to the Pac-5 Wolfpack 21-14 at Aloha Stadium.

The Wolfpack earned their first ILH win this season and their first win against Iolani in more than 10 years. The last time Pac-5 defeated the Raiders was on November 11, 1995 when they won 21-18.

So what does that mean for Iolani?… At 3-2 in the ILH with two games remaining, the Raiders can clinch the ILH Division II title with a win against either Kamehameha and Punahou or a loss by Damien or Pac-5. The Monarchs and Wolfpack are currently 1-4 in the ILH and must win their final two games and hope Iolani loses their final two to have a chance at a tie and and one-game playoff.

The Raiders’ fate will likely be decided this weekend when Damien plays Punahou and Pac-5 plays St. Louis. Both will be underdogs against their Division I opponents and losses by both teams (or a win by the Raiders vs. Kamehameha) would lock up the Division II title for Iolani.

On Saturday, more disappointment followed for Raider fans when the Iolani Girls Volleyball team fell in straight sets, 25-21 and 25-18, to the Kamehameha Warriors at Kekuahaupio Gym on the Kamehameha campus.

With the win, the Warriors captured the ILH Round 2 Tournament and forced a winner-take-all match with the Raiders, the ILH Round 1 Champions, for the overall ILH title and a seeded berth to the 2007 Hawaii State Girls Volleyball Tournament.

The ILH Championship game is scheduled for 6:00pm on Tuesday, October 23 at Iolani Gymnasium.

[Photos: Honolulu Advertiser]

Event Date: Saturday, October 20th, 2007

With a win over Sacred Hearts yesterday evening in the semifinals of the ILH Playoffs, the Iolani Girls Volleyball Team advanced to the finals and will have an opportunity to lock up the overall title and secure the top seed in the 2007 State Tournament when they face the Kamehameha Warriors this Saturday at 1pm at Kekuhaupio Gym.

Because the Raiders won the ILH regular season, they have already secured a berth in the state tournament and will have two opportunities to capture the overall title. A win would give Iolani both the regular season and playoff titles and thus make them the overall champion. A loss would force a playoff (on Tuesday at Iolani) between the regular season champion and the playoff champion to determine the overall winner.

Despite defeating Kamehameha earlier in the season, the Raiders are ranked behind the Warriors nationally according to PrepVolleyball.com latest national poll. With an unblemished record in the ILH (16-0), Iolani is 28-3-1 overall and currently ranked No. 23 while the Warriors, due to their strong performances against mainland competition, are 39-2 overall (15-1 in league) and ranked No. 7.

Their last match against each other was incredible and this one is expected to be nothing less…

[Photo: Honolulu Advertiser]

Two great stories of hardship and perseverance are featured in today’s Honolulu Advertiser…

Senior wide-out Lionel Fujioka, who lost his mother to lung cancer just months before starting his ninth grade year, shares his story about his family and his path to Iolani School.

A three-sport athlete in football, basketball and baseball, Lionel is currently trying to help the Raider Football team win a state title in Division II. He is among the top-3 in the state in receiving with 35 catches for 530 yards and 6 touchdowns while also returning kicks and making appearances at defense back in the Raiders nickel package.

The Iolani football team faces Pac-5 this Saturday, October 20th at 5:00pm at Aloha Stadium.

Read the Honolulu Advertiser article »

Sean Carney ‘04, a junior setter with the University of Hawaii men’s volleyball team, discusses his story of hardship in dealing with his father’s battle against a serious illness over the last three years.

In the midst of a tough competition to secure the starting job at setter, Sean took some time off last week to visit his father in Boston where he is currently receiving treatment. He has returned with a renewed sense of focus and is confident that his father will recover and be able to make it back home.

The UH Men’s Volleyball Team will play four exhibition matches against British Columbia this Friday and Saturday, October 19th and 20th (4pm & 7pm each day) at the Stan Sheriff Center.

Read the Honolulu Advertiser article »

With the departure of All-American setter Brian Beckwith, Sean Carney ‘04 will have his first real opportunity to compete for a starting job this season when the UH Men’s Volleyball team opens play this weekend at the Stan Sheriff Center.

Though their regular season won’t begin until next spring, the team will play in four exhibition matches against perennial Canadian powerhouse British Columbia - two each on Friday and Saturday (4pm & 7pm). Carney will alternate time as the starter with redshirt freshman Nejc Zemljak and appear in two of the four matches.

Carney, the Hawaii State Player of the Year in 2003, attended Lewis University following his graduation in 2004, but transfered home at the end of his first semester after head coach Dave Deuser resigned due to allegations by the NCAA that the team used ineligible players in the season prior. The school then forfeited their 2003 national championship banner and imposed a two-year probation on the program. Carney enrolled at UH prior to the start of the 2005 season.

[Photo: Star Bulletin]

Once teammates at Iolani School, the Langley brothers, Dylan ‘06 (left) and Morgan ‘07 (right), are back playing together at Swarthmore College, an NCAA Division III school in Pennsylvania.

Morgan, a freshman forward, has appeared in 11 (of 13) games for the Garnet and is second on the team in total points with three goals and three assists. His older brother Dylan, a sophomore midfielder, has appeared in all 13 games, starting 7, and is second on the team in total shots with 33.

Swarthmore is currently 8-2-3 overall (3-2-1 in conference) and fresh off of a 1-0 upset of previously undefeated and #9-ranked Franklin & Marshall.

On a Friday afternoon when nearly the entire senior class was off enjoying an early weekend at Molokai Ranch (for Senior Camp), the Iolani Football team was taking care of business at Aloha Stadium, defeating the Damien Monarchs 28-21 to remain undefeated in Division II.

The Raiders started out strong scoring the first 14 points of the game, but fell behind midway through the second half when the Monarchs scored their third consecutive touchdown to take a seven point lead at 21-14. Iolani tied the game early in the fourth quarter and went ahead for good with 1:26 remaining on a 13-yard TD run by junior QB Kela Marciel.

Marciel finished the game with 97 yards on the ground (1 TD) and 136 yards passing (1 TD). Senior running back Justin Yamamoto rushed for 136 yards on 19 carries with two touchdowns. On defense, the Raiders were able to “hold” Damien star running back Kama Bailey to 191 yards and one touchdown. It may not seem like an impressive feat, but compared to their previous meeting when Bailey rushed for 294 yards (215 in the first half) on 23 carries with touchdown runs of 72 and 41 yards, it was a significant accomplishment.

With the win, Iolani improves to 3-0 in ILH Division II (4-3 overall) and is two games up on the second place Monarchs with three games remaining. This Saturday, the Raiders will face Pac-5 at 5:00pm at Aloha Stadium.

Intermediate Football: The Intermediate Football team closed out their season with a 30-22 win against the Punahou Buffanblu on Saturday morning at Kozuki Stadium. The team finished with a record of 3-1-1 in the ILH, second only to league champion Word of Life.

[Photo: Honolulu Advertiser]

Today may not be a typical “Day in the Life” of an Iolani student, but many probably wish it were. Here’s what’s going on…

• Class Day: Sophomores to Waimanalo Beach; Juniors & Seniors to Bellows
  - Remember those days?
• Senior Camp: Seniors Leave for Molokai Ranch (return Sunday)
  - So Lucky…
• Today’s Lunch Selections: Hoisin Glazed Chicken, Striploin Steak, Furikake Salmon, Hummus on Pita
  - Is this Sam Choy’s or Iolani School?
• Sports: Varsity Football - Iolani vs. Damien at 5:00pm at Aloha Stadium
  - The Raiders won the first matchup against the Monarchs, but a win tonight will put them in great position to capture the ILH Division II title and advance to the State Tournament.

View Sports Illustrated’s Top 15 Seniors »