Iolani Alumni

The Kansas Jayhawk baseball team will open practice tomorrow with six returning position players and nearly its entire pitching staff including sophomore left-hander Wally Marciel ‘06.

According to coach Ritch Price, Marciel had a strong fall and should be “game-ready” along with the rest of the staff by the time the team travels to Hawaii for their season-opener against UH Hilo.

The Jayhawks will be on the Big Island from February 22-24 to play a five-game series with the Hilo Vulcans at Simmons’ Field in Kailua-Kona.

With a 59-45 victory over Kamehameha yesterday evening, the Iolani Boys Basketball team (8-2) moved into first place, a half game ahead of idle Punahou (7-2).

In their previous meeting against the Warriors, the Raiders traded baskets in the final quarter to fall 44-42 after committing consecutive turnovers on their final three possessions. This time, behind 25 points and 11 rebounds by senior Taylor Mounts and 10-10 shooting from the line as a team to close out the game, Iolani controlled the ball and the clock to come away with a 14 point victory. Junior Pablo Warner contributed 14 points for the Raiders.

The Raiders have two games remaining - Saturday (2/2) against Damien (@ Iolani) and Tuesday (2/5) at St. Louis. If they’re able to win their final two games, the boys will receive an automatic bid to the 2008 Hawaii Basketball State Tournament and have the chance to playoff for the ILH Championship (at the least).

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The Girls Basketball team will begin the ILH tournament on Tuesday, February 5th with a home game against Sacred Hearts. With a win, the girls will advance to the finals for a chance to face either Kamehameha or Mid-Pacific for the second and final berth to the 2008 Hawaii State Girls Basketball Tournament (Punahou has already clinched the ILH Championship and one state tournament berth).

On “Senior Night” last night, the Raiders defeated Mid-Pacific 49-43 in overtime behind 17 points from senior Kylie Ahlo. Iolani was playing their first game the season without the services of all-star center Jamie Smith who suffered a broken nose after colliding with a Punahou player late in game on Saturday. Smith, however, is expected to return by the time the ILH tournament begins next week.

[Photo: Honolulu Advertiser]

Colorado School of Mines guard Kyle Pape ‘05 scored a career-high 37 points Saturday evening in a 78-75 road loss to the University of Nebraska - Kearney.

In his last four games, Kyle is averaging 25 points per game with highs of 37 and 31 and is shooting an incredible 96.2% (26-27) from the line. On the season, he leads the team at 19.9 points per game on 43.6% shooting from the field and 86.8% from the freethrow line.

Despite Kyle’s individual efforts, the Orediggers are struggling this season at 9-12 overall and 2-9 in conference.

[Photo: CSM Website]

Washington State senior guard Derrick Low ‘04 has been named to the Mid-Season Top 30 list for the 2007-08 John R. Wooden Award which is given to the top collegiate basketball player in the country.

Unlike the preseason Top 50 list to which Derrick was previously named, the mid-season list also includes freshmen, transfers and medical redshirts which makes his recognition even more impressive.

The next cutdown will come in March when the committee announces the 10-player Wooden Award All-American Team on the Tuesday prior to the Final Four. The final presentation will be made in mid-April.

Update: Despite jumping out to an 11-0 first quarter lead, Iolani fell to the Punahou Buffanblu 49-31. The Raiders will host Senior Night at home on Tuesday night against Mid-Pacific in their final regular season game. The team will then enter the ILH Tournament to fight for the second berth to the state tournament. (Punahou is the ILH Champion and has an automatic berth to the state tournament.)

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Round 3… Ding!

The No.1-ranked Iolani Girls Basketball team will take on the Punahou Buffanblu tomorrow evening, their third matchup this season, in a game that could very well determine the ILH Championship.

Having split their two previous matchups, the Raiders and Buffanblu are virtually tied in the standings with one loss each. Punahou (10-1), however, has one additional win under its belt and tomorrow’s game will close out their regular season. The Raiders (9-1) will play their final game against Mid-Pacific next Tuesday.

Since falling to the Buffanblu earlier this month, Iolani has won 8 straight games including a 48-35 victory over Punahou in their last meeting at home on January 12th.

Tip-off is set for 7:00pm at Punahou.

[Photo: Honolulu Advertiser]

Update: Iolani captured the ILH Championship after playing to a 1-1 tie with Kamehameha. More from the Honolulu Advertiser »

The Iolani Boys Soccer team has already secured a spot in the 2008 Hawaii Soccer State Tournament and will be playing for an ILH Championship tomorrow afternoon when they face the Kamehameha Warriors at their home field on the Kapalama campus.

A win or tie by the Raiders would clinch the title and a SEEDED berth in the state tournament (a loss would likely force a one game playoff). Iolani is currently 9-1-1 (28 points) and three points ahead of the Warriors who dropped to 8-2-1 (25 points) after falling 1-0 to Punahou on Tuesday afternoon.

The Girls Team suffered a disappointing 0-0 tie on Wednesday against Pac-5 to leave them just shy of the league’s second berth to the 2008 state tournament. Going into yesterday’s games, Iolani and Punahou had identical records of 8-1-2 (26 points) which meant wins by both team would have resulted in a third and final playoff game for the second spot in the ILH. Unfortunately, a 5-0 win by the Puns over Mid-Pacific allowed them to finish at 9-1-2 (29 points) and two points ahead of Iolani at 8-1-3 (27 points).

The Boys Game at Kamehameha begins at 4:15pm on Friday, January 24th.

[Photo: Honolulu Advertiser]

In Vermont… a land far, far away, former Iolani multi-sport standout Alana Wall ‘06 is adjusting to the weather and making her mark as a backup guard on the Middlebury College women’s basketball team. On the season, the 5-10 sophomore has appeared in all 15 games for the Panthers and is averaging 2.5 points and 1.1 rebounds in just 8.0 minutes per game.

As one of just a few Hawaii-raised students on the campus, Alana (along with former Punahou swimmer Peter Swanson) was the subject of a recent article in the Middlebury Campus newspaper that highlighted her transition from the warm weather of the Islands to the cold of the northeast. Read the article »

Middlebury College is located on the western border of Vermont (near New York state) and competes athletically in NCAA Division III.

Event Date: Tuesday, January 22nd, 2008

The Iolani Boys Basketball team will be back in action tonight against the No.1-ranked Punahou Buffanblu who recently jumped into the top spot with a win over St. Louis on Saturday and a loss by the Raiders to Kamehameha on Thursday (44-42).

On Saturday, the Raiders rebounded with a strong second half effort to defeat Mid-Pac 54-41 after falling behind early in the first quarter. Seniors Taylor Mounts and Bricen McCartney led the way with 21 and 10 respectively.

Tonight’s game will mark the third meeting between the two rivals and with the first two ending with game-winning buzzer-beaters, you definitely don’t want to miss this one.

Tip-off is at 6:30pm at Punahou. See you there!!!

On Thursday evening in front of friends and family, Derrick Low ‘04 scored his 1,000 point in a 69-46 win over Oregon State. Just the 28th player in Washington State history to reach the plateau, Derrick continued to add to his total on Sunday night, scoring 27 points in a 69-60 win over Oregon and ending a 13-game losing streak against the Ducks.

There to witness the milestones were several of Derrick’s friends and family including his father Ken and brother Chase as well as current and former Iolani faculty members Ann Yoneshige, Lara Feldhaus, Dan Feldhaus and Sue Lee.

On the season, Washington State is 16-1 overall (4-1 in the Pac-10) and in a first place tie with UCLA. Derrick currently leads the team in scoring at 14.4 points per game on 47.3% shooting from the field and 43.2% from three-point range.

[Photo: Honolulu Advertiser]

Event Date: Friday, January 18th, 2008

Update: Girls tied 0-0; Boys won 1-0

Both the Iolani Girls and Boys Soccer teams will be taking on the Punahou Buffanblu in games that could determine the ILH Championship for each team.

The Girls team is currently in a first place tie with Punahou at 8-1-1 and can capture the ILH Championship (and an automatic state berth) with a win. In their last meeting the two teams played to a 0-0 tie at Punahou’s home field. The game will begin this afternoon at 4:15pm at Kozuku Stadium and will be the final home game for seven seniors - Nicola Fergusson, Liane Leong, Kodi Look, Kellee Murayama, Julia Nishioka, Alyssa Simbahon, and Erika Tanoue.

The Boys team is also in a great position to contend for the ILH Championship as they sit one-win behind first place Kamehameha going into this afternoon’s game against the Buffanblu. A win today would put the Raiders in a tie for first place and in good position for a spot in the state tournament (two games up with two to play) as well as setup a winner take all match with Kamehameha in their final game of the season. The boys game will be held at Kapiolani Park (Field No.3) at 4:15pm.

See you at the games!!!

[Photo: Honolulu Advertiser]

Watch as the Honolulu Star-Bulletin follows former UH Wahine Volleyball standout Kanoe Kamana’o ‘03 at Opening Day of the 2008 Legislative Session.

Currently working as the office manager for State Senator David Ige, Kanoe joined Senator Ige’s staff late last fall during a special session convened to deal with the Hawaii Superferry.

Video filmed, edited and produced by Jason Genegabus ‘95, an entertainment and nightlife writer for the Honolulu Star-Bulletin.

Holy Names University senior forward Chad Miller ‘03 recorded his best game of the season last Saturday when he scored 11 points and grabbed 4 rebounds in a 75-57 win over CSU-Maritime.

On the season, the 6-6 forward has appeared in all 20 games and is averaging 3.15 points per game on 42.6% shooting and currently leads the team in total blocks with 7.

Holy Names University is located in Oakland, California and competes in the California Pacific Conference (”Cal Pac”), a 10-member league in NAIA Division II. To date, the Hawks are 11-9 overall and 4-2 in conference.

The Iolani Girls Basketball team moved into the top spot in both the Honolulu Advertiser and Honolulu Star-Bulletin Top 10 Polls this week after defeating the Punahou Buffanblu 48-35 at home on Saturday night.

Jamie Smith led the way for the Raiders with 20 points and 11 rebounds, but it was Iolani’s supporting cast that helped seal the win over the previously unbeaten Buffanblu. During a key third quarter run, freshman Lahela Usui scored four straight points followed by three-pointers by Tami Konishi and Chanel Hirata and a put-back by freshman Hailey Maeda.

Iolani is now 5-1 in the ILH and a half-game behind Punahou (6-1). The two teams will meet for a third time at Punahou on Thursday, January 24th in a matchup that will likely decide the ILH Championship.

More from the Honolulu Advertiser »

[Photo: Honolulu Advertiser]

Iolani scored its first girls soccer victory over visiting Kamehameha in three years last Friday, 3-0, and it came at a crucial time in the Interscholastic League of Honolulu title chase.

The victory dropped the defending state champion Warriors to 8-1 (24 points) in the ILH, while ‘Iolani improved to 7-1-1 (22 points) with three games remaining. Punahou (7-1-1, 22 points) was idle yesterday.

The Raiders were led by junior Kirsty Adams who scored two goals and sophomore Elissa Minimishin who scored one. Sophomore goalkeeper Lauren Brown came up with eight saves against the usually high scoring Warriors (3.75 goals per game) to earn the rare shutout.

Read the entire article from the Honolulu Advertiser »

[Words & Photo: Honolulu Advertiser]

Six up… six down! The Iolani Basketball program walked away with an undefeated 4-0 record against ILH competition yesterday while two other teams with Iolani ties earned wins against their conference opponents.

The Iolani Girls Basketball team jumped out to a 30-5 halftime lead and held off the Kamehameha Warriors 47-34 led by 19 points from Chanel Hirata who hit a game-high six three-pointers.

The Boys team followed up that performance with an early 9-0 lead and finishing with a 49-37 win over Mid-Pacific. The Raiders were led by senior center Taylor Mounts and junior forward Pablo Warner who had 17 and 12 points respectively.

Each of the Division II programs also earned wins yesterday. The Boys defeated St. Louis 40-33 behind 11 points from forward Matt Koyama while the Girls upended Kamehameha 54-46, getting 17 points from Jessica Sasaki.

On the mainland, the #4 Washington State Cougars picked up their 14th win of the season with a 73-58 victory over USC to remain undefeated on the year. Senior guard Derrick Low ‘04 scored 10 points with 3 rebounds, 5 assists and no turnovers in 39 minutes of play.

Kyle Pape ‘05 had another solid performance for the Colorado School of Mines as they were able to defeat CSU-Pueblo 66-61 on the road. Kyle scored 15 points for the Mines to go along with 5 rebounds and 3 assists (0 turnovers).