Iolani Alumni

The Iolani Girls Volleyball team, currently ranked 2nd in the state behind defending state champion Kamehameha, opened the ILH season this week with wins against St. Andrew’s Priory (25-14, 25-10) and La Pietra (25-6, 25-13).

After falling to three top-ranked mainland teams in the Ann Kang Invitational, the Raiders went on to win the McKinley Volleyball tournament and have yet to lose to a Hawaii team.

This season, Iolani, the state runner-up in 2007, returns All-ILH first team selections Malie Yoon, Chelsea Hardin (committed to Cal Poly) and Mahina Haina as well as two-time All-State libero Kelly Pang who missed all of last season with a knee injury.

Special Note: Seven players on the Iolani roster are 5-9 or taller. (Wait… What? I don’t think the boys basketball team is much bigger than they are. Haha.)

Senior running back Raynold Stowers ‘04 is right in the mix to fill a spot in the backfield for the Utah Utes when they open their season this weekend against the Michigan Wolverines.

Though three scrimmages in fall camp, Stowers caught 4 passes for 49 yard and a touchdown in the first game, scored the only red-zone touchdown (on a 2-yard run) in the second game and sparked the offense in the third game by opening with a 20-yard run on the first series.

Returning starter Darrell Mack, who rushed for over 1,000 yards last season, and top JC transfer Matt Asiata are expected to compete for the top spot, but Stowers, along with two other capable backs, is expected to see time on the field.

In 2007, Stowers started two games at running back and finished the season as the team’s second-leading rusher, carrying the ball 47 times for 261 yards (5.6 average) and two touchdowns which included a career-high 123 yards against Colorado State.

The Utes face Big Ten powerhouse Michigan on Saturday morning at 9:30am in Ann Arbor. The game will be televised on ABC or ESPN2.

[Photo: UtahUtes.com]

Former Iolani and Washington State standout Derrick Low ‘04 made his first two appearances in the pre-season for the Sydney Spirit of the National Basketball League in Australia.

In his opening game, Low “began to show some spark in the Spirit back-court” scoring 15 points in a 121-118 loss to the Wollongong Hawks on August 22nd.

Three nights later against the Gold Coast Blaze, he scored 18 points on 5 of 16 shooting (including 3 of 11 from three-point range) with 3 rebounds and 3 assists (5 TO) in 36+ minutes of play.

Gold Coast won the game 108-100 behind 24 points from former Australian National Team guard Shane Heal (who also appeared in 49 games in the NBA for the Timberwolves and Spurs).

[Photo: www.photoexcellence.com.au/Noel Rowsell]

It’s that time of year again… 1,843 Iolani students will be heading off to Kamoku Street today for the start of the 2008-09 school year.

So, what’s changed over the last three months?

The Castle Building has undergone the most dramatic changes with the outer wall being replaced by a row of steps covered by four large trellises. A portion of the road fronting the building has been turned into a cement walkway to match the existing sidewalk that runs along the mauka side of the I-Building.

Convention Drive has been widened, repaved and repainted to add more stalls for visitors and senior parking.

The metal ‘Io (hawk) has been removed from the area in front of the current student activities office. Its likeness, though, has been relocated to a freshly painted mural on the main wall near the senior benches.

And finally… Mrs. Takara has retired. Not good news for the punctually-challenged. I have a feeling that the “unexcused” stamp may get a bit more use this year.

[Photos: Iolani.org]

With more than 30 Iolani athletes headed to college to participate in athletics, there are just a handful who have signed to play at the Division I level on athletic scholarships. They are as follows:

• Blaine Gonsalves (Soccer) - University of Tulsa
• Leinani Keanini (Volleyball) - University of San Francisco
• Bradley Lawson (Volleyball) - Stanford University
• Kelsey Outram (Baseball) - Southern Utah University
• Leah Schrententhaler (Swimming) - University of South Dakota
• Jamie Smith (Basketball) - University of Nevada Las Vegas

After getting off to a slow start, Keoni DeRenne ‘97 has been swinging a hot bat as of late for the York Revolution of the Independent League.

Though his last 11 games, DeRenne has batted 18-39 (.461) during which time his team has gone 8-3 and moved into first place in the Freedom Division of the Atlantic League.

On the season, he is batting .256 with 42 walks and just 31 strikeouts.

[Photo: York Blog]

On the Air - This Weekend:
• Friday, August 22nd - Iolani @ Leilehua (Football) - 7:30pm (OC16)
• Saturday, August 23rd - LLWS: US Championship - Waipahu vs. Louisiana - 9:30am HST (ABC)

Former Iolani basketball standout Liloa Nobriga ‘09, who moved with his family to Las Vegas after his sophomore year, is making a name for himself in the football recruiting world both here and on the mainland.

After being named All-Region Defensive Player-of-the-Year as a junior in 2007, the 6-2, 215lb linebacker had a strong showing at the All-Poly Camp this summer in Utah (named one the top linebackers at the camp) and is currently listed in the Rivals.com Nevada Top 20 as the 11th best recruit in the state (77th nationally among OLB).

Watch him in action: 2007-08 Season Highlights - Liloa Nobriga »

Nobriga has reportedly received offers from Hawaii, UNLV, Utah and Stanford, but has indicated in at least one interview that he is leaning toward becoming a Warrior.

[Photo: TotalBlueSports.com]

Mayoral candidate Mufi Hannemann ‘72 and Derrick Low ‘04 appear in a commercial supporting Mufi’s campaign. Check it out…

Pikai Winchester, the eldest son of Kanoe and Rena Winchester ‘89, has been swinging a hot bat for Waipahu at the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

Through three games in pool play, Winchester, the starting third baseman, is a combined 5-8 (.625) with 5 RBI, which includes two doubles and a home run.

This is just a week after he went 2-2 with two home runs and 3 RBI in the team’s 4-3 win over Paseo Verde (Nevada) in the West Region Championship to clinch their berth to the World Series.

Waipahu finished pool play at 3-0 and has advanced to the semifinals on Wednesday, August 20th at 2:00pm HST. The game will be televised live on ESPN.

The Iolani Football team opened up their 2008 campaign with a 39-0 shutout of Kamehameha-Maui in the feature game of the Father Bray Classic at Aloha Stadium on Saturday evening.

Using a mixture of the run and pass, the Raiders moved the ball at-will in the first half, totaling 315 yards and scoring five touchdowns. The defense also held strong, limiting the Warriors to just 4 yards in the first quarter with no first downs.

Iolani quarterback Kela Marciel completed 14 of 22 passes for 161 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 82 yards and two TDs on 10 carries, mostly on broken plays and scrambles. Starting running back Kellen Imada (shown) rushed for 91 yards on 11 carries with one touchdown.

Iolani will face defending Division I State Champion Leilehua on Friday, August 22 at 7:30pm at Leilehua High School. The game will be televised live on OC16.

Special Note: Without the services of backup QB Jarrett Arakawa (injured) and starting safety Breland Almadova (recruiting trip), who is the team’s 3rd string QB, emergency replacement Andrew Skalman (starting cornerback) made an appearance in the fourth quarter and threw his first career touchdown. Skalman also made an appearance as the team’s place-kicker for several kickoffs and an extra point.

[Photo: Honolulu Advertiser]

Sorry for the lack of posts this week, but I’m currently traveling through the Mediterranean on a cruise ship and internet access on the boat costs $0.60+ per minute… Ridiculous!

New posts will be up on Monday, August 18th… Until then, ciao!

Two games in… two home runs. Kila Ka’aihue ‘02, who was promoted just three days ago to AAA Omaha, is continuing right where he left off.

The former Northwest Arkansas slugger went deep in back-to-back games for the Royals, batting 4-9 with 5 RBI.

While with in AA, Ka’aihue led the league in home runs, slugging percentage, on-base percentage and walks. His current home run total between the two leagues is 28.

[Photo: BlueRocks.com]