Iolani Alumni

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)

From the Honolulu Advertiser: Lt. Sean S. Kido ‘97, who led the explosives disposal unit for the USS Kitty Hawk carrier group, was presented with the Bronze Star, with a “V” for valor in combat, on July 2 by Rear Adm. Rick Wren during a ceremony aboard the aircraft carrier at Pearl Harbor.

Kido, an all-star wrestler while at Iolani, received the award for his service in Iraq from April 6 to October 1, 2007.

Once, when his convoy was hit by two buried bombs that killed two men, Kido “calmly took charge of the situation, dismounted to sweep the area of other dangers, while coordinating an airborne over watch and casualty evacuation,” according to his citation.

“His quick thinking and bravery ensured the rest of the force returned safely.”

He led his 12-man detachment in 109 direct-action missions, 16 operations to counter insurgent bomb operations and 33 reconnaissance missions, the citation said.

Kido’s efforts contributed to the capture of 315 known or suspected insurgents, and the seizure and destruction of 198,000 rounds of enemy small arms and 2,600 pounds of ordnance.

[Photo: Pacific Fleet Public Affairs via KITV.com]

Coming off an appearance in the Texas League Mid-Season All-Star Game last weekend, Kila Ka’aihue ‘02 is one of the hottest hitters in Double-A, currently 2nd in the league in home runs (18), 1st in walks (57), 2nd in on-base percentage (.437) and 5th in slugging percentage (.560).

His production dropped slightly in June, but the Northwest Arkansas first baseman is still batting .282 on the season and has earned 57 walks against just 30 strikeouts. Northwest Arkansas is the AA-affiliate of the Kansas City Royals.

Kila’s younger brother, Kala Ka’aihue ‘03, got off to a slow start this season, batting just .184 in April, but has consistently improved over the last two months with a .242 average in May and .338 average in June. On the season, he is batting .248 with 10 home runs and 39 RBI and is coming off of two home run performance two days ago against Montgomery.

Kala is a first baseman for the Mississippi Braves, the AA-affiliate of the Atlanta Braves.

Michael “Ian” Mopas ‘06 recently started his second season with the GCL Twins of the Rookie Gulf Coast League and has made 4 appearances for the team, amassing a record of 1-1. He has an ERA of 2.57 in 7 total innings of work with 4 strikeouts and 2 walks.

Keoni De Renne ‘97 has appeared in a team-high 61 games for the York Revolution (Independent League) and currently leads the team in walks (31), is 2nd in home runs (6), 2nd in doubles (13), 3rd in runs scored (30) and 4th in RBI (23).

Keoni DeRenne ‘97, an infielder for the York Revolution, spotted his team an early lead with a solo shot to right field in the top of the first inning yesterday to close out a four-game series with the Newark Bears. It was the second home run of the season for DeRenne who has struggled out of the gates this year, batting just .200 and amassing an uncharacteristic 10 fielding errors through his first 24 games.

Coming off of a successful 2007 campaign where he batted .302 with 5 home runs and 36 RBI, DeRenne earned a two week tryout with the Chiba Lotte Mariners (Japan) in the offseason before returning for his second season with the Revolution. York is currently 8-18 and 8.5 games back in the league standings.

More Photos of DeRenne from The York Daily Record »

Former University of Utah standout Ed Ta’amu ‘97 is in his second season as a member of the Kansas City Brigade of the Arena Football League. He is listed as a starter at Offensive Guard and a backup at Tight End.

In 2007, the Brigade made their first ever playoff appearance, but have struggled thus far this season and are just 2-8 through their first 10 games.

Watch a video feature on Ta’amu and fellow lineman Larrell Johnson as they talk about their experiences in Arena Football (Click the link to view).

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In his first year with the York Revolution, a minor league club that plays in the Independent League, Keoni Derenne ‘97 made as big a contribution off the field as he did on and after finishing the season third on the team in batting average (.302), fourth in total hits (100), third in runs scored (57), second in doubles (23) and second in stolen bases (19)… that’s saying quite a bit.

At the team’s final home game, Keoni was named the Community Outreach Player of the Year — given to the player who made the biggest impact on the York community throughout the season.

From the York website:
“Every player signed by the Revolution is expected to attend practice and games, and is also expected to give 100% effort on the field each night. It’s not the player’s job to visit schools and hospitals, to sign autographs and to make appearances throughout the region. However, De Renne spent time making appearances and was usually the last person to leave the field each night, signing autographs for anyone who asked.”

[Photo: York Revolution]

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.

Once an account manager at Xerox Hawaii, Cathy Tanaka ‘97 has since moved on from the “toner problems” and “paper jams” that used to consume her day to take on the world of comedy in Los Angeles.

Since first taking the stage several years ago, Cathy has been featured in a number of local film projects, appeared in commercials and was the co-host of “Hawaii’s Reel Stories“, an OC16 program about Hawaii film production… All while performing her stand-up routine in shows both here and on the mainland. Cathy was most recently a headliner at “Slanted Comedy” at the Improv on June 27th.

See Cathy “in action” at the The Brea Improv…

As an infielder for the York Revolution, Keoni DeRenne ‘97 is tearing through the Atlantic League, leading the team in batting and helping them to a first place standing in the South Division.

Through 28 games, Keoni is batting .336 (39 of 116) with 7 doubles, 4 home runs and 17 RBI. He has appeared defensively at third base, second base and shortstop and has also been used as a designated hitter.

Keoni is currently in his 7th professional season after being drafted in the 12th round of the 2000 draft. He has spent time with the Braves, Yankees, Diamondbacks and Red Sox organizations, reaching as high as AAA with the Diamondbacks in 2004 and 2005 and the Red Sox in 2006.

[Photo: York Revolution]

Sidelined since training camp and placed on injured reserve with a knee injury, Ed Ta’amu ‘97 will see his first action of the season tonight as his Kansas City Brigade take on the Columbus Destroyers in week 15 of the Arena Football League.

Ed is expected to start at the tight end/guard position for the Brigade who’ve been plagued by injury over the last few weeks, but still remain in the hunt for a playoff spot with just a few games remaining. Having won 4 of their last 5, their 8-5 record puts them in position to capture the Central Division title if they’re able to pick up wins in their final three games.

Tonight’s game will only be televised locally in Kansas City, but look for the Brigade to get national coverage in two weeks when they take on the Chicago Rush on FSN on June 23rd.

Danny Kimura ‘97 hit 3 HOME RUNS IN ONE INNING back on May 13, 1997 in an ILH regular season game against the Damien Monarchs. Unbelievable?… Believe it.

Kimura, a pitcher and 3rd baseman for the Raiders, was named the 1996 Hawaii State Player-of-the-Year and a first team all-state selection in 1997 when he hit .534 with 9 home runs and 35 RBIs and was 4-0 with 2 saves.

The 1997 Iolani Baseball Team finished the season with a record of 23-1, winning their second consecutive state championship (of three) and earning a #6 ranking by Baseball America and a #17 ranking in the USA Today Top 25.

Other members of the 1997 team: Arizona All-American and minor-leaguer Keoni Derenne, freshman All-American and UH standout Gregg Omori, UH pitcher Ryan Yamamoto, BYU stars Kainoa Obrey and Doug Jackson as well as ILH standouts Corin Korenaga, Thad Estrada, Scott Tajima, Jeff Iwashita, Erik Yamamoto, Kanoa Fong & Mike Colosimo

After graduating from the University of Utah, Ed Ta’amu ‘97 was drafted in the fourth round of the 2002 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings, but suffered a knee injury and was released by the team later that year. In January of 2003, Ed was signed by the Houston Texans, but the same knee injury prevented him from competing and was waived before the start of the 2003 season.

After two years of rehab, Ed returned to the field for the Spokane Shock of the Arena Football League 2, contributing on an offensive line that allowed only 11 sacks en route to the 2006 AF2 Championship. This season, Ed is on the opening day roster as an offensive lineman (#75) for the Kansas City Brigade in the Arena Football League’s top level.

In December 2006, the AFL and ESPN signed a five-year deal to broadcast a minimum of 17 regular season games starting with the 2007 season, so look for Ed on a TV near you…

Tonight, OC16 will be televising the 3rd place games for the ILH (in both Division I and Division II) starting at 4:30pm and 6:00pm respectively.

In the first game, the AOP Dolphins will face the Hanalani Royals for the Division II 3rd place title and the right to go to the first ever Division II Boys’ Basketball State Tournament. If the camera ever hits the sidelines, you’re sure to see AOP assistant coach Maika’i Spencer ‘97 and may even be able to catch a glimpse of athletic director Brad Kitsu ‘94.

In Division I, Kamehameha Warriors and St. Louis Crusaders will face off for the third time this season for a chance to travel to Kona to play the Konawaena Wildcats for a spot in the 2007 State Boys’ Basketball Tournament. Somewhere near the end of the bench, you might be able to find Warrior assistant coach (and English teacher) Cavan Scanlan ‘92 helping his team pick up their first win against the Crusaders after two close losses.

Ryan Yamamoto ‘97 and Mandy Tomita ‘98 were married early this past summer during a small ceremony which included several of their closest family and friends.

Ryan is a licensed contractor and currently works with his father at their family-owned construction business, RMY Construction. He is also a partial owner of the popular restaurant/nightclub, Osake Sushi Bar & Lounge. His younger brother, Erik ‘99, is in his second year of teaching at Iolani and his youngest brother, Corey ‘01, is employed as an engineer.

Mandy is a financial advisor with American Express and in her spare time is an assistant coach for the very successful Iolani Swim Team.

Tune in to KHON2 every weeknight to see the finest reporters on television, Kanoa Leahey ‘95 - Sports Anchor & Marisa Yamane ‘97 - Reporter. There’s a reason why they’re the top rated news station…

Besides the news at 6 & 10, catch Kanoa on the PBS network on Wednesdays at 7:30pm where he “talks story” with his legendary father, Jim during the half hour sports show, Leahey & Leahey. You may also hear his voice doing play-by-play during the OIA football broadcasts on OC16.