Posted on: Wednesday, September 24, 2008
HOMEGROWN REPORT
BC volleyball gets boost from Meredith, Clark
By Kalani Takase
Advertiser Staff Writer
Andrea Leonard feels as though she has discovered the fountain of youth.
Leonard, the head women's volleyball coach at Boston College, is enjoying her team's best start in three years with a roster that has seven new players to the program, including a pair of freshmen from Hawai'i.
"This season has been a very exciting start for our program," said Leonard, in her sixth season at BC. "It's a very exciting time for us here in Boston."
Helping the Eagles achieve a 6-7 record have been former Interscholastic League of Honolulu standouts Jordan Meredith and Brennan Clark. Meredith, an outside hitter, is a 2008 graduate of Kamehameha, and Clark, a libero/outside hitter, is a 2008 graduate of University High.
Meredith leads the team in kills with 174. She is also first in total attempts (499) and aces (15).
Clark leads BC in digs with 194 and also has seven aces. Meredith is second digs with 106.
"Jordan and Brennan contribute immediate ball control and overall skill execution," Leonard said. "They are both complete volleyball players with exceptional training."
She credits their club coach, Debby Yee, of the Jammers Volleyball Club.
"We did expect them to contribute right away, this is exactly why we recruited both of them so heavily," Leonard said. "They have been trained by Debby Yee and were ready for the next level. Their focus, determination and style of fearlessness (during) play, is an asset to our program, especially when we are a young team and need freshmen to play right away."
In a sweep of Holy Cross Saturday, Meredith led the Eagles with 14 kills on 30 attempts against just one error (.433 hitting percentage). She also had six digs and three aces. Clark recorded a match-high 16 digs and one ace.
"Brennan brings a steady passing game, which allows us to run a more stable, consistent offense," Leonard said. "She excels on the passing, defense and serving side of the game."
Against Northeastern Saturday, Meredith again led the Eagles with a match-high 14 kills and six digs and Clark added eight digs.
"Jordan excels in being a 'go-to hitter' for us," said Leonard. "We want to get the ball to her often, (because) she can terminate."
BC opened Atlantic Coast Conference play with a 19-25, 25-15, 25-21, 25-20 loss to host Maryland last night. Meredith had nine kills and six digs, and Clark added 13 digs. The Eagles visit North Carolina State Friday and North Carolina Saturday.
MORE WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL
Central Washington sophomore libero Brandie Vea (Kalani '07 of Honolulu) had seven kills and an ace in Thursday's sweep of Montana State-Billings. Vea recorded a match-high 19 digs in Saturday's sweep of Saint Martin's (Wash.). Earlier this month, she set a school record with 50 digs in a Sept. 5 win over Sonoma State.
Washington junior libero Tamari Miyashiro (Kalani '05 of Kane'ohe) had 13 digs, three assists and three aces in a sweep of Seattle Thursday. Miyashiro added 13 digs in Friday's sweep of San Diego. The Huskies improved to 9-1.
Oregon State junior setter Camilla Ah-Hoy (Kahuku '06 of La'ie) recorded 128 assists, 26 digs, 12 blocks, four kills and an ace in three matches at the Marquette Cheese Bowl last weekend. Ah-Hoy helped OSU upset then-No. 13 Wisconsin in five sets on Friday. The Beavers beat host Marquette Saturday in four sets, before falling to Wisconsin-Milwaukee in four Sunday.
Nevada sophomore outside hitter Kylie Harrington (St. Francis '07 of Honolulu) had 16 kills, 11 digs, two assists, two aces and a block in a five-game victory over Louisiana Tech Thursday. Freshman reserve setter Tatiana Santiago (Kamehameha '08 of Kahuku) had 22 assists, 14 digs, two blocks and a kill for the Wolf Pack. Harrington went for five kills, seven digs and two blocks in Saturday's three-set loss at New Mexico State. Santiago added six assists and two digs.
San Jose State junior libero Kristal Tsukano (Kamehameha '06 of Honolulu) had 13 digs and two assists in Thursday's three-set loss to Boise State. Sophomore outside hitter Brianna Amian (Moanalua '07 of Honolulu) added five kills, two digs, three assists and three blocks. In a five-set loss to Utah State Saturday, Tsukano notched 16 digs, three assists and three aces while Amian went for seven kills, four blocks and a dig.
South Dakota State sophomore setter Melia Iwamoto (Kalani '07 of Honolulu) had 26 assists, 11 digs, six blocks, two kills and an ace in Friday's four-set loss to Oral Roberts. Iwamoto recorded 24 assists, five digs, three kills and an ace in Sunday's three-set loss to Missouri State.
St. John's senior libero Lena Yee (Moanalua '05 of Honolulu) collected 40 digs, six assists and three aces in wins over Howard, Houston Baptist and Long Island last weekend at the Blackbird Invitational in Brooklyn, N.Y. Sophomore defensive specialist Kayla Motoyama (Roosevelt '07 of Honolulu) had eight digs in two matches for the Red Storm (8-6).
Fairfield senior libero Brandi Higa (Hawai'i Baptist '04 of Honolulu) had 15 digs, five assists and an ace in a four-set win over Rider Friday. Freshman outside hitter Haililani Pokipala (Sacred Hearts '08 of Honolulu) had 11 digs for the Stags. In Saturday's sweep of Manhattan, Higa went for nine digs and Pokipala added seven kills and an ace. Higa recorded her 1,000th dig in a three-set loss to Connecticut last Wednesday.
ÊRegis (Colo.) freshman libero Cassidee Young (Kamehameha '08 of Pearl City) had 22 digs and an ace in Friday's win over Colorado-Colorado Springs. She added 17 digs in Saturday's win over Colorado Christian.
Whitworth (Wash.) freshman outside hitter Kaimi Rocha (Seabury Hall '08 of Pukalani) had 14 kills, eight digs and an ace in a sweep of Willamette Friday in Spokane, Wash. Her twin, Ka'ipo Rocha (Seabury Hall '08 of Pukalani) had six kills and four digs for the Pirates. In Saturday's four-set loss to Lewis & Clark, Kaimi went for 14 kills, 12 digs and an ace and Ka'ipo added 12 kills, five digs and two aces.
FOOTBALL
Weber State sophomore quarterback Cameron Higgins (Saint Louis '06 of Hawai'i Kai) was named Big Sky Conference Offensive Player of the Week for the second consecutive week after he passed for 380 yards on 21-of-33 passing with four touchdowns and no picks in a 32-27 win at Sacramento State. One of his TD passes went to junior receiver Cody Nakamura (Baldwin '05 of Wailuku), who finished with five grabs for 102 yards.
Brigham Young senior punter CJ Santiago (Saint Louis) was named Mountain West Conference Special Teams Player of the Week after punting seven times for a 46.7-yard average, with a long of 61, in a 44-0 victory over Wyoming.
Montana-Western freshman quarterback Micah Mamiya (Saint Louis '08 of Honolulu) was named Frontier Conference co-Offensive Player of the Week after he went 22-of-36 passing for 365 yards and four touchdowns in a 35-31 win over Eastern Oregon. Mamiya engineered an 80-yard game-winning drive to put the Bulldogs ahead with 43 seconds left.
UNLV sophomore defensive lineman Malo Taumua ('Aiea '05 of Honolulu) had three tackles and junior long snapper Kamu Kapanui (Kamehameha '05 of Honolulu) added one stop in the Rebels' 34-31 overtime win over Iowa State.
Oregon sophomore quarterback Jeremiah Masoli (Saint Louis '06) started Saturday's 37-32 loss to Boise State, but left in the first quarter with a mild concussion. Masoli was just 3-of-4 passing for 27 yards when he exited. He is the third Ducks' quarterback to be sidelined this season.
Navy senior quarterback Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada (Kapolei '04) completed 5-of-8 passes for 89 yards and a touchdown in a 23-21 loss to Rutgers Saturday. He also rushed for 47 yards on eight carries.
Willamette sophomore cornerback Jeff Kahler (Saint Louis '07 of Honolulu) returned a fumble 52 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter of Saturday's 31-23 win over Southern Utah.
Saddleback (Calif.) sophomore running back Micah Abreu Laybon (Leilehua '07 of Wahiawa) earned honorable mention for Southern California Football Association Offensive Player of the Week after he rushed for two touchdowns and 127 yards on 10 carries. He also caught two passes for 14 yards in a 69-14 win over San Bernardino Valley.
MEN'S SOCCER
Gonzaga junior forward/midfielder Tye Perdido (Seabury Hall '06 of Kula) was named MVP of the Gonzaga Nike Soccer Classic last weekend in Spokane, Wash. Perdido scored the final two goals of a 3-2 win over Missouri-Kansas City Friday. The Bulldogs beat Cal State Bakersfield, 1-0, Sunday to win the tournament title.
WOMEN'S SOCCER
Rutgers junior forward Caycie Gusman (Kamehameha '06 of Honolulu) scored a goal and sophomore midfielder Ashley Medcalf (Christian Academy '07 of Waipahu) added her first career goal in a 5-0 win over Villanova Monday. Gusman leads the team in goals (5).
Pacific (Ore.) sophomore goalkeeper Erin Ichimura (Baldwin '07 of Wailuku) did not allow a goal in wins over Warner Pacific, Pacific Lutheran and Lewis & Clark last week. Ichimura, who lowered her goals against average to 0.97, was named the Northwest Conference Defensive Student-Athlete of the Week. Freshman forward Jenna Matsumoto (University High '08 of Kailua) scored her first collegiate goal in the 69th minute of Saturday's 2-0 win over Pacific Lutheran. Boxers' sophomore forward Ashley Kanda (Castle '07 of Kane'ohe) earned honorable mention for the Offensive Student-Athlete of the Week award. She also scored in the win over Pacific Lutheran.
Denver junior midfielder Lizzy Carlson (Punahou '06 of Honolulu) scored in the 55th minute of Friday's 3-2 win over Fresno State. It was her first goal of the season.
Azusa Pacific (Calif.) sophomore forward Stephanie Yoro (Mililani '07) assisted on a goal in the 87th minute of an 8-0 win over Savannah College of Art and Design Friday. Her older sister, senior forward Sarah Yoro (Mililani '05), scored the Cougars' lone goal in Saturday's 2-1 loss to Lee (Tenn.) in the 84th minute. It was the first loss for Azusa Pacific (5-1).
GOLF
Willamette senior Whitney Ueno (Hilo '05) shot a 10-over-par 154 (77-77) to win medalist honors at the Pacific Invitational at Banks, Ore. last week. Pacific sophomore Valerie Kitamori (Waiakea '07) was second (162) and Boxers' junior Jasmine Ching (Waiakea '06) came in third (168). Pacific sophomore Tami Park (Waiakea '07) finished 15th (192).
CROSS COUNTRY
Illinois Tech sophomore Kevin Acacio (Waipahu '07 of Waipahu) finished 135th out of 213 runners at Saturday's Midwest Collegiate Open with an 8-kilometer time of 29 minutes, 59 seconds. Illinois Tech finished 10th out of 16 teams.
Nicole Anderson ('Iolani '05 of Kailua) of Amherst (Mass.) finished 19th at Saturday's UMass-Dartmouth Invitational with a 5K time of 18:55. Teammate Christina Wong (Punahou '07 of Honolulu) was 53rd in the 310-runner field with a time of 19:34. Amherst, the defending NCAA Division III champion, finished second out of 41 teams.
Davidson senior Emily King (Moanalua '05 of Honolulu) finished 28th out of 159 runners at Saturday's Winthrop Invitational with a 5K time of 19:08. The Wildcats finished third out of 17 teams.
Casey Nishimura (Mid-Pacific '07 of Hawai'i Kai) of Pacific (Ore.) finished 56th at Saturday's Willamette Grass Course Meet with a 7,085-meter time of 26:12.85. Teammate Blake Picadura (Kamehameha '08 of Kailua) was 64th in the 67-runner field with a time of 28:33.94. The Boxers finished last in the six-team field.
Cal State Stanislaus' Dawson Vorderbruegge (Kaiser '08 of Hawai'i Kai) finished 23rd out of 43 runners at Saturday's California Collegiate Athletic Association Preview with an 8K time of 27:31. The Warriors finished third out of five teams.
Eastern Oregon's Keilani Wasson (Kahuku '08 of La'ie) rolled her ankle at the beginning of Saturday's muddy and rainy Bob Firman Invitational and finished 77th out of 83 runners with a 5K time of 22:27.54. The Mountaineers finished last in the seven-team field.
Florida A&M's Paul Williams (Leilehua '08) finished 68th out of 139 runners at Saturday's Mountain Dew Invitational with an 8K time of 28:07.93. The Rattlers finished sixth out of 13 teams.
MEN'S WATER POLO
Loyola Marymount sophomore driver Andrew Aki (Punahou '06 of Honolulu) scored three goals last weekend at the NorCal Tournament in Stockton, Calif. Aki scored a goal in a 10-5 win over Navy Saturday and again in Sunday's 11-5 win over UC Irvine and a 7-6 loss to Long Beach State.
Advertiser Staff Writer Stanley Lee contributed to this report. Reach Kalani Takase at ktakase@honoluluadvertiser .com or 535-2404.
Reach Kalani Takase at ktakase@honoluluadvertiser.com.
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