Looking Back At A Stellar 2014 From Campbell, Pearl City
It’s time to say goodbye to 2014, but not before reviewing memorable sports stories from West Oahu.
Campbell wins OIA Red baseball crown
As a team with no shortage of star power, Campbell’s 9-3 win over Kailua in the OIA Red title game May 2 at Hans L’Orange Park was nevertheless a total team effort. Nearly every Campbell starter reached base, scored a run or drove in one to ensure a second consecutive OIA title.
Ian Kahaloa, who threw 135 pitches in a nine-inning complete game win against Kaiser in the quarterfinals two days earlier, pitched a solid sixth inning, using 11 pitches to strike out two and get the other out on a fly out to shortstop. And finally, left fielder Keola Himan, a Kailua transfer, pitched a scoreless seventh to seal his former team-mates’ fate. Campbell, which was 16-2 overall for the year, went on to finish third at the DI state tourney.
Pearl City plays in OIA White football title game
As during the season, the Pearl City offense was firing on all cylinders Oct. 25, when the team beat Radford 35-20 in the OIA White semifinals playoffs.
The win lifted Pearl City into the OIA White title game for a second straight year. Although it would lose a heartbreaker to Nanakuli 37-36 the following week as well as its DII state football tournament first-round game to Kauai High 30-22, it still had a 2014 season to remember, finishing 8-3 overall.
IPA girls volleyball team rocks in ILH
Island Pacific Academy’s girls volleyball team had a breakthrough season in the fall, going 13-1 en route to winning an ILH DIII title.
The Navigators and head coach Stan Vincent’s only loss came to Hawaii Baptist Academy, which went on to a third-place finish at the DII state tournament.
Junior Jaycinth Hitzeman was named ILH DIII MVP in a vote of league coaches at season’s end.
Aiea girls soccer team makes DI state title game
Dominant defensive play fueled Aiea’s run at the DI state tournament last February. Although Aiea lost the title game to Kamehameha-Kapalama 4-0, its state tournament run was among the feel-good stories of 2014. Aiea finished its season 13-5 overall.
Campbell boys basketball plays for OIA title
For late-game drama, it was hard to top Campbell’s riveting 60-59 win over defending state champion Kalaheo in the OIA semi-finals Feb. 11. The Sabers trailed 15-0 early on, but completed their comeback with Gilbert Dayanan’s last-second tip-in.
The Sabers were defeated by Farrington 66-49 two days later in the OIA title game and went on to a fourth-place finish at the DI state tournament.
Pearl City bowling teams deliver again
Pearl City won both the boys and girls team titles at the state bowling championships Nov. 1 at KBXtreme in Kailua-Kona.
The Chargers, coached by Jimmy Hayashi, beat out fellow OIA West rival Kapolei by nearly 400 pins for the boys title.
In the girls division, Pearl City held off Hawaii Baptist by 150 pins for the title. The Chargers are coached by Millie Gomes and led by Chelsi Morishige, who rolled a nine-game total of 1,620 pins and placed second individually after winning the state title a year ago. It was the fifth consecutive team title for the Pearl City boys and the fourth straight for the girls.
Campbell defense big in playoff road win
Defense refused to wilt under pressure in leading the Sabers to a 20-14 win over Leilehua in the quarterfinals of the OIA DI football tournament Oct. 17 at Hugh Yoshida Stadium in Wahiawa. The Sabers shut out the high-scoring Mules offense in the second half, despite several chances.
The Mules owned a 14-7 lead at the half before the Sabers responded with 13 unanswered points. Losses to Mililani in the OIA semifinals and to Farrington in the third-place game ended Campbell’s bid for a state berth, but it still had a solid season at 7-4.
Kapolei plays for OIA Red VB titles
Kapolei girls volleyball team got the matchup it wanted when it met Mililani in the semifinals of the OIA Red tournament. The Hurricanes entered the game having won 10 straight since their only defeat, which had come in their regular-season opener five weeks earlier. This time around, led by sophomore Jayleen Abregana’s 13 kills and 9 digs, Kapolei prevailed over the Trojans 25-23, 25-22, 25-19 to advance to the title game. Although Kapolei was defeated by Moanalua, its title game appearance was a first for the program. The Hurricanes kept their momentum going, finishing third at the DI state tournament a week later.
Kapolei wins boys state judo title
Kapolei’s boys judo team brought home the school’s first-ever state crown May 10 from Stan Sheriff Center, despite not having any individual champions.
Jason Pagurayan (108 pounds), Andrew Pagurayan (114) and Anthony Brett (121) paced Kapolei with runner-up finishes in their respective weight classes. Kekua Marumoto (161) and Shaundale Magnani (178) both finished fourth, and Brysen Hughes (198) added a sixth-place finish.
The Hurricanes also had captured the OIA team title.
Campbell track and field teams come up big at OIA finals
Campbell’s track and field teams represented the West well at the OIA championships May 3. Coached by Wyatt Tau, the boys team rolled up 67 points to defeat runner-up Kalani (54) for the school’s first-ever OIA track title. The Saber girls nearly missed winning a title, tallying 75.5 points to finish a half-point behind Kaiser (75).
Pearl City takes girls state judo title
Pearl City reaffirmed its top place in the girls prep judo world with its third-straight judo state championship May 10 at Stan Sheriff Center. Pearl City placed in the top six in all 10 weight classes to rack up a state tournament-record 104 points.
Freshman Chastyne Dolor won her team’s only individual championship.
The Chargers also got runner-up finishes from Louise Pekelo (103 pounds), Netanya Kang (129), Kayla Arakaki (139), Megan Ramos (154) and Trudi Eltagonde (172). Kim Mendez (154) and Ashlyn Antonio (220) placed third, Mikayla Abe (115) and Joen Tominaga (122) fourth, Adrienne Nazareno (98) fifth, and Sara Kaaiakamanu (139) sixth.
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