HPU Baseball drops first game in PacWest tournament to Concordia, 5-0

HPU Baseball drops first game in PacWest tournament to Concordia, 5-0

May 8, 2024

HPU Baseball drops first game in PacWest tournament to Concordia, 5-0

BY MICHAEL LASQUERO | HSRN
PUBLISHED MAY 8, 2024

AZUSA, Calif. — Not much you can do against arguably the best pitcher in the conference.

Hawai’i Pacific was held scoreless in its opening game of the PacWest Baseball Championships as Concordia cruised to a 5-0 win Wednesday afternoon at Cougar Baseball Complex.

Jake Covey, who earned conference Co-Pitcher of the Year and Newcomer of the Year honors, went the full nine innings for the Golden Eagles with eight strikeouts while allowing just four hits.

The Sharks were held without a hit until the bottom of the fifth with a Chase Taylor single.

Concordia held a slim 1-0 lead after a David Baruch RBI in the the top of the third, but broke the game wide-open in the top of the sixth with four consecutive hits on HPU starter Conor Hourigan. The fourth hit in that stretch was a three-run homer that accounted for the final score.

HPU will play Point Loma in a must-win game to extend its season Thursday morning at 8 a.m. (HST). The loser’s season is over while the winner will play the loser between Azusa Pacific and Concordia at 4 p.m. (HST).

The Sea Lions swept the Sharks in the regular season.

Oregon QB Dillon Gabriel gives back to community with ‘I’m Inspired’ event

Oregon QB Dillon Gabriel gives back to community with ‘I’m Inspired’ event

May 4, 2024

Oregon QB Dillon Gabriel gives back to community with ‘I’m Inspired’ event

BY MICHAEL LASQUERO | HSRN
PUBLISHED MAY 4, 2024

MILILANI — Giving back to his community has always been on Dillon Gabriel’s heart.

The Oregon quarterback and former Mililani Trojan was back home Friday night as he helped present new home and away uniforms for his alma mater’s football team in his “I’m Inspired” event, which was free for the public.

Gabriel, who also played at University of Central Florida and Oklahoma before his transfer to the Ducks, has been donating to Mililani’s athletic teams for the past couple of years now using earnings earned profiting off his own name, image and likeness (NIL).

“I just wanted to inspire others and push the culture and challenge others to keep providing the best resources for our young athletes,” said Gabriel.

“They deserve it, they work hard, just excited for them. Nothing beats a smile on their face and the confidence they’ll have when they go play.”

Brands like Nike, Guardian Caps, Raising Cane’s, Riddell, EvoShield, HawaiiUSA Federal Credit Union and Hawaii Pacific Health, among others, have contributed to the event.

In addition to the football uniforms being branded by Nike, VICIS also played a role as a primary sponsor with its donations of ZERO2 helmets to outfit the team. VICIS sister brand Schutt also contributed new XV series shoulder pads.

“It’s great, a lot of work got put into it,” Gabriel said of the new football uniforms, which are back in Mililani’s traditional Brown and Gold colors.

“A lot of people touched this project. I can’t take everyone enough for just the accessories, the helmets, the shoulder pads, the uniform, all of it coming together to show you the product that they came out in. I’m super grateful.”

Among those in attendance was one of Gabriel’s former high school teammate Darius Muasau, who was recently drafted by the New York Giants in the sixth round after a collegiate career at UCLA and Hawai’i.

“It’s a great feeling being in Mililani right now, having this whole function thrown by Dillon, grateful for that guy,” said Muasau. 

“This is what it’s all about right here, giving back to the community, being with the future generation right here. It’s nice to give back and seeing everybody happy and all the smiles across everybody’s face.”

The event was emceed by Hawaii News Now’s Steve Uyehara and had a concert by Nesian N.I.N.E after the uniforms were unveiled. There were also games, food and activities in the free event for the public.

Waiakea repeats as state boys golf champion, Seabury Hall’s Tyler Loree wins individual title

Waiakea repeats as state boys golf champion, Seabury Hall’s Tyler Loree wins individual title

May 2, 2024

The Waiakea boys golf team pose for a photo after winning the school’s second straight state title, the program’s 13th overall. Andrew Lee | HHSAA

Waiakea repeats as state boys golf champion, Seabury Hall’s Tyler Loree wins individual title

BY MICHAEL LASQUERO | HSRN
PUBLISHED MAY 2, 2024

Back-to-back for the Waiakea boys golf team.

The Warriors repeated as the David Ishii/HHSAA Boys Golf team champion Wednesday afternoon at Kaneohe Klipper to win the program’s 13th state title in school history.

Waiakea had a five shot advantage over Moanalua and Punahou, who tied for second place.

Seabury Hall’s Tyler Loree won the individual title with a score of 141 through the tournament’s two rounds. It was his three under par performance in round one that helped secure the title as he hit par in round two to seal the win. 

Kahuku’s Keola Silva Jr. came in second place with a four under par performance in round two that helped him rise the leaderboards. Silva was the only player to hit under par in round two.

Moanalua still reigns in OIA boys volleyball after five-set win over Mililani

Moanalua still reigns in OIA boys volleyball after five-set win over Mililani

May 2, 2024

Moanalua still reigns in OIA boys volleyball after five-set win over Mililani

BY MICHAEL LASQUERO | HSRN
PUBLISHED MAY 2, 2024

Moanalua is still king in OIA boys volleyball.

Na Menehune held off a late comeback by Mililani in five sets to win their fifth straight league crown Wednesday night at Radford’s Jim Alegre Gymnasium.

Set scores were 25-19, 25-15, 27-29, 23-25 and 15-10.

A year after winning title No. 11 in school history with a trio of Hawai’i-bound signees, Moanalua (14-0) did it with mainly new faces.

“There were big expectations for the seniors that are coming in because of the star-studded senior group that we had last year and so they came into their own and they earned this as a team and they figured it out as a team in the end,” said Moanalua coach Alan Cabanting, who has led Na Menehune to 10 of their 12 total league titles.

Ezekiel Sablan was one of those new faces as he put down 20 kills and was one of three players to record double-digit kills for the victors.

“It feels great to be a part of this team and to help them with another OIA winning streak and it feels great just to be here right now,” Sablan said.

Jaycen Bush was also key with 14 kills and eight digs and D’Angelo Ross had 13 kills and hit .440 for the match.

On the other side of the net Tyler Duranceau had a double-double of 20 kills and 14 digs and Aris Mateo had 18 kills to lead the Trojans (12-1) in the loss.

Mililani was seeking its first league crown since 2017.

Waialua makes history; wins first-ever OIA boys volleyball championship

Waialua makes history; wins first-ever OIA boys volleyball championship

May 2, 2024

Waialua makes history; wins first-ever OIA boys volleyball championship

BY MICHAEL LASQUERO | HSRN
PUBLISHED MAY 2, 2024

History was made Wednesday night.

Waialua captured the program’s first-ever OIA boys volleyball championship in reverse sweep-fashion over Kailua in the league’s Division II title match at Radford’s Jim Alegre Gymnasium.

Set scores were 21-25, 22-25, 25-16, 25-22, 15-10.

It was a total team effort for the Bulldogs, who won their sixth straight contest to finish OIA play with a 9-3 record.

Jaris Ablao had a double-double of 13 kills and 10 digs, Keoni Nahoopii put down 12 kills, Shane Kelly had 11 kills and Dayton Quick registered nine kills and seven blocks. Setter Cyres Lacar was also solid with 39 assists, 17 digs and five kills.

“I wanted that banner,” said Quick. “Individual success is awesome, but this is a team sport and I came here for that banner be hung up in my gym with my teammates and our year on it.”

Waialua adjusted its lineup after the second set and made adjustments that saw the Bulldogs take a commanding 19-11 lead in the third set and start the fourth set on a 9-0 run. The Bulldogs also hit .147 and .125 in the first two sets but hit .321 in the third set.

“When you have a big lead like that, you have to keep it up,” said Quick. “Volleyball is a game of momentum and my coaches say ‘first team to grab onto the momentum and hold on, almost always comes out on top.’”

The Bulldogs won two of their three matches that went to five sets this season while the Surfriders (7-6) are 0-3.

Kaleb Cui had a match-high 22 kills in the loss to lead Kailua, who was seeking its first OIA title since 2014.