Thursday, October 21, 2010

Kekaulike claims state volleyball berth

 

By Fred Guzman

ESPN550.com

 

King Kekaulike's girls' volleyball team ended a more than decade-long state tournament drought last night with a Division-I playoff victory over Baldwin.

 

Na Alii, which had last qualified for states in 1999, bounced back from an opening-set loss to defeat Baldwin 24-26, 25-23, 25-22, 25-16 at the neutral Maui High gym.

 

The victory avenged a heart-breaking five-set loss to the Bears just last week in the semifinals of the MIL D-I tournament. 

 

That means Kekaulike will join overall champion Kamehameha-Maui in the state D-I event that begins next Wednesday on the Valley Isle, with matches to be staged at the Kekaulike and Kamehameha gyms.

 

The state D-II tourney will be held on Oahu, with Molokai and Seabury Hall representing the MIL in that event.

 

Molokai is ranked third and Kamehameha-Maui seventh in the most recent Star-Advertiser state poll.

 

There will be no Friday Night Lights in football this week.  Instead, both of the scheduled MIL games will be held on Saturday.

 

In a 2:30 game, Division-II champion Lahainaluna will play host to Kekualike on the new rug at The Imu.  At 7 p.m., Maui High will celebrate homecoming against D-I champion and arch-rival Baldwin.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Free football? We'll know by Monday

 

By Fred Guzman

ESPN550.com

 

Fans of Hawaii football could be getting an extra televised game that doesn't require a pay-per-view subscription.  Although good news for those of us who don't have the package, it would be bad news for the university's cash-strapped athletic department.

 

ESPN is seriously considering whether to pick Hawaii's Nov. 6 game at nationally third-ranked Boise State.  That decision hinges on UH – which is off to a 5-2 start that includes a 3-0 mark in the WAC – being able to post a road victory over Utah State on Saturday.

 

If that happens -- and a decision is due Monday -- UH fans will able to view the game on cable.  But it would also deprive Hawaii of a lucrative element of its pay-per-view package.  The Star-Advertiser projects a payday of $200,000 or more for that game.

 

The package has had upward of 12,000 for its most popular games, including more than 5,000 individual purchases, since its inception.

 

The package cost Oahu subscribers $500 and Neighbor Island fans $250.  On a per-game basis, the cost of watching an individual game costs between $25 and $65.

 

Last year's package did about $3.4 million in sales. UH's share was $2.5 million. Whether UH's payout would be reduced this year in the event ESPN adds the Boise State game could will depend on financial thresholds contained in the PPV contract.

Monday, October 18, 2010

Upset alert: Hawaii stuns No. 19 Nevada

By Fred Guzman

ESPN550.com

 

Kaniela Tuipuloto, the defensive tackle from Lahaina, dedicated the victory to doubters of the UH football program, a pre-season pick to finish sixth or worse in the nine-team WAC.

 

Instead, Hawaii finds itself atop the WAC standings after stunning No. 19 Nevada 27-21 before more than 40,000 fans on Saturday night at Aloha Stadium.  The win was the fourth straight for UH, which improved to 5-2 overall and 3-0 in the conference.

 

Byrant Moniz completed 26 of 36 passes for 287 yards and three touchdowns – including a pair of first-quarter hookups with Kealona Pilares for a 14-0 lead.

 

But the real heroes of this upset played on the other side of the ball, holding off a Nevada's bid to rally from a 17-0 deficit.

 

Hawaii jammed Nevada's vaunted pistol offense, forcing four turnovers and limiting the Wolf Pack to 293 yards – dramatically below the 545.3 yards that ranked second nationally. Vaunted QB Colin Kaepernick was held to 159 yards passing and 37 rushing.

 

Nevada closed to 20-14 early in the fourth quarter, but Moniz engineered a six-play, 57-yard drive capped by an 11-yard scoring toss to Royce Pollard with 5:27 left.

 

Nevada still had a shot at overtaking UH after recovering an onside kick with 3:06 left.  But a few plays later, Kaepernick was intercepted by safety Mana Silva, preserving Greg McMackin's run at Manoa.

 

Hawaii's back-to-back victories over Fresno State and Nevada has lifted UH into the role of top challenger to end Boise State's dominance of the WAC.  The third-ranked Broncos are 6-0 overall and 2-0 in the league.

 

The successful run t also has caught the attention of the pollsters.  Previously ranked 19th, the loss to UH dropped Nevada out of the AP poll.

 

Nevada was among the other teams receiving votes, garnering 19, for the equivalent of 28th in the AP poll.  Hawaii received eight votes and is tied for 29th in the AP rankings along with North Carolina and Northwestern.

 

Hawaii will try to extend its winning streak to five games when it visits Utah State on Saturday.  The game is scheduled to kick off at 11 a.m., Hawaii time, and will be aired on AM900.

 

Individually, three UH players are ranked among the nation's most productive performers.  

 

Moniz retained his national lead in passing yardage with 2,532 and moved into first in touchdown passes with 21.

 

Greg Salas, who had 11 catches for 153 yards against Nevada, ranks second in reception yardage with 910 and second in total catches with 61.  Pilares ranks second in TD catches with 11 and third in reception yards with 793.

Friday, October 15, 2010

High-powered duel: UH hosts No. 19 Nevada

By Fred Guzman

ESPN550.com

 

Out of sight, out of mind.  The lack of Hawaii football games on live television is the prime reason that, as of yesterday, only 32,000 tickets had been distributed for Saturday's WAC showdown between Hawaii and 19th-ranked Nevada at 50,000-seat Aloha Stadium.

 

Ever since the season-opener against Southern California, Hawaii's games have only been available to most local fans via pay-per-view.  So this improving UH team continues to fly under the radar despite posting an impressive 49-27 road victory last week at Fresno State. 

 

Hawaii's formula for success in compiling records of 4-2 overall and 2-0 in the WAC a 4-2 remains unchanged.  It's based on a highly productive passing game.

 

Leading the way is much-improved quarterback Bryant Moniz, the 2007 Leilehua High graduate who leads the NCAA in total offense, with 388 yards per game.

 

By comparison, Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson, heralded by many as the front-runner to win the Heisman Trophy front-runner, is averaging 369 yards.

 

Moniz is No. 1 in passing yards per game with 374.17 and total passing yards  with 2,245, well ahead of Oklahoma State's Russell Wilson's 1,802 yards.  Moniz also is tied for first with 18 touchdown throws.

 

Whether Moniz can generate those types of numbers against Nevada will likely determine whether UH can post back-to-back upsets at the expense of a team that has crashed the Top 25 for the only the second time in school history.

 

Moniz top targets, slotbacks Greg Salas and Kealoha Pilares, ranked first and third, respectively

 

Nevada's Colin Kaepernick is no slouch, himself.  The 6-foot-6 QB is averaging nearly 107 rushing yards per game out of the Wolf Pack's "pistol" offense .  Kaepernick also has worked hard to improve his passing accuracy and it's paid off.  He's completing 70.7 percent of his throws.

Thursday, October 7, 2010

UH renews rivalry with Fresno State

By Fred Guzman

ESPN550.com 

 

When eight teams bolted from the Western Athletic Conference to create the Mountain West a dozen years ago, the University of Hawaii was deprived of some intense football rivalries.  Gone were BYU and Utah, replaced by the likes of New Mexico State and Idaho.

 

But one bitter rival remained, and a renewal of their not always fond acquaintances is on tap Saturday when Hawaii pays a visit to Fresno State on Saturday.

 

Hawaii put on a dazzling aerial display in a 41-21 home victory over LaTech in last week's WAC opener, improving its overall record to 3-2.  QB Bryant Moniz completed 42 of 58 passes for 532 yards and four touchdowns.

 

The slotback tandem of Kealoha Pilares and Greg Salas put on a show.  Pilares caught a school record 18 passes for 217 yards.  Greg Salas, who held the previous single-game reception mark, had 10 grabs for 197 yards and two scores.

 

But Fresno State poses a much tougher challenge for Hawaii.  The Bulldogs are 3-1, beating Cincinnati, Utah State and Cal Poly, while losing to Ole Miss. Unlike UH, the Bulldogs rely heavily on a ground game, running the ball 66 percent of the time. 

 

That's enabled Ryan Colburn to capitalize on play-action to complete 72.5 percent of his passes for 997 yards and 11 touchdowns with just three picks.  His quarter rating of 179.83 ranks fourth nationally.