The University of Hawai'i athletics teams enjoyed a successful 2010-11 year—highlighted by three Western Athletic Conference titles won by the football, volleyball and baseball teams, respectively.

 

Head coach Greg McMackin led the 2010 Warriors to a three-way tie for the WAC title in his third season. The Warriors posted a 10-4 overall record and a 7-1 conference mark while winning nine of their final 10 games. UH has now won at least a share of the WAC championship four times (1992, '99, '07, and '11) while making their sixth appearance in the Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl. The Warriors led the nation in passing offense and finished in the top three nationally for the 11th time in the last 12 years with 394.3 yards per game. The Warriors became just the second team in FBS history to feature a 5,000-yard passer (Bryant Moniz), a 1,000 yard rusher (Alex Green), and two 1,000 yard receivers (Greg Salas and Kealoha Pilares). Salas earned All-America honors and was one of 10 semifinalists for the Fred Bilitnikoff Award for the nation's top receiver. He finished his career as the school's all-time leader in receiving yards and was No. 2 nationally in yards per game (134.9) and No. 3 in receptions per game (8.5). Green had a spectacular senior season, rushing for 1,199 yards (the second highest total in school history) with 18 touchdowns (tied for the single-season UH record). He also set a new school single-season record with 8.2 yards per carry. Ten Warriors were named all-WAC with Salas, junior linebacker Corey Paredes and senior safety Mana Silva earning first-team honors. Moniz, Green, Pilares, defensive tackle Kaniela Tuipulotu, place kicker Scott Enos, and offensive linemen Adrian Thomas and Laupepa Letuli earning second-team honors.

 

The Rainbow Wahine volleyball team captured its 14th straight regular season WAC title and advanced to its 29th NCAA tournament in 2010. Hawai'i reeled off a 23-game win streak and swept all of its WAC matches for the first time in school history. UH also set a new school record of 62 straight sets won. Head coach Dave Shoji was inducted into the American Volleyball Coaches Association Hall of Fame. Shoji became just the second head coach in NCAA Division I women's volleyball history to reach the 1,000-win milestone in 2009. Currently he is second all-time in Division I, tallying 1,044 career victories. In 36 years under Shoji's guidance, he has led UH to four national championships; coached 26 AVCA All-Americans; five national players of the year, 19 conference players of the year, and numerous all-conference players. He is an 11-time conference coach of the year; has twice been selected the AVCA National Coach of the Year; and was named the coach of the NCAA 25th Anniversary team. Junior outside hitter Kanani Danielson and sophomore middle hitter Brittany Hewitt were selected to the AVCA All-America first and second teams respectively. Danielson led UH and ranked in the Top 10 nationally in kills (4.59 kps) while becoming just the 17th player in the program's history to eclipse 1,000 career kills. Hewitt was named CVU.com Blocker of the Year after leading the nation in blocks with 1.68 blocks per set while averaging 2.30 kills per set and hitting .365. The 'Bows also were named to the Top 5 Defensive Team of the Year list after holding opposing teams to just .141 hitting with 14.93 digs and 2.67 blocks per set. Hawai`i swept the WAC awards with Danielson voted Player of the Year for the second straight year, Emily Hartong earning Freshman of the Year honors, and Shoji named Coach of the Year for the eighth time. A total of six Rainbow Wahine earned all-WAC honors, including first-teamers Danielson, Hewitt, setter Dani Mafua, libero Elizabeth Ka'aihue, and outside hitter Chanteal Satele. Hartong was voted to the second team and the All-Freshman team along with outside hitter MIchelle Waber.

 

The Rainbow Wahine soccer team finished its season with a 3-14-3 overall record and 1-5-2 conference mark, unfortunately missing the WAC tournament for the second straight season. The 'Bows started the season strong by capturing the OHANA Hotels and Resorts No Ka Oi tournament. Senior midfielder Mari Punzal led UH early, earning honors in all four of its tournaments. Kanani Taaca earned her first WAC Defensive Player of the Week honor after helping UH to its first WAC win of the season and preserving a 1-1 tie at San Jose State with seven saves while playing all 110 minutes. Six players earned academic all-WAC honors including Punzal, Rachel Domingo, Tiffany Ikeda-Simao, Bree Locquiao, Skye Shimabukuro, and Christy Watanabe.

 

The women's cross country team concluded its 2010 season with a 30th place finish at the NCAA West Regional Championships at the Springfield Country club in Oregon after finishing in seventh at the WAC Championships. Senior Ashley Aitken was the top team finisher in six meets she competed in. She posted the season's top 4K, 5k and 6k times during the regular season and had the season's top 6K time of 22:23.22 at the NCAA West Regionals which placed her 135th overall. Aitken was also named WAC Cross Country Athlete of the Week twice this season.

 

First-year head coach Gib Arnold brought a renewed energy into the Rainbow Warrior basketball program. UH (19-13; 8-8 WAC) earned a postseason berth for the first time in seven years with an appearance into the CollegeInsider.com Tournament. The 'Bows turnaround season included an nine-win improvement from last year and a fifth-place finish in the WAC after being a last-place pick in the preseason. Senior forward Bill Amis overcame an early-season injury to be the driving force in UH's late-season success. The senior from Oklahoma City, Okla., averaged 15.2 points per game and 7.8 rebounds per game while leading the team with 49 blocks despite missing 10 games due to injury. Amis was selected to the all-WAC second team and sharp shooting transfer Zane Johnson earned honorable mention honors and was voted to the WAC's all-newcomer team. Johnson made an immediate impact in his first season at UH leading the team with 15.8 points per game and sinking a new UH single-season record 98 three-pointers. Jeremiah Ostrowski—a junior point guard who is also a slot receiver on the Warrior football team—joined team full-time on Dec. 25, a mere day after playing in the Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl. The 'Aiea, O'ahu native eventually slid into a starting role and proved to be inspirational and indispensable late in the season, averaging 38.0 mpg in UH's final five games averaging 5.4 points per game and a team-high 3.8 assists per game. UH set a new school record and ranked eighth in the nation in field goal percentage defense.

 

The Rainbow Wahine basketball team notched an 11-19 overall record and a 5-11 mark in WAC action, advancing to the WAC tournament for the second straight season. Senior point guard Keisha Kanekoa concluded her stellar career as the seventh-leading scorer in school history with 1,200 points, third with 378 assists and 11th in scoring average with 10.3 points per game. Senior guard Megan Tinnin left as the school's all-time record holder with 165 three-pointers made. But it was the dynamic freshmen duo of Kamilah Jackson and Shawna-Lei Kuehu who arguably made the biggest impact for UH with both earning a spot on the WAC's all-freshman team. Jackson was a rebounding machine for the 'Bows, ending the year ranked fourth in the NCAA with a WAC-best 11.9 rebounds per game. She led UH with 333 rebounds (149 offensive and 184 defensive) and 11.9 points per game. Kuehu, a redshirt freshman produced solid numbers across the board in her first full UH season with 255 total points, 138 rebounds, 64 assists, and 26 blocked shots. Junior center Rebecca Dew became just the fourth women's basketball player to be selected to the CoSIDA All-Academic District 8 team while she, Tinnin, Mai Ayabe, and Courtney Gaddis all earned academic all-WAC honors.

 

The women's swimming and diving team finished in second place at the 2011 WAC Championships at the Palo Alto College Natatorium. Senior Emma Friesen became the ninth UH diver in 10 years to be named the WAC Diver of the Year. It was the second time she won the WAC title in the three-meter dive and second time she earned diver of the year honors after winning it in 2009. Mike Brown was named the WAC Diving Coach of the Year for the sixth year and seventh time in his career. In the WAC Championships, sophomore Taylor Ritenberg earned a gold medal in the 200 breast and took second in the 100 breast while senior Maura Barrett finished third with a time of 1:48.72 in the 200 freestyle. Both Friesen and Ritenberg represented Hawai'i at the NCAA Championships in Austin, Texas where Ritenberg finished 41st in both the 100 and 200 breast in the preliminary rounds and Friesen finished her season with a seventhg place finish in the one-meter finals. Friesen, the 2008 NCAA 1-meter springboard champion, concluded her outstanding Hawai'i career as a four-time All-American who qualified for the NCAA Championships four times during her career. She was a six-time WAC champion with titles in both the 1-meter and 3-meter events. Friesen is a two-time winner of the Joe Kearney Award (2008 and 2011) as the WAC's top female athlete and this year earned UH's top female student-athlete award winning the 2011 Jack Bonham Award.

 

The men's swimming & diving team won it's first Conference-USA Invitational Championship title since joining the league in 2006. UH earned a final total of 1,018 points, wiping out defending champion SMU, who followed in second with 860.50 points. The Rainbow Warriors swept the meet's top awards with UH's Anita Rossing and Chuck Riggs winning Diving and Swimming Coach of the Meet awards respectively. The Invitational co-swimmers of the meet were given to UH sophomore Luca Mazzurana and Tom Cole of SMU, while Thomas Rugg earned Diver of the Meet honors. Mazzurana earned three gold medals at the invitational in the 100 fly, 200 fly, and 200 IM. His 200 fly time of 1:44.28 was a new meet and UH record and Mazzurana successfully defended his 100 fly title after winning it in 2010. Also winning a gold medal was Lazar Bogdanovski in the 200 back with a time of 1:45.91. UH swept the platform dive, taking the top four spots. Junior Douglas Cohen won the event with a score of 325.60. Freddie Menzel (278.70), Rugg (266.15), and Luke Hayes (240.95) followed in second, third, and fourth, respectively. Mazzurana concluded his sophomore season with a 25th place finish in the 200-meter butterfly (1:46.28) and in preliminary rounds swam to 32nd place in the 100-meter butterfly and 50th in the 200-meter IM in the NCAA Championships.

 

The Rainbow Wahine water polo team ended the 2011 season with an 18-9 record after a  sixth place finish at the MPSF Tournament. The Rainbow Wahine concluded the regular season in a tie for third-place in the league standings for the second straight year with a 4-3 MPSF record. UH junior attacker Monika Eggens was named to the all-MPSF first team; seniors Carmen Eggens and Leonie Van Der Molen were named to the second team; and freshman Kelly McKee was named to the all-newcomer team. Monika Eggens led the MPSF in scoring average, tallying 2.56 goals per game and totaling 69 goals in 27 matches. It's the second straight year that she earned first-team honors. As one of the most prolific goal scorers in collegiate water polo, Monika Eggens set a new school record earlier this year when she scored nine goals in a win over Colorado State. Older sister Carmen Eggens also earned MPSF honors for the second straight year, tallying 31 goals in 26 matches during her final season at UH. With 153 career goals in her four-year career, she leaves as one of the top goal scorers in school history. Van Der Molen also became a three-time all-MPSF honoree, earning second team honors for the second straight season. She finished second on the team in scoring with 39 goals and leaves Hawai'i as the second-leading scorer in UH history with 174 goals. Freshman McKee was named to the all-newcomer team after scoring 35 goals and a team-high 19 assists.

  

Playing the toughest schedule in school history, the men's tennis team posted a 6-13 record, with 12 of UH's 13 losses coming against ranked opponents. The team's bid for a fourth straight WAC Tournament title was denied after a loss to host No. 55 Boise State. Senior Dennis Lajola leaves as the most decorated player in program history. The four-time, first-team all-conference selection was named the 2011 WAC Player of the Year in his final season as a Rainbow Warrior. Lajola was first-team all-WAC in singles, playing every match at the No. 1 flight with a 5-1 WAC record. He also earned first-team honors in doubles with partner Jonathan Brooklyn who put together a solid freshman campaign. The pair finished the regular season with a 9-4 dual match record. Junior Leo Rosenberg earned a spot on the all-WAC second team in singles for the second year in a row. He defeated two nationally ranked players during the regular season.

 

 

The Rainbow Wahine tennis team finished the 2010-11 season with a 8-13 overall record and 2-3 WAC record to finish in sixth place. Sophomore Katarina Poljakova was named first-team all-WAC in singles, while junior Barbara Pinterova earned a spot on the second team. Poljakova posted a team-best 15-6 dual match record in singles with nine of her wins coming at the No. 1 position. The sophomore began the season with seven straight wins, including an upset of then- No. 43 Mary Clayton of Duke. Pinterova, a junior, went 9-11 in dual matches, with a 3-2 mark in WAC play while playing primarily at the No. 1 and 2 spots. The Slovakian duo also garnered second team all-WAC honors for doubles. It is the second straight year that Poljakova has been named to the second team in doubles.

 

The men's golf team concluded its 2010-11 season with a seventh place finish at the WAC Championships in Henderson, Nev. The Warriors competed in 10 tournaments in  the fall and spring seasons. Junior T.J. Kua was the only Warrior to compete in all 10 tournaments, posting a team-best 74.0 average while freshman Nainoa Calip competed in nine tournaments with a 76.2 average. Hawai'i's lone senior—four-year letterwinner Kamden Brakel—competed in seven tournaments with a 78.3 stroke average. Brakel participated in 35 career tournaments for the Warriors with a 77.7 average in 101 rounds. A total of eight Warriors golfed in at least half of the tournaments this season, five of whom were either freshmen or sophomores. Included in that mix was freshman David Saka, who prior to the spring season, qualified for the PGA's Sony Open in Hawai'i.

 

The Rainbow Wahine golf team finished the year with a seventh place finish at the WAC Championships in Mesa, Ariz. The 2010-11 squad featured only one senior—Brittany Bomar—a two-year letterwinner who played in 15 career tournaments for the Rainbow Wahine averaging 80.7 strokes per round and four Top 30 finishes. Half of the 10 team members were freshman, including Anna DePalma, Charlee Kapiioho, and Madeleine Ystrom, who each competed in seven of the 10 tournaments. Sophomores Ka'ili Britos and Brigitte Baker each participated in nine tournaments with Britos leading the team with six top-individual performances and a 78.0 stroke average. She finished in a tie for 14th place with a 15-over 228 total at the WAC tournament. 
 

The Warriors finished the 2011 season with a 15-13 overall and 13-9 MPSF record, advancing to the MPSF Tournament for the second straight year. Sophomore opposite Jonas Umlauft led the nation in kills for the second consecutive year, averaging 5.57 per set while hitting .344, which ranked 12th nationally. UH's only first-team all-MPSF pick becomes the first Warrior to be named to the first team in consecutive seasons since Costas Theocharidis (2000-03). Umlauft became the 13th player in school history to record 1,000 career kills and only the third player to reach that milestone in just his second season. He was named AVCA National and MPSF Player of the Week after averaging 6.29 kills per set in UH's two-match sweep of Long Beach State in which he had 22 kills in each match. Umlauft became the third player in the program's history to be named a CoSIDA Academic All-America joining Dejan Miladinovic (2002 – first team) and Costas Theocharidis (2002 – second team & 2003 – first team). Umlauft and setters Nejc Zemljak and Sam Biscaro were selected to the MPSF all-academic team. Senior Zemljak—the program's first four-time all-academic selection—was named second-team all-MPSF after averaging 11.04 assists per set (ranked seventh nationally) while also leading the team in digs at 1.96 per set. Biscaro, a redshirt freshman appeared in all 28 matches as a back-up setter and serving specialist.

 

The Rainbow Wahine softball team posted a 37-18 overall record with a 14-7 conference mark for a fourth-place finish in the WAC. UH recorded early-season wins over No. 16 Stanford and No. 6 Oklahoma and faced a total of 12 teams that advanced to the 2011 NCAA Tournament. Junior pitcher Stephanie Ricketts and sophomore shortstop Jessica Iwata were voted WAC Pitcher and Player of the Year respectively for the second straight year. Ricketts went 22-11 overall and 8-4 in the WAC. Statistically, she had her best season at UH with a 1.58 ERA, 30 complete games, nine shut-outs, and 250 strike outs while holding opponents to a .193 batting average. Ricketts broke UH All-American Brooke Wilkins' 16-year old career strike out record with 589 Ks and became just the second Rainbow Wahine to win at least 20 games in three consecutive seasons. Iwata led the 'Bows with a team-high .355 average (60-for-169), a .663 slugging percentage, and a .447 on-base percentage. Iwata also led the 'Bows in runs scored (43), hits (60), home runs (15), and RBI (44) and finished the season on a nine-game hitting streak. Both Iwata and Ricketts were named Easton All-American (second and third team respectively), West Region second-team honors, and all-WAC first team honors. Junior leftfielder Alexandra Aguirre and sophomore centerfielder Kelly Majam both were named to the all-WAC second team.

 

The Rainbow Baseball team captured the 2011 WAC regular-season title tied with Fresno State with identical 17-7 conference records. It was the first time since 1992 that UH finished atop the conference rankings. This season marked the first time since 1991 that Hawai'i has gone through an entire WAC season without losing a series. But the 'Bows fell in the WAC tournament's championship game and unfortunately were left out of the NCAA tournament. Overall, Hawai`i posted a 32-23 record and had eight quality wins over four ranked teams—including Oregon, Texas, Wichita State and Fresno State. UH was once again led by junior phenom, second baseman Kolten Wong who earned third-team All-America honors and was chosen in the first round with the 22nd pick in Major League Baseball's first year player draft to the St. Louis Cardinals. Wong is UH's third first-round pick in school history. He started 59 games this season, recording 48 runs scored, 11 doubles, three triples, 53 RBI and led UH with seven home runs and a conference-high 23 stolen bases. Relief pitcher Lenny Linsky also earned third-team All-America and second team all-WAC honors. Linsky led the conference with 14 saves, which is also a new single-season Rainbow record. For the season, he recorded 34 strikeouts in 34.2 innings for a 1.30 earned run average and and was selected in the second round by Tampa Bay in the 2011 MLB draft pick as well. Head coach Mike Trapasso was voted WAC Coach of the Year while four Rainbows earned all-WAC honors. Wong and Zack Swasey were selected to the all-WAC first team while Linsky and Jeff Van Doornum made the second team.

 

The women's sailing team advanced to the 2011 ICSA Sperry Women's National Championship at the Columbia River Gorge in Oregon. It marked the 12th time in the last 14 years that Hawai'i has competed in the nationals. The 'Bows finished in 10th place after the semifinals and was just six points short of the ninth and last qualifying spot for the finals. The Rainbow Wahine were led by four-time all-conference selection Hannah Tuson-Turner, who helped lead UH to a second-place finish at the 2011 PCCSC Women's Championship to qualify for the nationals. She also helped the 'Bows capture the South Florida Intersectional this year. Hanne Nagatani, Madeline Kennedy  and Lani Johnson also contributed greatly to the Rainbow Wahine efforts this year. 

 

The 2010-11 coed sailing team captured two regattas and finished no lower than fourth in eight of nine events. The team made its first team competition of the year a successful one, capturing the Stoney Burke Intersectional, held in October, at Treasure Island in California. The Rainbows beat out 26 other teams, a mix of both coed and women's squads, to win the regatta for the second straight year. UH also claimed its own Peter Wenner Invitational in January, capturing the regatta for the first time in three years.

 

Hawai'i's cheerleading team finished in seventh place at the 2011 Universal Cheerleaders Association Collegiate National Championships at ESPN's Wide World of Sports Milk House in Orlando, Fla. Hawai'i—a team that has built a reputation of being one of the most innovative and dynamic squads in the nation—moved up one spot from last year's eighth place finish at the Championships. The 'Bows entered the competition as the number one seed in the IA West Division.

 

Hawai'i's track and field team finished seventh in the WAC Indoor Championships and eighth in the WAC Outdoor Championships hosted by Hawai'i at the Clarence T.C. Ching Field. In the indoor championship, the Rainbow Wahine captured two silvers and a bronze medal with Ashley Aitken running to a bronze medal in the 800-meters; Madara Apine placing second in the triple jump; and Sarah Saddleton taking the silver in the high jump. It marked the fourth straight year that UH has captured the silver in the indoor high jump. During the outdoor championships, UH earned five medals. After winning four WAC silver medals during her indoor and outdoor career, Saddleton broke through winning the gold with a jump of 5-10.75 (1.80 m). Junior TeRina Keenan repeated as the discus champion after throwing 161-8 (49.27 m), marking the fifth time a UH athlete has won the event. Emma MacCorquodale took her second straight bonze in the hammer throw with a toss of 184-11 (56.36 m). Aitken became the first Rainbow Wahine to medal in the 1,500-m run since 2004. Aitken finished with a silver with at 4:29.22 and Apine took the bronze in the triple jump with a 40-2.25 leap. Five athletes qualified for the NCAA West Preliminary Round—Apine (triple jump), Samantha Balentine (high jump), Keenan (discus), MacCorquodale (hammer) and Saddleton (high jump) all represented UH at historic Hayward Field on the University of Oregon campus.

 

 

                                                                                                                                                                           -UH-