Damien grad an academic all-star
By Dennis Anderson
Advertiser Staff Writer
The FBI needs more than a few good men, and they have one in the wings in Brad Candido (Damien '98 of 'Ewa).
The Hawai'i Homegrown Report appears every Wednesday. If you know of any Hawai'i athletes at Mainland colleges, give us their names, high schools, colleges and sports. We'll check them out. To reach us: e-mail: dennis@lava.net, sports@honoluluadvertiser.com Dennis Anderson's fax: 808-236-4195 Phone: On 'Oahu 236-3654 or toll-free off 'Oahu (888)-236-3654
Candido, a senior who could start at cornerback on the Sacramento State football team this fall, achieved a 3.94 grade-point average this spring (four As and one A-minus), and was chosen to the Big Sky Conference All-Academic football team for the second year in a row.
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He is a criminal justice major who sees the FBI in his future.
Candido's cumulative GPA at Cal State Sacramento since transferring from the University of Hawai'i two years ago is 3.44.
On the football field, "the biggest thing he has had to battle is staying healthy," said defensive coordinator Lou Petrone.
Candido has a history of hamstring pulls, but last season it was a broken arm that took him out after he had started the first two games. "He broke his arm on a great tackle," Petrone said, and missed five games. When he came back, he pulled his hamstring again.
"He has some of the quickest feet I've ever seen on a defensive back, and a tremendous work ethic on the field and in the classroom. I hope he can stay healthy," Petrone said.
VOLLEYBALL
• William & Mary (Va.)
"A lesser person," says coach Debbie Hill, "would have thrown in the towel" faced with the chronic injuries, especially the back pain, that dogged Lesley Johnson during her collegiate career.
"I admire her so much," Hill said. "She just wouldn't give up and kept playing with pain."
Johnson is a 1998 Punahou graduate from Kailua.
A 5-foot-9 defensive specialist, Johnson became a starter in her senior year. "She was a very important part of our team," Hill said.
Johnson served seven aces, third most in school history, against cross-town rival Hampton and got 19 digs against North Carolina. William & Mary won the Colonial Athletic Association championship for the first time in 10 years.
She graduated last month with a bachelor of science degree in math and a biology minor and is doing an internship this summer with the University of Hawai'i's marine mammal program.
SOCCER
• Richmond (Va.)
John Barry (Iolani '94) has been appointed assistant men's soccer coach at Richmond, a consistent NCAA contender. Barry has been working in Seattle after earning his bachelor's degree from Lafayette (Pa.), where he was a starting goalie for two seasons, in 1998 and his master's from East Stroudsburg (Pa.) in 2001.
TRACK
• Oregon
Junior 800-meter runner Eri Macdonald (Punahou '99 of Kailua) earned second-team All-Pac 10 scholar-athlete honors for the second straight season.
