Hawai'i athletes show success in classroom
By Leila Wai
Advertiser Staff Writer
Four athletes from Hawai'i were named to the Big Ten Spring Academic All-Conference teams.
KIRA
GOODWIN
SIMMS
They are Northwestern softball player J.C. Kira (St. Francis '00 of Honolulu), Michigan rower Emily Goodwin (Forest Hills Central High in Michigan of Honolulu), Michigan track runner Vera Simms (Mililani '00) and Michigan water polo player Jineane Shibuya (Mid-Pacific '01 of Honolulu).
Kira, a communication studies major, batted .212 in 53 games with five doubles and three home runs for Northwestern (34-20).
Goodwin, a photography major, helped Michigan's first varsity eight rowing team place third at the NCAA Championships on Lake Natoma May 30.
Simms, a mechanical engineering major, placed 22nd out of a field of 28 in the 400-meter hurdles preliminaries with a time of 59.38 seconds in her first NCAA Championships on June 11.
Shibuya, a movement science major, scored five goals and had two assists in 10 games for Michigan (30-9).
Men's Tennis
• Idaho junior Brad Lum-Tucker (Kaua'i '00 of Lihu'e) was named to the Big West Academic All-Conference team.
Lum-Tucker, a sports science major, also earned all-conference second-team honors in singles. He finished the year with a 17-9 record, playing primarily at the No. 1 spot.
He also teamed with Chris Faulman to earn all-conference honorable mention for doubles. The duo finished the year with a record of 14-10 at the No. 1 doubles spot.
• Pacific sophomore Tyler Black (Kamehameha '02 of Kahalu'u) was named to the Big West Academic All-Conference team.
Black, a pre-pharmacy major, had a 7-9 record in the spring season.
Baseball
• Pacific junior outfielder Nicholas Sekiya (Punahou '00 of Honolulu) was named to the Big West Academic All-Conference team.
Sekiya, a sports medicine major, batted .270 in 41 games with nine doubles and two home runs.
Women's Golf
If you know of any deserving of recognition, give us their names, high schools and graduation years, colleges and sports. E-mail us at: homegrown@honoluluadvertiser.com or contact Leila Wai at 535-2457.
• Portland State freshman Lisa Kajihara (King Kekaulike '03 of Pukalani) was named to the Big Sky Spring All-Academic team.
Let us know
Kajihara earned All-Big Sky honors after placing fifth in the Big Sky tournament with 72-78-73—223.
Softball
• Pacific senior outfielder Nicole Inouye (Sacred Hearts '99 of 'Aiea) was named to the Big West Academic All-Conference team.
Inouye, a business major, batted .233 with two doubles and three home runs.
Women's Outdoor Track and Field
• Portland State junior Annie Kawasaki (St. Francis '01 of Honolulu) was named to the Big Sky Spring All-Academic team.
Kawasaki, an architecture major, qualified for the Big Sky Championships in the 5,000 but did not run.
Women's Tennis
• Long Beach State senior Kelly Chan (Konawaena '00 of Kailua, Kona) was named to the Big West Academic All-Conference team for the third time.
Chan had a 3.91 grade point average in marketing.
Football
• Harvard graduate Neil Rose (University High '98 of Mililani) rushed for four touchdowns and completed 16 of 17 passes for 187 yards to lead the Harvard Crimson to a 35-21 victory over the Yale Bulldogs Sunday at the Ivy-Samurai Bowl in Japan, according to The Japan Times.
The game featured players from Harvard and Yale, along with Japanese college students.
Signing
• University High graduate Shannon Kim signed with the NAIA's Graceland University (Lamoni, Iowa) and will join the women's volleyball team in the fall.
Graceland coach Stew McDole plans to use Kim as a libero, according to the school's Web site.
Kim, who is 5 feet 3, is a two-time Interscholastic League of Honolulu honorable mention selection.
Reach Leila Wai at lwai@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2457.
