Posted on: Wednesday, March 9, 2005

HOMEGROWN REPORT
Maui swimmer Hoopii excels at No. Colorado

By Leila Wai
Advertiser Staff Writer

Northern Colorado senior swimmer Saree Hoopii was named the school's Female Student-Athlete of the Month for February.

Hoopii, who attended Maui High before transferring to the Mainland, repeated as Swimmer of the Year at the House of Champions Invitational Feb. 19, the Bears' season-ending event. The tri-captain won 6 of 7 events, missing out on the clean sweep only when the Bears' 200-yard freestyle relay team was disqualified.Ê

Hoopii took first in the 50 freestyle (24.21 seconds), 100 freestyle (52.12) and the 100 backstroke (57.32) and was part of the winning 400 medley relay (4:07.36), 800 freestyle relay (7:47.75) and 400 freestyle relay (3:32.79, a school record) teams.Ê

More Swimming

• UC Irvine freshman Chelsea Nagata (Maui '04 of Kahului) won the 100-yard butterfly at the Big West Championship with a NCAA automatic qualifying time of 53.54 seconds, the sixth-fastest in the country at the time.

She broke her own UCI record in the 50 freestyle with her second-place time of 23.62 seconds and took second in the 100 backstroke (55.84) with her third UCI record of the meet.

Her three relay teams broke UCI records: Her fourth-place 400 medley relay team (3:47.88), her third-place 200 free relay team (1:35.56), and her second-place 200 medley relay team (1:43.23).

• University of San Diego junior Ashley Swart (Kaiser '02 of Hawai'i Kai) had three top-five finishes at the Western Athletic Conference Championships Feb. 23-26.

She came in second in the 400 individual medley (4:19.11), third in the 200 IM (2:02.86) and fifth in the 200 breaststroke (2:18.36).

Swart missed more than 1ý months of training because of bronchitis that prevented her from swimming until after Christmas, according to her father, Dennis Swart.

Northern Arizona sophomore Cassie Lyons (Waiakea) finished fifth in the 100 breaststroke (1:04.24) and sixth in the 200 breaststroke (2:20.63).

• Dartmouth junior Kristin Simunovich (Punahou '02 of Kailua) helped set two school relay records in the Ivy League Women's Swimming and Diving Championships.

Her 400-yard freestyle relay team (3:30.42) finished eighth, and the 200 freestyle relay team (1:36.40) was seventh.

• UC Irvine freshman Randall Tom (Seabury Hall '04 of Wailuku) broke the UCI record in the 200 IM in 1:51.77 in the consolation heat at the Big West Conference Championships.

Tom's 200 free relay team completed the second-fastest time in UCI history (1:23.11), his 200 medley relay team set both a UCI record and a Big West Championships record, winning UCI's first men's relay Big West Championship since 1998 in 1:29.36, and his 400 medley relay team broke the UCI record with a time of 3:18.09.

Women's Basketball

• Menlo freshman guard Kepua Lee (Moanalua '04 of Honolulu) was named the California Pacific Conference Freshman of the Year.

She was also named to the All-Cal Pac first team after averaging 12.8 points and 5.0 rebounds.

• UC Santa Barbara senior forward Brandy Richardson (Kalaheo '01 of 'Aiea) was named to the Big West Conference second team, after grabbing 8.3 rebounds per game, good for seventh in the conference. Her 6.8 points per game was the highest of her Gaucho career.

• Pacific junior center Tina Saneviri (Farrington of Waipahu) was a Big West honorable mention selection, after averaging a team-high 11.1 points and grabbing 5.8 rebounds per game.

• Mesa College senior forward Rosa Masler (Maui of Kahului) was named to the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference All-West Division Second Team.

• Fullerton (Calif.) College sophomore forward Becky Hogue (Punahou '03 of Kailua) was named to the Orange Empire Conference All-Conference Team.

• Barton County (Great Bend, Kan.) Community College freshman forward Sunshine Misa-Uli (Farrington '04) scored 13 points and grabbed 15 rebounds in a 62-60 loss to Seward Saturday.

Men's Volleyball

Reach Leila Wai at lwai@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2457.