Sports

Batter Up

Friday, July 16th, 2010

Ask any Molokai Little Leaguer what brought them out to play baseball Saturday morning and they’d tell you it’s for the love of the game.

“I love to hit homeruns!” exclaimed 10-year-old Royden Abafo. “I’m so happy we got to play.”

But it took a little more than love for baseball to make the Grandma and Grandpa Little League Tournament at Kaunakakai Ball Park possible – it took the love of the community.

Getting a late start due to the loss of its charter, the 9 and 10 year old Little League teams did not have the opportunity to play a full season this year – which was unacceptable to Molokai resident and grandparent Wayde Lee.

Lee said the kids were “bummed out” that they couldn’t play and he decided to call upon his `ohana and the community to put on what he called the “Grandma and Grandpa League Tournament.”

,” Lee said. “There is nothing better than to come out and watch your grandkids play.”

Funded by Lee and other community donations, the tournament lasted three days with three co-ed Molokai teams battling it out on the field: the Yankees, Slammahs and Hammahs. Each team had one week of practice with volunteer coaches who recruited the kids from separate districts. Bill Umi, one of the coaches for the Yankees, said the tournament was more relaxed because the kids didn’t feel the pressure of qualifying for All-Stars, a higher level in the league’s previous years.

“The kids did awesome,” Hammahs coach Kenny Adachi said. “We’re all really grateful they got this opportunity … they deserve it.”

Lee added that the tournament wasn’t about winning, but about having fun – which was evident on the diamond.

“My favorite part was scoring runs,” said 10-year-old Sydney Rawlins, who played for the Slammahs. “I’ve been playing since T-ball.”

Her excitement was shared by others who were glad they got to brush up on their baseball skills for next year.

“I love to catch and to hit!” said 9-year-old Cami Horner, representing the Yankees. “I can’t wait to play again.”

A chili lunch and awards ceremony followed the tournament, where the kids were presented with certificates, T-shirts, metals donated by the County of Maui, and a new baseball.

Despite hitches this year, the league has been fully reinstated and will be back on the field next season.

The Lee `Ohana would like to extend mahalos to Molokai Drugs, Buchanan, Fely Video, Hames Mawae `Ohana and Business, GoodFellow, Misakis, Fred and Kelly Richardson, Island Refuse Company, Maui Parks and Recreation, all coaches and players, Maui County workers, Donald Kaai, Kamalu Kaawa Richardson, Ilmaakea Kaawa Richardson, Dwayne and Hala Kala, Loke Kamakana, Taylor Kaawa, Abbie Kaawa, Kilohilani Kaawa, Benny Venenciano, Trey Kaawa, Jr. Alcon, Guy Espaniola, Grandpa Wayde Lee, Grandma Adele Lee and everyone else who made the tournament possible.

Ready, Set, Hike!

Wednesday, June 30th, 2010

Get your cleats ready, Molokai, because the streak is over. After a 50 year hiatus, Molokai High School football is back in the lineup and will take to the field this fall.

“It’s going to be big,” said Mike Kahale, a social studies teacher at Molokai Middle School. “Our kids have been waiting for this opportunity for a long time.”

Kahale, head coach of the team, said he and his wife had been developing a strategic plan to bring back high school-level football for the past two years, and is finally becoming a reality.

“There is already a lot of talk about it,” he added. “We have about 44 kids signed up.”

One of the biggest obstacles, Kahale said, was finding the funds to purchase football equipment. But with a $2,000 equipment grant from USA Football, among other donations, the team will be ready to kick off its three-year football plan.

Eight Ball
Although securing the funds for a traditional 11-man team was a stretch, it didn’t mean the sport couldn’t exist at all. This past year, smaller schools in Maui County began looking into an eight-man football league – which was recently sanctioned by the Maui Interscholastic League (MIL) to include Molokai, Seabury Hall and St. Anthony high schools.

Eight-man football has gained popularity in many rural areas on the mainland and allows small schools with small budgets a chance to play football.

Since the league doesn’t have the finances to cover tackle football off the bat, it will start small and slowly expand. The first year will be a passing league with full padding incorporated the second year, and full MIL sanctioning expected in the third year.

“It’s the only way to make it financially feasible,” Kahale said. “It’s a great way to introduce football fundamentals and to actually start. Why wait until next year?”

Grassroots
The 1960-61 Farmers were the last high school football team on Molokai. Despite lacking a program, Molokai produced professional football player Kimo “Scooby” Von Oelhoffen. He played at the University of Hawaii and Boise State before starting a 15-year NFL career. Although Von Oelhoffen never played on Molokai, he did commit to helping out the new program financially, but has yet to discuss dollars and cents with Kahale.

Still, more money needs to be raised to help pay for travel costs, field maintenance and additional equipment. Resting on the coattails of major budget cuts for high school sports, the program seeks financial support from the community, businesses and organizations.

Tax deductible donations can be made through Friends of Molokai High and Intermediate. Kahale is also looking for help with coaching – preferably those with some high school or college football coaching experience.

For more information contact Kahale at 658-0834 or e-mail at mikekahale@yahoo.com.

Maui News Honors Molokai Star Athlete

Wednesday, June 23rd, 2010

Molokai’s Kalei Adolpho was named The Maui News Maui Interscholastic League Girl Athlete of the Year last week, making her the first Molokai girl to earn the honor.

Adolpho was the league’s Division II volleyball Player of the Year and helped the Farmers finish third in the state tournament. Adolpho was also an All-Star basketball player for the state runners-up and the state’s third-place finisher in the high jump, according to The News.

“I feel really honored and I guess I am surprised, but definitely honored,” Adolpho told The News.

Adolpho’s brother Manu was named Boy Athlete of the Year in 2006-07, making them the first brother-sister pair to earn the awards.

Adolpho will be a senior at MHS in the fall. In November, she will accept an NCAA Division I athletic scholarship -- another first for a Molokai girl -- when she signs to play basketball and volleyball at the University of Hawaii, according to The News.

“The whole island is proud of her,” MHS volleyball coach Matt Helm told The News. “She is a very gifted young lady.”

Making Waves

Wednesday, June 23rd, 2010

Big waves don’t scare Molokai’s Taoa Pou. Neither, apparently, does big competition.

The envy of many young surfers, 13-year-old Taoa was granted wildcard entry into last week’s Sponsor Me Hawaii pro surf competition at Ala Moana Bowls on Oahu.

Competing alongside some of the state’s top surfers, Taoa held nothing back, even attempting the coveted reverse air-360. “There was no pressure on me -- I had nothing to lose,” he said. “There was more pressure on the professionals ‘cause they didn’t want to lose to a 13-year-old kid.”

Sponsor Me is meant to give lesser-known surfers access to international ratings and valuable media exposure. Still, many of the competitors were established names with decades of experience surfing over Taoa, who was given one of only two wildcard entries for amateurs, sponsored by the Association for Surfing Professionals (ASP).

ASP also set up Taoa to receive coaching throughout the day from pros Sunny Garcia, Myles Padaca, Makuakai Rothman and Pancho Sullivan, though he had some trouble concentrating on their instructions. “I was more in awe of them,” he said.

Taoa finished fourth in his second round heat – an impressive showing for the event’s youngest competitor – but as his own biggest critic, he said he’s not completely satisfied. “I could have done better -- I could have beaten some of those guys.”

Still, Taoa said the experience will motivate him to enter more competitions and take his surfing to the next level.

The Right Attitude
Taoa was recruited for Sponsor Me by Jodi Wilmott, a publicist with ASP who helped organize the event, after she saw him last month at the state championships, where Taoa competed in the 12-13 year-old division.

Impressed with his “vibe,” Wilmott invited Taoa to Sponsor Me to “get a good taste of what pro surfing is about,” she said.

With the average age of competitors between 23 and 24, Taoa was by far the youngest, but Wilmott said he handled the pressure like a veteran.

“I’ve been working in the professional surfing world for 20 years and I was so impressed,” Wilmott said, calling Taoa “a very mature 13.”

Taoa is already sponsored by Tango Surf Boards and the Tahitian clothing company Imvad. Taoa’s dad Teva Pou said after last week’s exposure, more sponsorships could be in the works.

“He definitely has the talent to make a career out of it,” Pou said. But for now, he added, Taoa is simply enjoying the moment. “His goal, regardless of winning or loosing, is to keep his heart humble.”

A Head Start
Taoa’s love of surfing started at a young age. “When he was little, he would watch surf videos with me more than cartoons,” Pou said.

At age three, Taoa began surfing beginners’ break at Waialua and a few years later had moved onto to the waves at Rock Point on the east end.

Earlier this month, the Pou family moved from Kalamaula on Molokai to the North Shore of Oahu. Even after surfing big waves there, Rock Point remains one of Taoa’s favorite surf spot.

“I feel really comfortable there,” he said. “I miss it already.”