Posted on: Wednesday, March 14, 2007
HOMEGROWN REPORT
Irvine swimmer Nagata a two-time All-American
By Leila Wai
Advertiser Staff Writer
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Chelsea Nagata with her 8th place in the championship finals award
Andy Nagata photo
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LET US KNOW
If you know of any athletes 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.
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Still hoarse from a cold she "tried not to let affect me too much," UC Irvine junior Chelsea Nagata reflected on earning All-America swimming honors for a second straight year.
"I'm just thankful I was able to make it back to finals," said Nagata, a 2004 Maui High graduate. "I knew I had to swim fast in the morning to make it back, and once I made it back I was relieved."
Nagata swam the 100-yard butterfly in 53.11 seconds to place eighth and earn All-America status at the 2007 NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships at University Aquatic Center in Minneapolis, Minn., Friday.
"My voice was gone completely (Sunday)," she said.
She said last year's experience helped because "I did not expect to make it to the top eight or 16 (last year). This year, being I had done it before, going through it again wasn't as intimidating."
Nagata swam a school-record time of 52.73 to finish fourth in the 100 butterfly preliminaries.
She also swam a UCI-record in the 100 backstroke in 54.55 seconds to finish 24th.
MEN'S SWIMMING
Stanford senior Hongzhe Sun ('Iolani '03) will compete in five events at the NCAAs. Sun is swimming the 200 individual medley (ranked eighth nationally, 1:45.74), 200 backstroke (2, 1:41.22), 200 butterfly (3, 1:43.91), as well as the 400 medley relay and 200 medley relay.
UC Irvine junior Randall Tom (Seabury Hall '03) is competing in the 200 individual medley (19, 1:41.01), 100 butterfly (4, 46.47), 200 butterfly (22, 1:45.77), 400 medley relay and 200 medley relay.
California junior Mark Eckert ('Iolani '04) is swimming in the 200 individual medley (15, 1:46.61), 400 individual medley (18, 3:49.52) and 200 backstroke (1:43.72).
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps senior guard Lana Young ('Iolani '03) was named to the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference first team.
Cal Lutheran junior point guard Tiffiny Shim (Kamehameha '03) was named to the second team.
Holy Names (Oakland, Calif.) freshman guard Larisa Nakasone (Roosevelt '05) tied for the team lead with 14 points in a 67-66 win over Bethany Jan. 30.
Sophomore guard Chelsie Kadota (Roosevelt '05) scored a team-high 15 points, including shooting 3-for-3 from 3-point range, and Nakasone had a game-high six assists in an 81-51 win over Simpson Feb. 10.
Freshman guard/forward Mana Camara (Kalani '06) is also on the team.
TRACK AND FIELD
Azusa Pacific (Calif.) junior Nate Nasca (Pearl City '04) earned All-America honors at the NAIA Indoor Track and Field Championships this past weekend.
He placed sixth in the 60-meter hurdles in 8.65 seconds and helped APU's distance medley relay team win in 10:06.11.
Pacific (Forest Grove, Ore.) junior Caitlyn Tateishi (Waiakea '04 of Pahoa) notched a Northwest Conference Championships qualifying time in the 5,000 meters, finishing seventh in 19:25.31, at the NWC South Meet Saturday.
WOMEN'S GOLF
Puget Sound (Wash.) senior Emily Lau ('Iolani '03) was named the Northwest Conference Women's Golfer of the Week after winning the UPS Invitational with a two-round score of 158, beating a field of 20 players by nine strokes.
SOFTBALL
Tennessee freshman third baseman Anita Manuma (Campbell '06) got her first collegiate hit — a base hit up the middle in the bottom of the fourth inning — in a 7-1 win over Appalachian State March 6.
Manuma followed with her first home run, a shot to left center in the fifth inning.
Maine freshman pitcher Jessica Ghazali (University High '06 of Waimanalo) picked up a complete-game 5-1 win over Appalachian State Friday.
Ghazali allowed three hits and no earned runs. She leads the team with a 4.31 ERA and 5-1 record.
Nebraska sophomore second baseman Kimberly Fuller (Roosevelt '05) hit her first career home run — a three-run blast — in a 4-1 win over Western Illinois Friday.
Eastern Arizona freshman outfielder/shortstop Marina Gusman-Brown (Pearl City '06) is third in NJCAA Region 1 with a .508 batting average. She is second in triples (6).
Freshman pitcher/outfielder Noe Esperas (Kamehameha '06) has a 9-0 record, and is fifth in the region with 58 strikeouts.
Also on the team are freshman catcher/third baseman Jackie Tema (Kaimuki '06 of Honolulu) and freshman outfielder Cheynah Farley (Castle '06 of Kane'ohe).
WOMEN'S TENNIS
Lewis & Clark freshman Lisa Harunaga (Kamehameha '06) was named the Northwest Conference's women's tennis Player of the Week on March 5.
Harunaga won her No. 1 singles matches and her No. 1 doubles matches against Pacific and Willamette.
BASEBALL
Willamette (Salem, Ore.) sophomore pitcher Kelsey Nakata (Mililani '05) and teammate Grant Yamaguchi (Mid-Pacific '03) each received honorable mention honors as Northwest Conference Pitcher and Player of the Week, respectively, March 5.
Nakata pitched 4 1/3 innings of relief, allowing one run on three hits and Yamaguchi batted 6 for 12 in a three-game series against George Fox.
This past weekend, Yamaguchi hit a bases-loaded sacrifice fly with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning to drive in the winning run in a 4-3 win over Menlo Saturday. Yamaguchi batted 2 for 3.
Central Arizona JC freshman outfielder C.J. Johnson ('Iolani '06) drove home the go-ahead run and batted 2 for 4 in a 3-2 win against Gateway Saturday in Phoenix.
Johnson also went 2 for 4 with a double and two steals in a 20-1 win against SUNY-Cobleskill on Sunday. He is batting .339 on the season.
WRESTLING
Missouri Valley senior Stephany Lee (Moanalua '02) earned All-America honors when she finished second at 181 pounds after defaulting due to injury in the championship match of the National Collegiate Women's Wrestling Championships Saturday.
Pacific (Forest Grove, Ore.) senior Kapua Torres (Kahuku '03) earned All-America honors after placing third at 112.25 pounds when she beat Menlo's Katherine Fulp-Allen, 2-0, 6-0, at the national meet.
COMMITMENTS
Three former All-State soccer players from Hawai'i signed to play for the Sacramento State men's program.
Baldwin graduates and brothers Blake ('04) and Brady Nunes ('05) and Mililani alum Patrick Egloria ('04) are all transferring from Santa Rosa JC.
Advertiser Staff Writer Stacy Kaneshiro contributed to this report.
Reach Leila Wai at lwai@honoluluadvertiser.com.
