USC’s Kang, Texas win golf titles
USC’s Jeffrey Kang sank a 3-foot putt on the first playoff hole to beat Texas’ Jordan Spieth and claim the individual title, while Texas won the team title at the 22nd annual Amer Ari at the Waikoloa Beach Resort Kings’ course.
Kang and Spieth were tied at 11-under 205 after 54 holes. In the playoff on the 16th, Speith’s approach shot landed 30 feet beyond the hole while Kang’s shot fell 20 feet short of the hole. Spieth’s putt ended up 3 feet short while Kang’s putt was long and settled next to Spieth’s. Up first, Kang sank his putt, and Spieth pulled his left to end the tournament.
Texas, ranked No. 1 in the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings, won the title at 30-under-par, 834. The Longhorns were followed by USC (839), Stanford (844), Georgia Tech (845) and UCLA (846).
Hawaii-Hilo finished 16th, while Hawaii tied for 18th.
UH’s TJ Kua shot 3-over 75 Friday and finished tied for 23rd at 3-under 213. Travis Russell led the Vulcans with a 1-over-par, 217 (74-71-72) and finished in a tie for 43rd place.
Makaha’s Bradbury wins surf contest
Makaha lifeguard Bouvey Bradbury won Friday’s second stop of the Bum Rush Tour-Hawaii, earning $1,000 at the impromptu surf contest at Makaha Beach.
Sun Bum’s Bum Rush Tour makes surprise stops a various beaches around the country, with the winner declared after 20 minutes of surfing. Thursday’s first contest of the Hawaii stop was at Haleiwa with Mililani’s Kai Matsumoto, 16, placing first. The event concludes today at an undisclosed location.
Ex-NBA star Schrempf is guest speaker
Former NBA all-star Detlef Schrempf will speak at the eighth annual M Club Athletic Hall of Fame Gala — a fundraiser for Mid-Pacific Institute athletics — at the Koolau Ballrooms in Kaneohe today. The event, which is sold out, starts at 5 p.m.
The 6-foot-10 Schrempf made three NBA all-star game appearances and won two NBA Sixth Man Awards, helping the Seattle SuperSonics reach the NBA finals in the 1995-96 season.
Ale leads BYUH men to victory
Junior Ale scored 22 points, hitting eight of 12 field goals, including 3-for-5 from 3,-point range to lead the Brigham Young-Hawaii men’s basketball team to an 86-69 victory over Cal Baptist in a Pacific West Conference game Thursday at Cannon Activities Center in Laie.
BYUH (11-7 and 8-1 in the PacWest) plays Dixie State at 7:30 p.m. today in Laie. Cal Baptist (14-3 and 8-2) was led by Justus Von Wright with 19 points.
‘Iolani runner honored by Gatorade
‘Iolani senior Troy Esaki has been named the Gatorade Hawaii Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year.
Esaki won the Honolulu Marathon Hawaii State Championship last October, by completing the 3-mile course at Kapalua Village in 16:29.0. He also won the Interscholastic League of Honolulu title by finishing in 17:01.23.
The honor recognizes athletic excellence, academic achievement and exemplary character.
Esaki maintained a 3.26 GPA, is a devoted member of his church community and volunteered for the school’s maintenance and security department, according to a press release from Gatorade.
HPU earns preseason softball honors
Hawaii Pacific senior Breanne Patton was picked to repeat as Pacific West Conference softball pitcher of the year, and the Sea Warriors were tabbed to repeat as conference champions.
Patton was 23-4 with a 1.49 ERA and 11 shutouts last season for HPU, which finished 38-12. She also made the preseason first team at first base. HPU teammate Nicole Morrow, a junior, was selected at catcher.
Hawaii-Hilo senior Amber Waracka made the team at pitcher and flex. The Vulcans also placed senior shortstop Nicole Alconcel and senior utility player Bryanna Hardy on the squad.
Dixie State was picked to finish second in the PacWest, followed by California Baptist, Grand Canyon, Hawaii-Hilo, Academy of Art, Notre Dame de Namur, Chaminade, and Dominican and Brigham Young-Hawaii (tied for ninth).
