The University of Hawaii had its best finish in five years, ranking 100th among 289 NCAA Division I schools for 2014-15 athletic program performance in the final Learfield Sports Director’s Cup standings, it was announced.
The Learfield Cup, overseen by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics, measures performances by 20 teams — 10 men and 10 women — for each school, awarding points based upon national finish.
UH finished 158th last year and was 61st in 2010.
This year UH received points from women’s water polo, women’s volleyball, men’s swimming and diving, men’s volleyball and women’s swimming and diving. Water polo finished seventh in the NCAA Tournament.
Stanford won the cup for the 21st consecutive year, outpointing UCLA, USC, Florida and North Carolina.
UH finished second to UC Irvine among Big West Conference members.
HPU adds trio to women’s soccer roster
The Hawaii Pacific University women’s soccer team announced the addition of three recruits on Monday. Goalkeeper Lauren Spencer, midfielder Noelle Mercado and forward Briana Afoa will join the Sharks next season.
Spencer played for the Michigan Hawks in the Elite Club National League and led her club team to the national championship game in 2014. Mercado is a Kaiser High School graduate and was named to the OIA East Division All-Star team and All-State honorable mention.
Afoa, a Punahou graduate, transfers from Peninsula College, where she earned Player of the Year honors in 2012 and 2013. Afoa led her squad to a 23-1 record and its first NWAACC title in school history in 2012.
Asing wins heat at Ballito Pro
Five local surfers competed in the first day of the Ballito Pro on Monday at Bather’s Beach in South Africa.
Keanu Asing won the fifth heat with a score of 14.43, over Tom Whitaker, David do Carmo and Vicente Romero.
Tanner Hendrickson earned runner-up in the seventh heat as his 12.76 score fell short by 0.24 points. Ezekiel Lau also placed second in his heat with a score of 10.93.
Kiron Jabour (11.27) and Granger Larsen (15.16) finished third in their heats.
Hawaii’s Fredrick Patacchia, Mason Ho, Alex Smith, Sebastian Zietz and Dusty Payne are also scheduled to compete among 96 surfers in this World Surf League Qualifying Series event.
