Hawaii Grown: Around the Nation

FOOTBALL

>> Kekaula Kaniho, Kahuku ‘17: The junior safety for No. 20 Boise State made four tackles and had one tackle for loss in the Broncos’ 56-21 win at Utah State.

>> Mikey Minihan, Saint Louis ‘17: The Georgia Tech sophomore started at right guard and helped power the Yellow Jackets to 266 rushing yards and one rushing TD in their 28-26 win over North Carolina State.

>> Breiden Fehoko, Farrington ‘15: The senior defensive lineman for No. 1 LSU made two tackles, including one for loss, in a 56-20 win over Arkansas. LSU remained undefeated with the win and moved to 11-0 overall, holding the top spot in the AP Top 25.

>> Tristan Nichols, Saint Louis ‘18: The Nevada sophomore defensive tackle made two stops with 1 sacks in the Wolf Pack’s 35-28 win over Fresno State.

>> Alexander Vainikolo, Maui ‘16: The New Mexico senior linebacker led the Lobos with eight tackles in Saturday’s 44-22 loss to Air Force.

>> Alohi Gilman, Kahuku ‘15: The senior safety for No. 15 Notre Dame made seven total tackles with one sack in the Fighting Irish’s 40-7 rout of Boston College. With the win, 15th-ranked Notre Dame is 9-2 on the season.

>> Isaac Slade-Matautia, Saint Louis ‘17: The Oregon sophomore linebacker made three tackles in the No. 14 Ducks’ 31-28 loss to Arizona State, which dropped Oregon eight spots in the AP rankings.

>> Pono Davis, KS-Hawaii ‘15: The SMU senior defensive tackle made nine tackles with a sack in the Mustangs’ 35-28 loss to No. 24 Navy. The loss dropped the Mustangs from the AP Top 25.

>> Dillon Gabriel, Mililani ‘19: The UCF freshman quarterback completed 24 passes on 46 attempts for 317 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions with 58 rushing yards in the Knights’ 34-31 win against Tulane.

>> Duke Clemens, Punahou ‘19: The UCLA freshman started at left guard and helped the Bruins to 157 rushing yards and two touchdowns in their 52-35 loss to No. 25 USC.

>> Vavae Malepeai, Mililani ‘16: The USC junior running back ran for 60 yards and two touchdowns against UCLA. The win returned the Trojans to the AP Top 25 for the first time in 11 weeks.

>> Kana’i Mauga, Waianae ‘18: The USC sophomore linebacker made six tackles with one sack against UCLA. The Trojans finished their regular season with an 8-4 record overall and a 7-2 record in the Pac 12.

>> Bradlee Anae, Kahuku ‘16: The Utah senior defensive end tallied seven total tackles and one sack in the No. 6 Utes’ 35-7 victory over Arizona. He also helped the defense hold the Wildcats to 61 yards rushing. The win moved the sixth-ranked Utes up one spot in the AP rankings, where they sit with a 10-1 record. Anae was named Pac 12 Defensive Lineman of the Week on Monday for his performance, his second time receiving the recognition this season.

>> Supilani Mailei, St. Francis ‘17: The Robert Morris junior defensive lineman made four tackles, including one for loss, in Saturday’s 16-14 win over Sacred Heart, helping the Colonials to their first winning season since 2010 with a 7-5 record.

>> Kama Kamaka, Kamehameha ‘17: The San Diego junior defensive back made three tackles and had one interception in the Toreros’ 47-28 win at Jacksonville. San Diego finished its regular season with its sixth straight PFL championship and will make its fourth consecutive trip to the FCS playoffs with a 9-2 record.

>> Feletoa Ailua, Waianae ‘17: The Southeastern Louisiana sophomore defensive lineman made five tackles with one sack in the Lions’ 28-27 loss to Nicholls, concluding their regular season with a 7-4 record.

>> Kekoa Sasaoka, Kahuku ‘17: The Southern Utah junior kicker made a field goal from 47 yards but missed one from 43 yards in the Thunderbirds’ 36-18 loss to North Dakota as they finished their regular season with a record of 3-9.

>> Dusten Ramseyer-Burdett, Kapaa ‘18: The Linfield (Ore.) sophomore safety made eight tackles, including for loss, in the Wildcats’ 68-65 loss to Chapman (Calif.) in the first round of the NCAA D-III playoffs, completing their year after finishing their regular season with an 8-1 record.

WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL

>> Emi Pua’a, Punahou ‘16: The Arizona senior libero recorded six digs, two assists and one ace on Friday in a 3-1 loss to No. 9 Washington. She helped the Wildcats bounce back on Sunday with 11 digs and one assist in a 3-1 win over No. 25 Washington State.

>> Ana Oglivie, ‘Iolani ‘17: The Army junior setter led her team with 22 digs to go with five assists on Tuesday in a 3-1 win over Loyola Maryland in the quarterfinals of the Patriot League tournament. She added 19 digs and four assists on Saturday in a 3-1 win over Colgate in the semifinals. On Sunday, she had 18 digs as the Black Knights fell to American University in the Patriot League Championship match. Oglivie was named to the Patriot League all-tournament team.

>> Kamalu Makekau-Whittaker, KS-Hawaii ‘16: The Cal State Northridge senior setter recorded a team-high 17 assists with six digs in a 3-0 loss at No. 18 Hawaii as the Matadors closed their season with a 12-16 record. The senior finishes her career averaging 9.4 assists per set in her final season.

>> Puaoolelagi Sao, Kahuku ‘17: The Eastern Washington junior libero had five digs in the Eagles’ 3-0 loss at Northern Arizona on Thursday. She added 13 digs and two assists on Saturday as the Eagles fell to Southern Utah in four sets. Eastern Washington finished its season with a 6-24 overall record.

>> ShaRae Niu, Kahuku ‘17: The Eastern Washington junior setter recorded 18 digs on Saturday against Southern Utah.

>> Malie McClure, Kamehameha ‘19: The freshman defensive specialist at Eastern Washington made seven digs for the Eagles in Thursday’s 3-0 loss at Northern Arizona.

>> Kanile’a Nomura, King Kekaulike ‘17: The Jackson State junior middle blocker had 10 kills on 14 attempts with just three errors, finishing with an attacking percentage of .500 in Friday’s 3-1 win against Texas Southern. She had two kills on Saturday in a 3-0 loss to Prairie View A&M in the SWAC Championship.

>> Nicole Hada, Punahou ‘17: The Johns Hopkins junior libero won the NCAA D-III national title this weekend against reigning national champion Emory. With the championship, Johns Hopkins became just the third team in Division III history to go the entire season undefeated, with a record of 40-0.

>> Teana Adams-Kaonohi, Punahou ‘19: The Kansas State freshman setter had 10 assists and three digs on Wednesday in the Wildcats’ 3-0 loss to Oklahoma. She replicated her stat line with 10 assists and three digs on Saturday in a 3-0 loss to No. 1 Baylor.

>> Moea Kekauoha, ‘Iolani ‘16: The Menlo (Calif.) senior outside hitter recorded a team-high 13 kills, seven digs and two assists in the Oaks’ 3-0 loss to No. 21 Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) in the opening round of the NAIA tournament. Menlo finishes its season with a 19-11 record.

>> Kayla Afoa, Kamehameha ‘17: The Nevada junior outside hitter had a team-high 13 kills with 17 digs on Thursday as the Wolfpack fell to Wyoming in five sets. She had six kills and 10 digs on Saturday as the Wolfpack were swept by No. 11 Colorado State.

>> Kili Robins, Kamehameha ‘18: The Nevada sophomore outside hitter had six kills, two total blocks and three digs on Thursday against Wyoming. She added four kills and two digs against the Rams.

>> Alleyah Galdeira, Kamehameha ‘19: The North Texas freshman defensive specialist had 20 digs and four assists as the Mean Green lost to UTSA 3-1 on Friday, ending North Texas’ season with a 16-11 record.

>> Halle Hetzler, Le Jardin ‘19: The Pacific Lutheran freshman libero became the first Lute to win the Northwest Conference Freshman of the Year award. She was also recognized on the All-NWC second team after averaging 4.88 digs per set with 527 digs total in her first season.

>> Hana Lishman, Punahou ‘16: The Pepperdine senior libero tallied nine digs and four assists on Thursday in a sweep of Santa Clara. She led her team with 18 digs with five assists on Saturday as the Waves defeated San Francisco in three sets.

>> Lexis Akeo, Kamehameha ‘19: The freshman setter at No. 2 Pittsburgh dished out 48 assists and recorded a season-high 14 digs to go with two aces as she picked up her fifth double-double of the season on Friday in the second-ranked Panthers’ 3-1 win against Florida State. She added 23 assists on Sunday in a sweep of North Carolina State. The freshman is averaging 10.42 assists per set, fourth in the ACC.

>> Kassidy Naone, Le Jardin ‘17: The Portland junior outside hitter had seven kills and six digs on Thursday as the Pilots were swept by No. 13 BYU. She added five kills and five digs on Saturday in a 3-0 loss at No. 20 San Diego.

>> Carey Williams, Kahuku ‘17: The Portland junior defensive specialist recorded a team-high 15 digs with four assists on Thursday at BYU. She had 11 digs on Saturday against the Toreros.

>> Shayla Hoeft, Seabury Hall ‘16: The senior middle blocker at Portland had six kills on Saturday against No. 20 San Diego.

>> Ashley Van Gieson, Nanakuli ‘16: The Saint Mary (Kan.) setter tallied 13 assists and 10 digs in the Spires’ sweep of No. 22 Dakota State (N.D.) on Saturday in the opening round of the NAIA tournament. Saint Mary will face Indiana Wesleyan in its first pool match on Dec. 3.

>> Ally Wada, Hawaii Baptist ‘18: The San Francisco sophomore setter recorded 40 assists, 12 digs and four total blocks in her ninth double-double of the season as the Dons took down Loyola Marymount in four sets. She dished out 26 assists with nine digs on Saturday in a 3-0 loss against Pepperdine. The sophomore ranks fourth in the WCC averaging 8.92 assists per set.

>> Moana To’oto’o, Maryknoll ‘18: The San Francisco sophomore libero had eight digs for the Dons against Loyola Marymount.

>> Jhenna Gabriel, Maryknoll ‘18: The sophomore setter for No. 4 Texas tallied 45 assists with a career-high 15 digs for her third double-double of the season in the Longhorns’ 3-2 loss at No. 1 Baylor, their first loss in 15 matches. The loss also dropped them three spots in the AVCA rankings. On Saturday, she had 43 assists, eight digs and three kills on three attempts in a 3-1 win at Kansas. The sophomore is ranked second in the Big 12 with 10.44 assists per set.

>> Shelby Capllonch, Damien ‘19: The UNLV freshman outside hitter recorded 10 kills, six digs and two aces on Tuesday in a 3-1 win at New Mexico. She had five kills and 13 digs on Saturday as the Rebels swept Air Force. The Rebels completed their season with a 19-10 record and finished third in the Mountain West with a conference record of 15-3.

>> Paris Oliveira, Kamehameha ‘19: The UNLV freshman libero had 11 digs and three assists on Tuesday against New Mexico. She led her team with 16 digs on Saturday at Air Force.

>> Saige Ka’aha’aina-Torres, ‘Iolani ‘18: The sophomore setter for No. 17 Utah had 45 assists and 12 digs in the Utes’ 3-1 loss to No. 3 Stanford. She capped her week with 48 assists and 10 digs with a season-high three aces on Sunday in a 3-1 win over Cal, recording her 12th double-double of the season. The sophomore is ranked 18th in the NCAA and second in the Pac 12 averaging 11.34 assists per set.

>> Kalena Vaivai, King Kekaulike ‘19: The Utah State freshman setter had 19 assists and three digs on Thursday in a 3-1 loss to San Diego State. She had 12 assists, four digs and three aces on Saturday as the Aggies were swept by Fresno State. Utah State finished its season with a 2-28 record.

>> Jasmine Niutupuivaha, Kahuku ‘16: The Utah Valley senior middle blocker had five kills and no errors on eight attempts with four digs, finishing with a .625 attacking percentage on Thursday as the Wolverines swept Texas Rio Grande Valley. She had three kills on Friday as the Wolverines lost to New Mexico State in three sets in the second round of the WAC tournament. Utah Valley finished its season with an 11-19 record.

>> Syenna Masaki, Kalaheo ‘17: The UTEP junior setter had 18 assists and 16 digs in her fifth double-double of the season on Friday as the Miners lost to No. 21 Rice in four sets in the first round of the Conference USA tournament, closing out their season with a 13-15 overall record.

>> Aria McComber, Punahou ‘18: The freshman defensive specialist for No. 25 Washington State recorded six digs in a 3-1 loss to Arizona on Sunday.

>> Gabi Lau, University Lab ‘16: The senior libero for Western New Mexico was named as a Lone Star Conference honorable mention for the second season in a row. She averaged 4.54 digs per set, good for sixth in the conference.

>> Siani Yamaguchi, Kalaheo ‘16: The Winthrop (S.C.) senior setter recorded 33 assists, 11 digs and five kills on Saturday in a sweep of Presbyterian College. She picked up her second double-double of the weekend with 36 assists and 10 digs on Sunday as the Eagles swept Campbell to claim the Big South title. For her performances, she was named the Big South Tournament MVP in addition to her Big South Player of the Year award. Winthrop will advance to the NCAA Regionals following the tournament selection on Dec. 1.

WOMENS’ SOCCER

>> Lytiana Akinaka, King Kekaulike ‘18: The BYU sophomore forward will face No. 1 Stanford on Friday in the NCAA tournament quarterfinals after the Cougars beat Louisville 4-0 on Thursday and won 3-0 over North Carolina State on Saturday.

Stats compiled by Quinn Goldstein, Special to the Star-Advertiser. To submit an athlete for nomination, email bhull@staradvertiser.com.