BIIF Track Honors Island’s Best

The Big Island Interscholastic Federation recently released its 2009 Track & Field All-Star list naming Kau’s Jacob Edwards and Hawaii Prep’s Ku’uipo Nakoa Male/Female Athlete of the Year.

Edwards, a slender six foot junior, won individual honors during the BIIF championships in the triple jump, 110 and 300 hurdles, and placed second in the long jump and fourth in the 200 meter dash to single-handedly score a whopping 42 points.

Nakoa won the 200 meter dash, long and triple jumps and placed second in the 100 dash to amass 38 individual points and went on to help HPA finish first in the 1600 relay and second in the 400 relay.

At the HHSAA track and field championships held in Keaau Edwards claimed titles in both the 110 and 300 hurdles while Nakoa won the state gold medal in the long jump.

Also coming away with double wins in the BIIF championship were HPA’s Noelani Vargas who swept the 1500 meter run and later returned to win the 800.

Waiakea’s Ka’imi Scott won the BIIF 400 dash and then captured the 200 dash to make it a double gold day for the Warrior junior.

A trio of freshman became BIIF champions as Keaau’s Randi Estrada won the girls 400 dash, then went on to the state championships to claim a third place medal. Hilo’s Shina Chung claimed a BIIF title in pole vault and HPA’s Shane Brostek won the league title for the shot.

Surprises came when Honokaa’s Tialana Greenwell could only muster a second place finish at the BIIF 3000 meter run, but turned things around by running her best at the state championships to win a second place medal and clock an incredible time of 10 minutes 48 seconds.

In the boy’s hurdles no one in the state could catch the “King,” Jacob Edwards, but Hilo’s TJ Dela Cruz was not only the second best in the BIIF, for both the 110 and 300, he was also second best in the state.

And when it came to the 300 hurdles it was the BIIF’s fifth seed, Keaau’s Broc Bangloy, and third seed, Hilo’s Cameron Calistro going fourth and fifth in the state respectively to give the BIIF boy’s four out of the state’s top five medals.

Yet, another surprise, came from BIIF runner-up Jordan Lerma from Kamehameha who went onto break the 2 minute barrier in the 800 at the state meet to collect a third place medal with Keaau’s Daniel Brooks, the BIIF fourth seed, winning fifth at state.

HPA’s Mindy Campbell finished the BIIF championships as the runner-up in the high jump to Waiakea’s Cassie Morigaki, but at the state championships Campbell leaped her personal best 5-04 to win the state title, while Morigaki claimed fifth.

The BIIF All-Star team is based upon the athletes placing in a particular event during the BIIF championships. Athletes who placed first were selected to the first team, those that placed second were second team selections and those that placed in any of the scoring positions, from third to sixth, were given an honorable mention.

Hilo High won the boys BIIF team title by more than 60 points in a runaway victory for Coach Bill McMahon. McMahon has accumulated the most team titles of an active BIIF track & field coach, winning his 18^th team title (boys and girls combined) over an illustrious 19 years with the Vikings.

McMahon was selected by league coaches as the Coach of the Year a title he has won on numerous occasions. “I don’t count those things,” McMahon said of winning Coach of the Year. “What I count are the former athletes that I see on the street that bother to approach me and say “thanks coach”.

“Alex Kane, Clarence Andrade and Norb Keolanue all gave me the same advice,” McMahon said, “surround yourself with good people.”

Kamehameha girls came away with a narrow four point victory over HPA to claim the BIIF team title and for their efforts the entire Warrior coaching staff was named Coach of the Year.

Kamehameha Schools coach, Troy Souza, was elated with his team’s success and in the sharing of the Coach of the Year award with the rest of his staff.

“It is an honor to have our coaching staff named Coach of the Year,” Souza said. “This is something that couldn’t be done without the effort and success of our students.”

For the private school Warriors it was a season filled with emotion and hard work. “As a school we had so many school records broken this year which goes to show how hard these students worked,” Coach Souza said.

BIIF track & field coaches voted for boy’s and girl’s coach of the year and the results were released by the leagues “Games Committee.”