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It all clicks for Kyono
The Kauai native is aiming for
a championship season in her
final year at Pepperdine
Cut Rachel Kyono some slack if she celebrates her 21st birthday tomorrow with a little extra gusto.
Kyono shot her best college golf score for Pepperdine last Friday, and to prove it was no fluke, she did it again on Sunday.
She opened and closed the Stanford Women's Intercollegiate with 3-under-par 67s at the renowned Stanford Golf Course in California. Kyono tied for second place in a tournament that included 10 of the top 30 teams in GolfWeek magazine's rankings.
Kyono, a 2001 Kauai High graduate from Lawai, has a 73.33 average for nine rounds this fall.
"She is playing great," says Pepperdine coach Laurie Gibbs.
GolfWeek and Golf-Stat publications agree, ranking Kyono 26th among the nation's female college players. She is ranked fourth on par-3 holes with an average of 2.85 strokes.
At 5-feet-1, Kyono "is driving with the longest players in the country," Gibbs said. "She has taken her game to the highest level with a simple, consistent swing, hard work, patience and very smart course management."
Although Kyono has been 3 under par twice before in her four-year career with Pepperdine (Calif.) -- on a par-73 course in New Mexico -- her consistency this fall gives rise to hopes for a banner senior year.
"I'm hitting the ball really well now, all around," Kyono said. "I'm hitting a lot more greens in regulations and getting a lot more chances for birdie.
"Before I would have to get up and down and make par."
Kyono has made no changes in her swing. "It just came around all of the sudden," she said. "It's my last year, so I have to do everything I can."
"I took it easy during the summer," she added. "Maybe that was a key."
The fall season is pau. Pepperdine resumes its schedule in February.
Kyono will graduate in April with a degree in psychology, but will continue playing for Pepperdine, hopefully into the NCAA Championships, where she helped the Waves finish in second place in 2003. She is co-captain this year.
"Then I will go home and work at a golf course (Poipu Bay is her first choice)." She plans to enter either an LPGA or PGA program to earn a pro teaching card.
Pepperdine was a perfect fit for her, Kyono said.
"I love it. I wanted to go away, but not too far away," she said. "The golf program has a really good reputation and so does its academic programs. Also, it's a small school. I fit better with a small school."
Kyono's mother, Tisha, father, Russell, and brother, Shawn, were all at Stanford to see her play last weekend.
"I play well when my mom and dad watch me," Rachel said.
"Her mom is best luck ever," Gibbs said. "The other players want her to come to all the tournaments."
Brother Shawn, who was Rachel's teammate at Kauai High School five years ago, was watching Rachel play collegiate golf for the first time.
"I was very surprised to see the maturity in her golf game. She wowed me," he said.
"I knew the game that she had, but to see her hit those flag sticks and make those birdie putts was really amazing. I was very proud of her."
Shawn concluded:
"I used to say, I can still beat her, but now I'm a bit worried that my time has come and gone. She's taken over already."
Note: There were three other golfers from Hawaii who competed in the Stanford Intercollegiate golf tournament.
They were:
» Lehua Wise (Kauai '03), New Mexico State, tied for 45th at 15-over-par 225. Best round 2-over 72.» Jenna Seki (Punahou '03 of Salt Lake), Stanford, tied for 61st at 19-over-par 229. Best round 1-over 71.
» Leah Whiting (Waiakea '03), Oregon State, tied for 75th at 25-over-par 235. Best round 5-over 75.
Carvalho makes the best
of first start at left guard
Brennan Carvalho of Kapaa was halfway through his redshirt football season at Portland State last week when suddenly things changed.
Carvalho, a unanimous first-team All-State offensive lineman for Kamehameha last year, was pulled off redshirt status last Thursday and started at left guard on Saturday against Montana State.
"To his credit," said Portland State spokesman Mike Lund, "we ran our first play over left guard (Brennan's position), rushed for 126 yards and did not allow a sack."
Carvalho was one of three Division I football players from Hawaii who earned their first starting assignments on Saturday. The others were:
» Freshman defensive tackle Oren Long (Saint Louis '04 of Manoa) for Alcorn State (Mississippi)."One of our starters is out for four to six weeks, so coach (Tom) Walsh felt Brennan was our best lineman for the long term," Lund said. "Offensive line coach Eric Reid thinks Brennan has outstanding footwork."» Freshman defensive end Fehi Sevelo (Damien '04 of Kaneohe) for Saint Francis (Pennsylvania).
Other than losing the game 31-24 in overtime (falling to 3-3), Carvalho's first game experience for Portland State was positive.
"They told me when I signed (last February) that I would redshirt because I was too young, and I had shoulder surgery," Carvalho said.
He will not be 18 until Dec. 8 and arrived in Portland still rehabilitating his right rotator cuff. He tore muscle tissue last season at Kamehameha.
"My mind-set was that I would not play at all," Carvalho said, "but I was mentally prepared because I've been the only true freshman on the traveling squad since the Fresno State game."
Traveling "to all those places I've never been to" (like Montana, Arizona and California's San Joaquin Valley) and experiencing fall colors for the first time in Oregon have been bonuses for Carvalho's college experience, he said.
"I've never seen colors like that on trees," he said.
And he still can get a local food fix at Noho's Hawaiian Cafe in Portland when he needs it, he said.
Alcorn State (Mississippi)
Long got his first collegiate quarterback sack."Oren has been doing great things in practice," Alcorn State spokesman Tyrone Broxton said. Long has seven tackles for the season.
First-team All-State high school players B.J. Batts and Bronson Carvalho, both freshmen from Saint Louis, also are at Alcorn State but are not academically eligible this year.
Saint Francis (Pennsylvania)
Sevelo, who earned his start because of strong special teams play in previous games, was in on two tackles.Daniel Otineru (Kapolei '04), a 6-4, 300-pound offensive lineman, also played for Saint Francis.
Sevelo and Otineru were both placed by scholarship-hunter Doris Sullivan of the Pacific Islands Athletic Alliance in Kailua.
Oregon State
Offensive lineman Jeremy Perry (Kahuku '04) and defensive lineman Tavita Thompson (Saint Louis '04), both Star-Bulletin first-team all-state players last season, remain in redshirt status."Redshirt is the plan and hopefully we can stick with it," said Oregon State spokesman Steve Fenk.
"These guys could help us right now, but we will be thankful we did redshirt them in about 2008."
Quick stats
» Linebacker Jordon Dizon is first among Big 12 Conference freshmen in tackles and continues on pace toward breaking Colorado's freshman record. Dizon has 45 tackles (30 unassisted, 15 assists), an average of 7.5 per game. The Colorado freshman record is 67.» Nevada sophomore wide receiver Caleb Spencer (Kamehameha '03 of Kaneohe) remains third in the WAC in pass receptions per game (5.71) and fifth in receiving yards per game (62.3).
Hawaii's Chad Owens (Roosevelt '00) leads the WAC with 8.60 catches and 95.0 yards per game.
» Washington junior linebacker Joe Lobendahn (Saint Louis of Pearl City) remains second in Pac-10 tackles with 11.5 per game.
» Brigham Young senior rover Aaron Francisco (Kahuku '01 of Laie) is tied for eighth in tackles in the Mountain West Conference with 8.6 per game (32 solo and 28 assists in seven games). He has broken up five passes, intercepted one and sacked one quarterback.
