Hawaii Grown Report: College Athletics
Billy Hull
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Tracking Hawaii student-athletes on the mainland
Saint Louis’ Masoli proves himself under pressure
Stage fright wasn't a problem for Oregon sophomore
Jeremiah Masoli (Saint Louis '06).
A year after playing in a 5,000-seat home stadium at the City College of San Francisco, Masoli found himself quarterbacking the nationally ranked Ducks against Pac-10 rival Washington in front of 58,778 fans at Autzen Stadium.
And just like he did when he led the Rams to the 2007 junior college national championship, Masoli proved calm under the pressure and did what needed to be done.
Thrust into action after Nate Costa suffered a season-ending knee injury a week earlier and starter Justin Roper left the game with a concussion in the second quarter, Masoli threw for 126 yards and two touchdowns, leading the Ducks to 30 unanswered points in a 44-10 victory over the Huskies.
"It was beautiful," Masoli told the Associated Press after the game. "I loved it. That's what I came here for. This atmosphere was wonderful."
Barely on the Oregon radar after transferring in the spring, Masoli slowly climbed the depth chart at quarterback, but was no higher than third before Costa was lost for the season.
"We weren't planning on playing Masoli as much as we did," Oregon coach Mike Bellotti told the AP.
Masoli completed nine of 17 passes and rushed for 23 yards in running Oregon's spread offense that left the Husky defense bewildered and confused. The Ducks outscored the Huskies 30-0 after Masoli entered the game for the first time with 3 minutes, 17 seconds remaining in the second quarter.
Before the game began, high school teammates Max Unger (Hawaii Prep '04), of Oregon, and Washington defensive end Daniel Teo-Nesheim (Hawaii Prep '05) participated in the coin toss as captains for their respective teams.
Unger, who started at left tackle for the first time since 2006, has started all 39 games in his collegiate career. Teo-Nesheim finished with two solo tackles and assisted on three others.
» Less than two weeks after breaking his left hand, UCLA offensive lineman Micah Kia (Mililani '06) started at left tackle for the Bruins against Tennessee. Kia helped UCLA allow just one sack as the Bruins pulled out a stunning 27-24 win in overtime.
» Brigham Young junior defense end Ian Dulan (Kamehameha-Hawaii '06) had four total tackles and a quarterback hurry in the Cougars' 41-17 win over Northern Iowa. Freshman receiver Spencer Hafoka (Kahuku '05) had one reception for 5 yards and senior punter C.J. Santiago (Saint Louis '04) averaged more than 42 yards a punt on three attempts.
» California junior Tyson Alualu (Saint Louis '05) started at defensive end and finished with three assisted tackles and two quarterback hurries in a 38-31 victory over Michigan State. Junior Mika Kane (Kamehameha '05) also appeared in the game, but did not record a stat.
WOMEN'S SOCCER
» Denver junior midfielder
Lizzy Carlson (Punahou '06) had an assist in the Pioneers' 2-1 victory over Hawaii on Monday to remain undefeated (3-0-1) this season.
» Long Beach State senior Mariko Strickland (Mid-Pacific '05) scored the game-tying goal in the 86th minute as the 49ers eventually defeated Hawaii 4-3 in overtime last Wednesday. Strickland also has an assist this season and is fourth on the team in points after three games.
WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL
» Boston College freshman
Jordan Meredith (Kamehameha '08) had 13 kills and three digs and
Brennan Clark (University '08) added a game-high 16 digs in a four-set victory against Colgate. Sophomore outside hitter
Logan Keala (Kamehameha '07) led the Raiders with a .600 hitting percentage, finishing with 12 kills in the loss.
» Linfield outside hitter Samantha Lau (Saint Francis '08) averaged just more than 10 kills a game in leading the Wildcats to three victories in the Bruin-Wildcat Invitational last weekend. She had a team-high 13 kills and six digs in a win over Mills College.
WOMEN'S WATER POLO
» Pomona-Pitzer College junior
Kimi Ide-Foster (Iolani '06) was named to the Association of College Water Polo Coaches 2008 All-Academic team at the Superior level for her work as a sophomore for the Sagehens.