Frowein wins three national medals

Punahou junior Jenna Frowein captured three medals, including an overall crown, and Thompson Academy junior Tamara Rapp won one at the Junior Olympic Women’s Gymnastics National Championship last week in Long Beach, Calif.

The event featured the nation’s top 450 level-10 female gymnasts, who qualified through local, state and regional championships.

Frowein won the national beam title, tying for first. She also took ninth in the uneven bar, 11th in the floor exercise and ninth in the all-around in the Senior B Division. The top 10 earn medals. She also was named first alternate to attend a training camp to be held in October at the USA Gymnastics Olympic National Training Center.

Rapp earned seventh place in the floor in the Junior D Division. She also took 14th on the balance beam and tied for 23rd in the all-around.

Both gymnasts are from Hawaiian Island Twisters.

UHH remains in eighth place

Another round of 13-over-par 301 yesterday kept Hawaii-Hilo in eighth place and within reach of advancing to tomorrow’s match play at the NCAA Division II national championship. The tournament is being played at Robert Trent Jones at the Shoals Fighting Joe Course in Florence, Ala.

At 602 after two days, the Vulcans are 20 shots behind leader Lynn. Starting with sixth-place Central Oklahoma, there are six teams within 10 shots of each other. The top eight after today move on to match play and a shot at winning the national championship.

Hilo’s Corey Kozuma, a freshman out of ‘Iolani, played his final 10 holes in 4 under to shoot 70. He moved into a tie for fourth at 142, one behind the leaders.

Blake Snyder, another UHH freshman, is 48th at 78—154. He is followed by Chris Shimomura (79—155), Travis Russell (74—156) and Neil Cabico (80—157), the team’s lone senior.

Quarterfinals and semifinals are tomorrow, with the championship final Friday.

Jia is PacWest player of year

Brigham Young-Hawaii junior Yuan Jia has been selected the Pacific West Conference women’s tennis player of the year, and Seasiders sophomore Annie Hwang was selected conference newcomer of the year yesterday.

Jia was named first team in both singles and doubles for the third consecutive year. This season, she was 21-1 in singles and 25-1 in doubles.

Hwang also made the first team in singles and doubles. She finished the season 22-0 at singles and 24-1 in doubles.

Hawaii-Hilo’s Kelsey Daguio, a Sacred Hearts alum, was selected freshman of the year and made the second team.

BYUH’s Dave Porter, who led the Seasiders to a 27-1 season, and Grand Canyon’s Greg Prudhomme were voted co-coaches of the year.

Among the PacWest honorees were:

First-team singles: BYUH’s Elwen Li, and Hawaii Pacific’s Ielyzaveta Rybakova and Zora Vickova.

Second-team singles: Chaminade’s Yanita Arnaudova and Yuko Kondo, and HPU’s Celina Goetti.

First team-doubles: BYUH’s Jia and Li, and Hwang and Shawni Porter, and HPU’s Goetti and Vickova.

Second-team doubles: Chaminade’s Arnaudova and Kondo, and HPU’s Rybakova and Aleksandra Stankovic.

Payne loses first-round heat

Hawaii’s Dusty Payne placed last in his three-man, first-round heat yesterday in the Billabong Rio Pro surf contest at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Payne (11.66 out of 20 possible points for a two-wave total) finished behind Mick Fanning of Australia (15.07) and Simao Romao of Brazil (12.36), but still advanced to the second round.

Payne is the only Hawaii surfer entered in the Association of Surfing Professionals World Tour event.