Pacific Islands Athletic Alliance and Elks Lodge of Waikiki hosted a letter of intent signing ceremony on Wednesday morning.
More than 30 signees participated in the event.
Among the seniors ready to start college was volleyball standout Kupono Fey of Punahou. But unlike his peers, the 6-foot-6 senior was at home. He had contracted pinkeye the day before the ceremony.
“I love the team and the coaches,” he said by phone on Wednesday. “The recruiting class is great. A lot of them are friends. Nainoa Frank (of Kalaheo), Tui (Tuileta).”
Tuileta, for the record, is just a junior. But the feeling is still special.
“It was a hard decision. All of the other offers were basically my second choice,” Fey said of Lewis, USC and Pepperdine.
As for the pinkeye, that’s a mystery.
“I don’t know how I got it. Maybe during our match (on Tuesday). Once i get on medication, it’ll be OK,” said Fey, who was also a basketball standout for the Buffanblu.
Punahou golfer Ryan Lloyd was healthy and made it to the signing ceremony. Lloyd’s bumpy road to the next level isn’t typical of most Buffanblu. But he’s on his way to Loyola-Chicago.
“My mom’s from the Midwest and we have some family in the Chicago area,” Lloyd said. “I’ve never been to the campus, but I’ve visited the area before.”
Lloyd was academically ineligible to play golf last year.
“And my sophomore year, too,” he said.
But if things go right and he keeps improving, he could crack the travel roster at Loyola-Chicago.
“That would be significant,” he said. “I can’t imagine another Hawaii kid going there.”
Photos provided by PIAA.
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