By Jon Narimatsu
This season started like the last – under the haze of a pandemic. No one knew exactly how they would compete, if they could compete, or if there would be a post-season. Fortunately, not only did the Mid-Pacific Sporter Air Riflery teams compete, they competed and achieved at the highest levels.
This year, regular season matches happened virtually and both the girls’ and boys’ varsity teams swept through their opponents. Both Owl teams were undefeated and captured ILH team titles.
At the 2021-2022 ILH Sporter Air Riflery Individual Championship, 16 Mid-Pacific sharpshooters qualified for the Individual Championship and earned a remarkable 15 medals.
Team highlights include:
- Senior Kylie Murakami ʼ22 earned second place overall and the silver medal in the varsity girls’ division with a score of 543 out of 600. Murakami also received the silver medal in the standing position and the silver medal in the kneeling position.
- Senior Ethan Harrison ʼ22 took third place overall and the bronze medal in the varsity boys’ division with a score of 530. Harrison took home the gold medal in the prone position and a bronze medal in the kneeling position.
For their impressive team efforts, both the boys’ and girls’ teams earned an automatic bid to the 2021-2022 HHSAA Sporter Air Riflery State Championship Tournament. After a one-year hiatus, the tournament returned and our Owl athletes were able to compete once again in person. The last time both the boys’ and girls’ teams qualified for the state championship was in 2018.
Our Mid-Pacific Owls did an outstanding job despite all students being first-time state championship participants. As the only ILH teams in the tournament, the girls won the second place trophy and the boys captured first place, a remarkable achievement.
The girls have now placed second in the tournament four times (2012, 2015, 2016, 2021) and have captured first place twice (2014, 2018).
2021 marks the Mid-Pacific boys’ fourth year of capturing the state championship title (2013, 2015, 2018, 2021). The team has also placed second three times (2014, 2017, 2019). The boys also achieved the two overall individual state champions in 2006 and 2019.
This month, the ILH Sporter All-Stars were announced with Mid-Pacific athletes Colby Fujino ʼ23, Jordan Lampitelli ʼ22, Ethan Harrison ʼ22, Kylie Murakami ʼ22 and Ereyn Iwamoto ʼ24 earning All-Star recognition.
Murakami was also crowned “ILH Sporter Girls’ Shooter of the Year” for her outstanding performance during the regular season.
“I am extremely proud of my athletes for their tireless efforts which resulted in such great success under these challenging conditions,” said Varsity Head Coach, Jon Narimatsu. “I am especially happy for the seniors (who all have been with the program since they were freshmen) for being able to compete in their first state championship with remarkable results. Congratulations to all the athletes and thank you to the coaches, parents, athletic department staff, and school for their tremendous support in making this season happen.”
Narimatsu was selected as both the boys’ and girls’ ILH Sporter Air Riflery Coach of the Year (COY). It was the third time Narimatsu was selected for both in one season and the 12th overall COY honor he has received as Mid-Pacific’s sporter coach.”