Hawaiian Islanders Game Notes
August 4, 2003 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Hawaiian Islanders News Release
QUICK FACTS:
HAWAIIAN ISLANDERS (11-6) vs. TULSA TALONS (13-3)
Date: Saturday, Aug. 9, 2003
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. CDT (2:30 p.m. HST)
Site: Tulsa Convention Center (7,098)
Officials: TBA
Radio: Live on KUMU2 AM 1500 (John Miro, Tom Yoshida)
Internet: Live on www.hawaiianislanders.com
Series Record: Tulsa leads series 3-0
Streaks: Hawaii: Won 1; Tulsa: Won 3
Coaches: Islanders â Cal Lee (11-6, first season) Talons â Skip Foster (41-10, third season)
THE STAKES: The quest for the 2003 ArenaCup Championship moves to the divisional round. This week the Western Division champion Hawaiian Islanders will face the Central Division champion Tulsa Talons. The winner advances to the Conference finals while the loser goes home. Hawaii is 4-4 on the road in 2003 while Tulsa is a perfect 8-0 at home.
THE SERIES: This will only be the fourth meeting between the two teams with Tulsa owing a 3-0 advantage. In Tulsa, the Talons own a 2-0 series lead. This is the first playoff meeting between the two teams.
THE Ifs:
If the Islanders defeat the Talons, it would ...
⢠Give the ISLANDERS a 3-1 record with Tulsa
⢠Give the ISLANDERS an all time record of 6-11 on the road.
⢠Give the ISLANDERS a 2-0 record in the playoffs
⢠Give Hawaii Head Coach Cal Lee a 12-6 record
⢠Snap Tulsa's 8-game home winning streak (including playoffs)
HEAD COACHES: Cal Lee was named head coach of the Hawaiian Islanders on October 23, 2002 giving fans across Hawaii an added excitement for the upcoming season. Lee is the most prolific football coach in Hawaii high school history. In 21 years as a head coach at St. Louis High School (Honolulu), his teams have compiled a 241-32-5 record, which include 18 league titles and 15 state championships. Tulsa Talons Coach Skip Foster is 41-10 overall and 40-8 in regular season games in his third season. Foster's regular season winning percentage of 83.7% is the best among active af2 coaches. Coming to Tulsa from Coffeyville (KS) Community College, Foster has led the Talons to the ArenaCup Playoffs the past two seasons, going 13-3 in 2001 and winning the National Conference Central Division title last year going 14-2.
ISLANDERS' WEEKLY: Join host Alema Harrington for Islanders Weekly, an informative 30-minute look behind the scenes at the Hawaiian Islanders, the only professional franchise in the state. See highlights from last week's game as well as a preview of upcoming opponents. You'll also see interesting interviews with coaches, players and items that make the Islanders your only team in town.
The show airs Tuesday through Friday at 8:30 p.m. on Oceanic Cable 16.
ISLANDERS' INJURY REPORT:
Pos. Name Injury Status WR/DB Nian Taylor Hamstring Probable WR/DB A.Arceneaux Hip Day-to-day OL/DL Taulia Lave Knee Day-to-day DS Eddie Klaneski Shoulder Day-to-day OL/DL Evile Puna Elbow Day-to-day QB Darnell Arceneaux Wrist, Hand Day-to-day
KEY DATES IN TEAM HISTORY:
September 6, 2001 â The league offices of arenafootball2 announces Honolulu will be awarded a franchise for the 2002 season. Charles Wang and his daughter Kimberly will be the operators of the team. Hawaii becomes the ninth (of 10) expansion team named for the 2002 season.
January 7, 2002 â Former all-state quarterback Darnell Arceneaux is assigned to the Islanders making him the first player in team history.
January 19, 2002 â The Hawaiian Islanders hosts an open tryout at Central Oahu Regional Park. Over 30 players endured the soggy conditions and participated in the three-hour workout
February 4, 2002 â Islanders host Pacific Rim Training Camp where over 180 participants from Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Samoa, and Fiji attended.
March 30, 2002 - Islanders defeat the Fresno Frenzy 50-47 before 4,376 fans at the Blaisdell Arena marking the first game, the first win and the first home win in team history.
June 14, 2002 â After suffering through a nine game losing streak, the Islanders defeat San Diego 53-34 as Darnell Arceneaux threw for three touchdowns and rushed for three more.
June 22, 2002 â Despite losing 56-48 at Bakersfield, quarterback Darnell Arceneaux rushes for an af2 record-tying five touchdowns.
July 20, 2002 â Hawaii rallies from a 21-0 deficit to upset the two-time defending af2 champion Quad City Steamwheelers 56-55 before 5,185 fans. Two days later, Nian Taylor was named National Ironman for the second consecutive week. Combined with his National Built Ford Tough award three weeks earlier, he becomes the first player to win three national awards in a four-week period.
July 27, 2002 â The Islanders defeat Fresno 46-36 for their first road win of the season. It was Hawaii's first two game winning streak and four wins in their final six games.
October 23, 2002 â The Islanders announce that Cal Lee will become their new coach for the 2003 season.
March 12, 2003 â Training camp opens with 16 veterans making the 35-man squad. Islanders announced they sold nearly 1,200 season tickets compared to only 16 from last year.
March 30, 2003 â Exactly one year following the Islanders' first season and first win against Fresno, Hawaii opens the 2003 season with a 48-37 win over Green Bay. The win also gives head coach Cal Lee his first win as an af2 coach.
April 4, 2003 â A missed extra point gives Hawaii a stunning 53-52 win over Quad City. It is only the third time in 25 games in which the Steamwheelers have lost a game at home. Hawaii becomes the only team at the time to have a winning series record against Quad City.
June 14, 2003 â The Hawaiian Islanders defeat the Peoria Pirates 44-43 for their sixth straight home victory in 2003 and their ninth straight dating back to last season.
July 5, 2003 â With Tennesee Valley Vipers defeating the Memphis Xplorers 51-36, the Hawaiian Islanders qualifies for the playoff...its first in franchise history.
July 21, 2003 â With Hawaii's win over San Diego coupled with the Bakersfield-Wichita tie, the Islanders clinch their first Western Division title and the number three seed in the af2 playoffs.
Aug. 1, 2003 â Darnell Arceneaux throws for 229 yards and six touchdowns and runs for two more as the Hawaiian Islanders defeat the Wichita Stealth 57-30 for their first playoff win.
FORWARD MOTION: If the Islanders win, they will advance to the National Conference championship game on Saturday, Aug. 16. The site will either be in Quad City or Honolulu.
LAST SERIES MEETING: TULSA 48, HAWAII 47 (Saturday, July 12, 2003, Tulsa Convention Center, Tulsa, OK) Mitch Allner's 35-yard pass from Craig Strickland with 36 second remaining lifted Tulsa to a 48-47 win over the Hawaiian Islanders before 5,568 fans at the Tulsa Convention Center.
The win gave Tulsa (11-3) no worse than a second seed in the upcoming af2 playoffs, which begins in three weeks. Hawaii (9-5) remains one game ahead of Wichita (8-6), which lost to Bakersfield (7-7) Saturday night.
Darnell Arceneaux came in the first quarter for Mike Tillis and completed 11-of-25 passes for 184 yards and 5 touchdowns and was named the game's most valuable player. Arceneaux played in his first game since May 24 when he suffered a hairline fracture in his right hand and was on the injured reserved.
"Darnell played a great game," said Islander head coach Cal Lee. "We knew he was going to get some playing time and the time was right in the first quarter."
Darrick Branch was Hawaii's leading receiver with five catches for 95 yards and two touchdowns. Anthony Arceneaux caught three passes for 32 yards and two touchdowns.
On defense, Branch led Hawaii with four solos and one assists. Teammate Kohei Satomi recorded three solos and was named the ADT Defensive Player of the Game.
Hawaii dominated the offensive side of the ball with 265 yards and held Tulsa to 178 total yards.
DROPBACK: HAWAII 57, WICHITA 30
(Sunday, Aug. 1, 2003 â Neal Blaisdell Arena, Honolulu, HI) â Darnell Arceneaux threw for 229 yards and a career-high tying six touchdowns and ran for two more as the Hawaiian Islanders moved to the second round of the 2003 ArenaCup Playoffs with a 57-30 win over the Wichita Stealth before 3,744 fans at the Neal Blaisdell Arena.
Arceneaux, who was named the game's most valuable player, followed up a disappointing performance last week against Bakersfield with his best performance this year.
"He makes plays," said Islanders head coach, Cal Lee of Arceneaux. "He's an athlete and that's what athletes do."
Arceneaux threw his six touchdowns to four different receivers. Nian Taylor and Anthony Arceneaux caught two each while Darrick Branch and Darrell Jones each caught one.
The defense and special teams also played big roles in the Islander win. Of Wichita's first four quarter possessions, the Islanders recorded two safeties, an interception and allowed one field goal.
On offense, Hawaii raced out to a 25-3 lead as Darnell Arceneaux threw touchdown passes to Jones, Taylor and Anthony Arceneaux.
On defense, Kohei Satomi lead the team in tackles with five while recording an interception and a fumble recovery. He was voted the ADT Defensive player of the game.
PLAYERS/MATCHUPS TO WATCH:
ARCENEAUX SAVES A BIG BEST GAME FOR LAST: Quarterback Darnell Arceneaux saved his best performance for the playoffs. The talented quarterback tossed for 229 yards and a career-high tying six touchdown passes and rushed for two more as he was named the game's most valuable player against Wichita. Arceneaux also did not throw an interception nor was he sacked. During the post game press conference, Arceneaux credited his offensive line for giving him enough protection throughout the night.
A BIG DEFENSIVE PERFORMANCE FOR A LITTLE GUY: He is not the biggest or the tallest guy around but Kohei Satomi stood his ground against Wichita. Against Wichita, Satomi was the game's leading tackler with five solos and also registered an interception, a fumble recovery and two passes broken up. Satomi moved back to his customary cornerback position when Eddie Klaneski returned to the lineup this week. At the conclusion of the regular season, Satomi was the second leading tackler on the team with 48.
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