Le Jardin Academy may be a small school on the eastside of the island, but Sam Spengler’s ambition and undeniable work-ethic create opportunities for him. “I’ve been one of Sam’s basketball coaches since he was in the 7^th grade, all I can say is the kid loves to compete,” said Coach Sean Rabes.  Sam Spengler also plays club basketball for “Dream Hoops Elite” during his off-season. “Sam is a great guy.  He plays hard and always has something positive to contribute to the team,” said senior water polo teammate Ian White.  Sam was also recognized as ILH “Goalie of the Year” and helped lead his water polo team to their first Division II State Title. It is no secret that playing a varsity sport and maintaining an extremely high GPA is a difficult accomplishment. Sam has played three varsity sports since his sophomore year and currently holds a 4.2 GPA. The entire Le Jardin Academy community is extremely fortunate to have a student like Sam Spengler. He is a great example for our entire student body.  He is reaping the rewards of his uncommon dedication, hard work and a positive attitude.

The game was very hyped up and the outcome was not what many believed would happen. Le Jardin went through most of the season tied with Punahou and Iolani for first place. That is, until the final games where they defeated Iolani 4-2 and Punahou 9-8. Victory for first place looked easy for the bulldogs coming in to the playoffs.

The boy’s first game was against fourth place Kamehameha. The game was an unfortunate upset as the boys lost to Kamehameha 7-6. “We went in cocky,” said senior Sam Spengler. “We had just taken out Puanhou and Iolani and we thought we didn’t have to try. Kamehameha went harder than us and they earned it.”

Since the LJA boys finished the season in first place, a tie breaker for championship was to happen Oct. 27 against the underdogs Kamehameha. Junior Jake Blaskowski said “It was payback, all or nothing. We need to come out strong and play our game.” The boys came out with intensity starting in the first quarter. Within the first minute, senior Jackson Shimanoff scored the first goal, followed by two more goals by Jake Blaskowski and Ian White.

At the end of the first half the score was 5-0, Bulldogs. “This was the first game they’ve ever had where the parents could sit easy and not panic till the last minute of the game,” said Amy Blondeau, mother of athlete Chris Blondeau on the team. By the end of the third quarter the bulldogs were up 8-0. Coach Krislin decided to put some of the subs in for the final quarter and the bulldogs took the win 8-2.

“It was the best season we’ve ever had, from the beginning. We’ve worked so hard, practicing over 20 hours a week, waking up at 5:30 and swimming before school, and it paid off,” said Spengler. The bulldog water polo team established a new tradition at the school, being the first team to ever win a state championship. Hopefully, the team will remain strong in the years to come, and continue the tradition.

The high pitched screech of the whistle signaled the beginning of an all out battle between both teams. Ian White, junior at Le Jardin stole the sprint with ease to give the Bulldogs the offensive advantage of the first quarter. Without hesitation, Jackson Shimanoff pulled the trigger on what looked like a rifle to score within the first ten seconds of the game. Iolani quickly answered back.  With the game tied at one, and the Bulldogs in a man up situation, Colton Campbell scored with a pass from Nick Zackmeir. From there the game was scoreless until the middle of the second quarter when Colton Campbell was fouled outside of the five meter marker and fired a rocket past the Raiders Goalie to score for the second time in the game. But the Raiders were resilient and bounced back to tie the game at three. Towards the end of the half Sam Spangler hammered a well aimed shot right through the hands of Iolani’s goalie.

Coming into the second half, the Raiders knew they had to step up their game in order to defeat the Bulldogs. With the score at four to three with Le Jardin in the lead the Raiders rallied to score, and tie the game at four. With the game tied, the pressure was on both teams to push the limits. Late in the third quarter Chris Sprague launched a sneak attack from the left wing that slid past the goalie with ease to put Le Jardin in the lead going into the fourth quarter. Ian White was able to squeeze a shot into the goal in the middle of the fourth quarter to set the final score. The Raiders made a final effort with eight seconds left with a hectic driving pattern but were unable to answer back to the Bulldogs.

The game between the Le Jardin Bulldogs and the Iolani Raiders was truly a battle between clashing forces, but the Bulldogs came out on top to prove they are truly a force to reckon with. Colton Campbell, Shaun Millar, Oliver Donkervoet, and Alex Hernandez all received gifts, flowers and toys after the win for recognition of the Le Jardin Boys Water Polo Senior Night. Colton Campbell stated after the game,“We both put up a great fight, but the better team came out on top. We played as a team and we won as a team. I just want to recognize Oliver Donkervoet for a beastly performance during that game, if not for him; it might have been a different story.”

Colton Campbell a military student from California has lived in 7 states across America ranging from Hawaii to Maine. He came to Hawaii in May of 2007, and immediately found his love for the water. “I first went to sandys 4 days after I moved in, and got worked. But it was well worth it.” He went to Kailua High (which doesn’t have a water polo team) his freshman year, and then transferred over to Le Jardin. He had heard of water polo before he lived here but had never tried it. “I heard about it, and that it was an aggressive sport, so I really was looking forward to coming to Le Jardin to try it out.”

In his first year he really excelled earning a starting position by the 3rd game of the year, scoring 6 goals in 10 games played. His junior year, he couldn’t play because he had a job, and was trying to focus on his school work and get good grades. For his senior year he has earned captain of the varsity water polo team, and they currently have a 3-3 record. They play Iolani next on October 13th.

In addition to Leader of the Varsity Water Polo team, he is also the captain of Boys Varsity Volleyball here at Le Jardin. The first year he came to LJA was also the first year he had ever played organized volleyball. Playing sporadically his sophomore year, he worked hard that summer, and the next year he earned a starting position and the role of the team captain. That year he led them to a second place finish in the ILH. The Varsity Volleyball team begins practice in February, with Colton Campbell again being the captain of the team.

The new coach has shaken up the water polo program from all different angles, whether it’s been the structure of practice or the training regimen, it’s clear she’s made quite the difference.  As Jackson Shimanoff says “She’s not a dude,” while adding “last year’s coaches were a little more lax.  She keeps us on task.” Her tactics may seem different however they definitely seem to be paying off.  An excellent lineup went up against other teams in their recent preseason tournament, and stunning victories have been won in their regular season against Pac-5 on Saturday, September 4^th, the final score was 15-1, and their most recent victory against Iolani (9-7).

The faculty of Le Jardin Academy seems more than satisfied with this new coach, and Mr. Olaso has stated “What I like about Krislin is she brings a lot of energy.  I like her philosophy, she is very knowledgeable in the game, and she brings a lot to the table.”  The rest of the faculty, particularly the athletic department, has all welcomed the new charismatic coach with open arms.

Mr. Reed Olaso was asked about Coach Kris and water polo in general he had some enlightening things to say.  “We used to date, just kidding.  We met through Mrs. Victoria Adams, the Chinese teacher. She was trying to hold a water safety instructors meeting at our school and couldn’t do it so she went to the YMCA and she talked to the guy who was in charge of the water safety program.  Through chance I talked to Mrs. Adams if she knew anyone who was interested in coaching a water polo team. “

Lastly, when asked on what set her apart from other coaches he answered, “For one, she is a female coaching a male sport.  When I interviewed her and talked to her about gender, she didn’t care. Her whole purpose was to coach water polo whether it was male or female. I think that says a lot about a person taking on that sort of role.”

With this new driving force, we can surely expect a good season.

“The team put in the effort, and finished the season strong,” Said Coach Brady. The Bulldogs finished the season in 3^rd place over the Iolani Raiders and the Pac -5 Wolfpack, insuring them a spot in the playoffs.

Le Jardin’s first game of the playoffs was against the second seeded Kamehameha Warriors. The Bulldogs obtained the lead in the second half and maintained it beating the Warriors with the final score of 8-4, yet the Bulldogs lost an essential part of the team when Elijah Jennings was ejected for the championship game.

Meeting the Bulldogs in the championship game was the first seeded Punahou Buffanblu who beat the fourth seeded Iolani Raiders 10-6 to advance.

The Bulldogs struck in the first half with goals from seniors Will Thayer and Taylor Gray. Defense was also crucial for the Bulldogs who had the lead at half 6-5, but Punahou’s endless numbers on the bench took a toll on the Bulldogs in the second half.

“It was like playing 2 completely different teams,” said senior Travis Parke.

The bulldogs lost the game 17-11,  yet the Boys Water Polo team tied a single season record for Le Jardin with the best finish, which resulted in them advancing to the championship game. Congrats Bulldogs on an amazing season!!

The long anticipated game between Le Jardin and Punahou seemed to be a bust, with Le Jardin losing to the Buffanblu 15-5.

“It was a disappointing loss,” said the new waterpolo head coach Billy, “we will just have to work harder and focus on our next game.”

The next game was against the skilled Iolani Red Raiders but Le Jardin came out and scored two quick goals. The rest went downhill from there, though. Iolani was awarded four, five meter penalty shots in the first quarter which were all made.  Senior Taylor Gray was ejected going into the second minute of the game and the Bulldogs were stricken with penalties throughout the game.

“I didn’t feel beaten by Iolani, but felt defeated by the officials”, said senior Travis Parke. The Bulldogs were frustrated with the lopsided calls but the Bulldogs stayed aggressive and finished the game losing by only three with the final score of 10-7. With the loss, Le Jardin (2-3) is tied with Iolani (2-3) and trails Kamehameha (4-1) and Punahou (5-0).

The game was played at a high intensity and came down to the wire.  During the final seconds of regulation the Bulldogs were down 8 to 9 and the outcome looked grim.  However, the team did not give up and still played their hardest to the very end.  With five seconds left sophomore, Jackson Shimanoff, stole the ball resulting in a goal by Elijah Jennings which sent the game into overtime. 

During the overtime session, the Bulldogs played hard defense and didn’t let Iolani score.  At the end of the overtime, the Bulldogs defeated Iolani with the final score of 11 to 9. 

Throughout the game, the officials made several calls that were controversial, and certainly impacted the Bulldogs.  “I’m glad our team didn’t let the refs determine the outcome of the game” says senior, Travis Parke.  “I’m proud that the boys retained their composure throughout the game and never gave up.”   

At the end, the Bulldogs came out with a victory and showed great sportsmanship by shaking the other players’ hands and even the referees.  The Bulldogs started the season off on the right note and we wish them luck throughout their season.

Despite the loss of three key pieces, Head Coach Eric Billington, Assistant Coach Robin Durnin, and 1^st team all star Will Durnin, players on the team remain optimistic.  “I believe our team is more well rounded this year,” says returning senior, Travis Parke.   “Everyone will have to rely on each other.  We are going to have to give it our all!” 

Relationships between players and coaches are essential for the team’s success.  Establishing a strong relationship sometime takes a team years to achieve. All waterpolo team members had only positive remarks about the new coaching staff, Joffrey and Billy, and look forward to the upcoming season.   “Joffrey and Billy are funny but also good players so they get respect,” says Eli Jennings. 

Leading the varsity team this year are returning seniors, Travis Parke, Donald Thayer, Eli Jennings and Taylor Gray.  Donald, Travis and Eli have been playing waterpolo ever since Le Jardin Academy started the program and will have to set a good example with their experience and sportsmanship.  Last year’s team’s success set high standards and the LJA community wishes the bulldogs luck this season.