Eight participants in the Kauai Pop Warner Football Leage were named to the All American team, said Blaine Agena, KPWFL scholastics coordinator.
Eight participants in the Kauai Pop Warner Football Leage were named to the All American team, said Blaine Agena, KPWFL scholastics coordinator.
Maeani Arbilera, Jade Labajo, and Kameron Lee of the Hanapepe Colts; Brennen Fernandez of the Kekaha Titans; Eli Nikolas and Rush Nikolas of the Kapaa Eagles were named to the Pop Warner Scholar-Athlete Second Team All American.
Arbilera also earned top scholar honors for the Wescon Region, Agena said. To earn this, Arbilera met the requirements for national All American, but also submitted an essay for consideration.
Additionally, Kody Erdmann and Alexis Sariatan, both from the Hanapepe Colts, were named honorable mentions.
These scholar athletes are among the top 1.5 percent in academic performance for all Pop Warner participants, nationwide. The national Pop Warner program encompasses about 325,000 youth ranging in ages 5 to 16 years old.
All Americans are invited to the 2019 Pop Warner All-American Scholar Weekend in Baltimore scheduled for May 24 and 25. Agena said the honored individuals will be celebrated during the Kauai Pop Warner Jamboree, Sept. 7, at Vidinha Stadium.
Pop Warner is the only youth sports program that requires a 2.0 grade point average to participate, teaching the young athletes the importance of school at an early age.
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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.