Hilo, Hawaii – Nick Mason, Osadonor "Skip" Esene and Leo Sing Chow have been selected the 2004-05 University of Hawai‘i at Hilo Athletes of the Year as announced during the Vulcan Hall of Fame/All-Sports Banquet held at the UHH Campus Center, today.

Mason, a senior all-American golfer, won the 55th Annual Southern California Intercollegiate and the Pacific West Conference championships. His team posted victories at the 33rd Annual Viking Invitational Men's Golf Tournament, the Elco, Inc. Intercollegiate Golf Tournament and at the Pacific West Championship. The team was also second at the SoCal Intercollegiate Championship and third at the Chico State/Wells Fargo Men Men's Invitational.

Esene, a senior all-Region performer, was named Pacific West Conference Player of the Year and selected to the NCAA Division II West Region Team. He was also a three-time PWC Player of the Week. He led the basketball team to a 25-4 record, the second best winning percentage season in history and an appearance in the NCAA Division II West Regional. They finished the regular season ranked 8th the NABC/Division II poll and second in the NCAA Division II West Region. The team was also the top-ranked team in the West Region for three consecutive weeks.

Sing Chow, a sophomore pitcher/designated player, was a key player in the softball team winning it first's Pacific West Crown and finishing the regular season with a 31-9 record. She was among the leaders in offensive categories -- batting average (.409, 1st), homeruns (6, T1), RBI (31, 4th), doubles (7, 2nd), slugging percentage (.643, 1st), onbase percentage (.456, 1st). On the mound, she was 9-3 with a 1.89 ERA with a 2.2:1 strikeout to walk ratio. She also held opponents to a .225 batting average.

Scholar Athletes Sarah Steele and Justin Dobson

Earning Scholar/Athlete of the Year honors were softball's Sarah Steele (3.89, Health and Physical Education) and basketball's Justin Dobson (3.47, Business Administration).

Teams of the Year were basketball, men's golf and softball. All three won Pacific West championships during the 2004-05 athletic season.

Most Dedicated Athletes

Through a voting of their peers, the following athletes are the recipients of the Most Dedicated Awards; Gary Ahu, Jr. (baseball), Dobson (basketball), Moth (men's cross country), Jami Parsons (women's cross country), Garrett Okamura (men's golf), Mineko Kanamoto (women's golf), Jessica Suderman (softball), Kevin Yamauchi (men's tennis), Tiana Lum-Tucker (women's tennis) and Cori Sutter (volleyball).

Receiving the annual Athletic Director's Awards are cheerleading coach Melody Hanson and UHH baseball pitcher Eddie Gutierrez. Receiving the Unsung Heroes Awards are seniors Sean Tamura and Johnny Dudoit (baseball), Krystal Hangai and Staffan Moritz (tennis), and Okamura.

HOF Inductees Maggie Carmichael and Kristy Odamura