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Christian Shimabuku

Sports

Andre Ilagan grew up in Kalihi, the youngest son of a basketball family. His parents told him upfront that he wasn't going to grow up to be tall, and he'd also have to find a way to pay for college on his own. 

The Ilagan family bought cheap rackets at a Goodwill Store. Young Andre was hooked, and he'd spent countless hours honing his craft at Kalākaua District Park in Kalihi. 

Going all-in on tennis proved to be the right choice each step of the way for Ilagan, who grew to become 5-feet-8. He was a two-time state champion at Farrington High School, then signed with the University of Hawai‘i on a tennis scholarship after graduating high school in 2018. 

Ilagan cemented himself as one of the program's all-time greats in Mānoa, earning first team All-Big West honors in singles and doubles four times each. In his senior year in 2023, he became the first UH men's player to earn ITA All-American honors. 

Ilagan, who has pursued pro tennis after graduating, is set for the next big step in his journey. On Tuesday, he'll take on Tristan Boyer at the U.S. Open qualifying tournament at the 

USTA Billie Jean King National Center in Flushing, N.Y. First serve is set for 7:20 a.m. HST. Ilagan was one of nine players to earn a wild-card invite, becoming the first former 'Bow to earn an invite to the tournament. 

"It's definitely cool," Ilagan says of the opportunity. "I've reached a level and a point where I was watching these guys on TV and now I'm playing against them, and I can beat them now. ... Playing those guys and having the chance to be on court with them and have a chance to just beat them. When I go play the Open or even these challenger events that you get these former top 100 guys or top 10 guys that are legends of the sport, you just take it all in."

Not one to lack for confidence or honesty, Ilagan mentioned money when asked what he's excited about heading into U.S. Open qualifying. 

"To be honest, all I'm thinking about is like, man, that paycheck is definitely gonna help me," Ilagan said. "That's like the biggest thing right now. I hope to qualify because it would be exciting just to see like an $100K bank transfer into my account, and as a 25-year-old, and maybe never again in my life, I might not have this in one transfer. It was going to be unreal if I can qualify, that's like 30 grand minimum, and you can't ask for much more."

While Ilagan says nerves will not be a major issues as he takes the court on Tuesday, seeing the work he put in during his childhood come to fruition promises to be another memorable moment for him.

"Coming out of Kalihi in general is cool. I mean, I love it," Ilagan said. "It just builds character for me. I take pride it in every time."

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<title>Kalihi's Andre Ilagan set to make history at U.S. Open</title>

The Farrington and UH alum is the first former Rainbow Warrior to be invited to the U.S. Open.

Kalihi's Andre Ilagan set to make history at U.S. Open

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Michael Brestovansky

Crime & Courts

The Honolulu Police Department is continuing to investigate the death of a 50-year-old flight attendant whose body was found in a Waikīkī dumpster last week.

On Thursday, Aug. 20, HPD responded to reports of a dead body in a dumpster at the Hilton Hawaiian Village in Waikīkī. At the time, HPD told Aloha State Daily that the case was being handled as an unattended death investigation and that foul play did not appear to be involved.

 the deceased as Moore, Oklahoma resident Jenny Lupton, a flight attendant for Southwest Airlines, who was in Hawai‘i on a layover.

[{"type":"text","text":"On Monday, HPD reiterated that the case is still under investigation."}]

“At this time, no conclusions have been made regarding the manner of death,” read the HPD statement.

Detectives of HPD’s homicide detail are reportedly working with Lupton’s family, reviewing surveillance video and more, in “a thorough investigation that will take time.”

Further information or details about the investigation will be withheld as it remains ongoing. However, HPD will notify the community “if investigators identify an immediate threat to public safety.”

On behalf of Jenny Lupton’s family, we ask for patience as detectives conduct this investigation and respectfully request that the family’s privacy be honored during this difficult time,” read HPD’s statement. “We encourage the public to rely on verified information from official sources and to avoid sharing unconfirmed information that may cause unnecessary concern or confusion.”

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<title>HPD investigating body found in Waikīkī dumpster</title>

Jenny Lupton, 50, was found dead in Waikīkī last week.

HPD investigating body found in Waikīkī dumpster

Jared Ursua landed his first FBS coaching job in 2022, joining 

's initial University of Hawai‘i staff as the team's new wide receivers coach. 

Up until that point, the Big Island native's entire collegiate career took place in the state of Utah — Ursua played for Southern Utah from 2008 to 2011 before joining the team's coaching staff from 2014 to 2018. He then coached receivers at Weber State from 2019 to 2021, and was also the recruiting coordinator there.

When he made his way back to Hawai‘i, he was certainly familiar with his surroundings, but he was hungry to learn more. What made the run-and-shoot offense so effective? And what does it look like when it's clicking? For that, he had the ultimate resource in little brother John. 

Following a disappointing 3-9 season in 2017, former Hawai‘i head coach Nick Rolovich decided it was in the best interest of the program to return to its roots in the run-and-shoot, an offensive system where quarterbacks and their four receivers put up large numbers on a variety of option routes.

Despite tearing his ACL in 2017, John Ursua emerged as the star of the team's revamped offense in 2018, hauling in 89 receptions for 1,343 yards and 16 touchdowns. NFL teams were tantalized by his tape, and after declaring early for the 2019 NFL Draft, he was selected in the seventh round by the Seattle Seahawks. 

While Jared Ursua would frequently question 

 about what he saw on a certain play, John was trying to get his playing career back on track. After three seasons with the Seahawks, a repeat ACL injury would go on to derail the rest of his playing career. He went to Canada and latched on with the CFL's 

Saskatchewan Roughriders and BC Lions in 2023, but saw the field for neither. 

John Ursua's post-playing career began in the Islands, first as a trainer for youth athletes who aspired to reach the heights that he did as a player. The training, which focused on speed and agility, ranged from one-on-one to group settings. A close friend of Ursua, who runs Level Up Elites in Orem, Utah, encouraged him to make the move after telling him dozens of clients where eager to learn from him. 

It is also in Utah where Ursua, 32, joined the coaching staff at Orem High School as the school's new receivers coach. It's his first full-time coaching gig on a staff, the start of a journey he hopes to turn into his new career. 

"This is something I'm going to pursue 100%," John Ursua told Aloha State Daily. "This is what I want to do. I want to stick around the game and give back to the kids. This is going to be a long journey for me, but this is just the beginning."

As fate would have it, Ursua's first game on the Orem staff took him to O‘ahu, where the Tigers opened their 2026 campaign at Kamehameha. The Aug. 14 contest was moved up a day due to 

"I couldn't have written it better. I was shocked when they said we were playing Kamehameha first," Ursua said after the game. "It was a treat to be out here. Our boys got to come and hang out for a week, and (Kamehameha) has a great team over there, and we're just glad we got to play them."

Overseeing John Ursua's hire at Orem was head coach Andy Stokes, who back in the day was the final pick of the 2005 NFL Draft but never saw action in a regular season game. 

"We love John," Stokes said. "I know John's older brother really well, Jared. John's played in the league. He's done a lot of the things that we do in our offense. He brings a great perspective to the boys. I know that he wants to grow in the coaching world, I'm grateful for the opportunity to help him out a little bit."

Four years ago, it was Jared Ursua who relied on John Ursua's advice. These days, it's only right big brother returns the favor. 

"I've been calling him, just being like, 'Hey, what do you here, what can I teach these kids on individual (drills), how can I help them grow?' It's been cool to be able to lean on him now," John Ursua said. "At first, he was asking me about the run-and-shoot and UH and all this, but now we get to feed off of each other more, so it's been really fun."

"John and I are always talking about the future, and that kid is so gifted, and I've known it since he was eight or nine years old," Jared Ursua said following a recent Hawai‘i football fall camp practice."

How often does Jared Ursua show his receivers John's UH tape? 

"All the time," Jared Ursua said. "We have a cut up kind of directed toward the '18 and '19 seasons. Those guys were excellent, and then coach (Craig) Stutzmann and (Nick) Rolovich and (Brian Smith) had an offense that we watched and followed. That group was pretty special. That's was a special time in life for him."

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