Even for the veteran and KIF champion Kaua‘i High golfers, stepping to the tee box alongside unfamiliar faces at the state tournament always awakens the nerves. “It’s like knowing that the toast is going to come out of the toaster,
Even for the veteran and KIF champion Kaua‘i High golfers, stepping to the tee box alongside unfamiliar faces at the state tournament always awakens the nerves.
“It’s like knowing that the toast is going to come out of the toaster, but you still get scared,” said senior Braeden Robley.
I pride myself on solid analogies. I’ll be stealing that one.
The Red Raider girls team took eighth place overall at the HHSAA Golf Championships on Maui, while the boys finished in sixth a week later. They didn’t get to experience their final tournament together, but this Kaua‘i team appears to be a tight-knit group with a lot of shared support. Meeting with them on Wednesday, I found them familial and sibling-esque, their eyes shooting glances at each other that were probably more detailed than the words they relayed to me.
Justin “Pono” Tokioka, who graduates today and will be playing golf for UH as an incoming Manoa freshman in the fall, said this group really is like a family. They’ve stuck together and know they can go to each other – especially him as captain – with anything they need.
Born deaf, Pono was being signed most of my questions by either Braeden or freshman Trevor Kua. He talked of his and Braeden’s growing friendship, having known one another since the sixth grade.
“We’ve gotten closer and closer each year and now we’re the closest we’ve been,” Pono said. “He’s been a huge help on this team. Kai (Adachi) helps us too and shows good sportsmanship. A lot of times, the three of us – me, Braeden and Kai – we have a lot of fun together.”
After its final round at Wailua Golf Course, the team had a little goodbye water balloon fight planned – or at least the seniors knew it was planned – with some distraction help from Coach Glenn Tamagawa.
“It was the seniors against everybody else,” said Taylor Viquelia, also one of tonight’s graduates from the girls team. “Then the other teams started grabbing balloons and they were flying at everybody.”
As far as advice for his younger teammates who will carry on the team tradition, Pono wants them to “stay focused” and “don’t get mad,” which drew smiles from Trevor and sophomore Jamie Amimoto.
“I don’t throw my clubs 40 yards,” Trevor said in Jamie’s direction. “Who does that? I can’t even throw my clubs 40 yards,” he replied while the team laughed at the boys’ exchange.
Like Pono, senior Daesza Tomas is also on her way to Manoa to play for UH in the fall. She is in contact with her new coach about which tournaments she should consider entering and updates on her latest results. Taylor will be taking her lefty swing to Southern Utah and has been having similar conversations, although there is the culture change of moving all the way to Utah, which her new coach has been discussing in depth.
“He said it’s going to be hard in the beginning and I probably won’t play well because I’ll be stressed out, but he said after a while I’ll get used to it.”
During each team’s visit to Maui for states, they had some funny (in hindsight) encounters with residents. The boys – Braeden, in particular – had a case of mistaken identity lead to an accusation, followed by a heartfelt apology from a man who clearly loves his “old lady.” The girls were at a mall when a woman told freshman Hiilani Alana, who was just shopping at the time, that she should “stop worrying about what you look like, start caring about the bees and go pick up rubbish at Lahaina.” Not the worst advice ever, but pretty odd when unsolicited.
When I was finishing up my questions, a couple of the boys were ribbing each other about who shot better in the final KIF round and who shot better at states. It was big brother, little brother behavior, which was probably fitting. I’m sure Coach Tamagawa is hopeful his future teams continue to enjoy this level of comfort with one another in upcoming seasons.
— A few names were left off Wednesday’s column and they should be recognized for their accomplishments at the HHSAA Track & Field Championships: Waimea’s Kawena Warren took fourth in the Girls High Jump, while teammate Talia Young tied for 14th place in the same event. Waimea’s Kaena Kaohelaulii took seventh in the Girls 100 Meter Dash with a time of 13.17 seconds. Kapa‘a’s Unaloto Masaniai finished fifth in the Boys Discus with a throw of 148 feet, 3 inches, while Island School’s Joy Claypoole took 10th in the Girls 3000 Meter Run with a time of 11 minutes, 4.10 seconds.
— Congratulations to all of tonight’s graduating seniors and their families!
• ‘My Thoughts Exactly’ appears Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays in The Garden Island. Email David Simon your comments or questions to dsimon@thegardenisland.com. Follow David on Twitter @SimonTGI
