Then a UH-Hilo assistant, Gene Okamura did what he could to steer Tiera Arakawa to the Big Island after her senior season in 2015 at King Kekaulike on Maui.
Though his intuition turned out to be correct, little did Okamura know that Arakawa would be the player most responsible for his first coaching victory.
“Holy crap, that girl, just her tenacity and work rate are unbelievable,” Okamura said Sunday on the phone, a day after Arakawa’s two goals pushed the Vulcans (1-1) past Northwest Nazarene 2-0 in Nampa, Idaho.
Arakawa’s hustle was in display for the full 90 minutes. The sophomore accounted for six of UH-Hilo’s 17 shots.
During the opening minute of the second half, Arakawa was tripped in the penalty box and converted the penalty kick.
She made its 2-0 almost 10 minutes later, pressing the Crusaders’ center fullback, forcing a turnover with a deflection, giving her the ball in front of the net for an easy goal.
Okamura said his 5-foot standout covered 30-40 yards on the play. After scoring twice last season, Arakawa has all three of UH-Hilo’s goals this year. She made a PK on Thursday in a 1-0 loss to Central Washington.
“Her technical abilities are spot on,” said Okamura, interim soccer director, “and she has an aggressive mindset.
“I knew from the beginning that she was going to have a great work rate.”
Goalkeeper Jenna Hufford stopped five shots in the shutout. Host Northwest Nazarene (1-3) took 18 shots.
The Vulcans welcome Chaminade in their Pacific West Conference opener at 3 p.m. Saturday at Kamehameha.
“I like our ability to fight to get a result,” Okamura said.
His men’s team seeks its first win Monday against Northwest Nazarene. On Saturday, UH-Hilo (0-2) fell to Cal State Dominguez Hills 2-0, hanging tough for most of the match but putting only three shots on frame against a tough foe that won California Collegiate Athletic Association regular season title in 2015.
Volleyball
UH-Hilo coach Tino Reyes was encouraged by the Vulcans’ 2-2 showing at the D2 West Region Volleyball Showcase in Carson, Calif. The Vulcans (2-3) fell to Humboldt State on Saturday in what was their third five-setter of the season: 25-19, 16-25, 25-16, 18-25, 15-6.
“It was a good evaluation tournament for us,” Reyes said. “The girls played hard.”
After eking out a fifth set against Seattle Pacific on Friday – Marley Strand-Nicolaisen put down 25 kills – Humboldt State quickly jumped on the Vulcans in Game 5, going on a 10-0 run to force match point.
Marley Strand-Nicolaisen led the Vulcans with 12 kills and Siera Green added 10. Libero Mina Grant missed the match due to injuries, Reyes said.
UH-Hilo opens PacWest play Saturday at BYU-Hawaii.
