Hilo senior Maui Ahuna went to a Kansas basketball game and came home committed to the Jayhawks baseball team.
In October, he played in a showcase on Oahu, where college coaches, including Kansas coach Ritch Price, attended.
A month later, Ahuna took a college tour, visiting Grand Canyon, UH-Manoa, Cal Baptist, Santa Barbara, and Kansas, which was the last stop.
Ahuna connected well with Price, who’s in his 17th season and guided the Jayhawks to the NCAA Tournament in 2006, ’09, and ’14 and has developed players for Major League Baseball.
“Kansas was my last college visit and I really enjoyed myself. I got to watch the Kansas men’s basketball game,” Ahuna said. “I also really like the campus, baseball field and I really like the people and the whole Kansas atmosphere. My host was Stone Parker (Hawai’i state baseball player of the year 2018, from Kailua High). “
As Dorothy said, “There’s no place like home.” And Ahuna felt right at home at Kansas, especially with the structure and environment.
“I really like coach Price he treated me like his own son,” Ahuna said. “Coach Price was really impressed with my speed, arm, my approach at the plate and my defense. I chose Kansas because I wanted to be far from home. Out of all the schools, I visited Kansas had the best training program, and every shortstop that had gone to KU got drafted. I just felt that I wanted to get away and why not Kansas?”
Price offered Ahuna a full-ride scholarship and the opportunity to start as a freshman. The Jayhawks return sophomore shortstop Benjamin Sems, who hit .240 with four homers and 29 RBIs in 2018.
Last summer, Ahuna played with the 16-under Trosky national team, which played in San Diego. He also went to Georgia and Arizona and Played in the Perfect Game tournament. He played with the 16-U National Development USA team, which put him on a field with the top peers in his age group.
“It was a really good experience because I got to play with the top 16 year olds in the country,” said Ahuna, who had a whole list of people who supported him.
Kaha Wong exposed him to college and pro scouts and helped with his hitting and discipline on and of the field. His parents, Marie and Bully Ahuna, have been cornerstones in his life.
“My dad always told me, ‘Always work hard because you will get rewarded at the end.’ I want to thank coach Nate Trosky and coach Adam (Varteressian) for allowing me to participate on their 16-U team. I’d also like to thank Hilo Iron Crossfit for making me flexible and stronger and coach James Hirayama for letting me use his batting cage.”