Laura Thompson had a developmental hand in Waiakea’s last BIIF girls volleyball championship, but now she’s ready for a more hands-on role.
Thompson, who played for the Warriors before moving on to UH-Hilo and becoming a longtime club mentor, was among a handful of coaching hires announced recently by Warriors athletic director Kalei Namohala.
“I want Waiakea, of course, to be one of the stronger teams and really rise to the occasion and really enjoy playing,” Thompson said. “With COVID, everything shut down and I want to make volleyball fun again and get the crowd out and come watch the girls perform. Put the love back into it.”
Meanwhile, Alika Smith is moving over to coach the boys basketball team after leading the girls squad to a pair of BIIF Division I runner-up finishes. Before coming to the Big Island in 2019, Smith was a highly successful boys coach on Oahu, guiding Kalaheo to three HHSAA championships from 2012-15, the last two in Division I. An attempt by the Tribune-Herald to reach Smith was unsuccessful.
He takes over for Paul Lee, who led Waiakea to four BIIF championships (2009, ‘16, ‘17, ‘19) during a tenure that lasted 14 years. Last season, Waiakea went 5-4 and saw its season end in the BIIF semifinals.
Lee said his time with the program provided “some of the greatest moments of my life.” He’ll remember the relationships he made along the way more than the titles.
“This has nothing to do with anything I did, but to see what some of our players have become and what they are accomplishing now, it’s great to see,” Lee said.
Thompson has been building relationships with high school-age players for years with her club team, the Piopio Bears, and she doesn’t figure to need much of a scouting report on the team she inherits or its primary competition.
“I’ve seen about every one (at Waiakea) play either in high school or club,” she said. “Most of my (Piopio) players are either at Kamehameha or Hilo.”
Thompson played on two state-qualifying teams at Waiakea before graduating in 2006, and she was a member of the 2007 PacWest champion Vulcans before moving to Piopio a year later.
The Warriors last claimed a BIIF title in 2017 under coach Ashley Hanohano. Among the Piopio alums on that team was libero Jordyn Hayashi, a two-time BIIF player of the year.
In eight seasons at the helm of the Warriors, Hanohano’s teams made five trips to the HHSAA tournament, and her 2015 squad dethroned five-time BIIF champ Kamehameha.
Waiakea bowed out in the semifinals in 2021 with a 4-3 record and is slated to return two first-team all-BIIF players: setter Grace Nakoa-Oness and middle blocker Bella Vickers.
“From what I know, Waiakea is little bit on the shorter side compared to Kamehameha and Hilo,” Thompson said. “I think the mental game is definitely going to be a big factor.
“That’s also one of my big teaching styles: just being mentally tough and go after your opponent. Sometimes that works in our favor.”
Namohala also announced Lance Tominaga was Waiakea’s new cross-country coach for boys and girls, and boys volleyball coach Poli Olevao had the interim label removed from her title. In her first season as coach, the Warriors secured a spot in the HHSAA D-I tournament behind BIIF player of the year Claymon Morante.
Namohala said the boys basketball and girls volleyball coaching positions were opened up in March, and the program’s most recent coaches were eligible to apply.
