BIIF water polo: Kamehameha graduates heading in opposite directions

Pua Wong had other college offers and an aspiration to attend the University of Hawaii.

But everything changed for the recent Kamehameha graduate when she went to a water polo camp in Southern California in March. On the trip, she visited Cal Baptist’s campus in Riverside, Calif. After talking it over with Warriors coach Dan Lyons, she decided to become a Lancer, receiving an athletic scholarship.

“It still hasn’t hit me that I graduated,” she said. “These past four years at Kamehameha have been amazing, with the highlight being athletics.”

As a freshman at Kamehameha, Wong favored tennis and wasn’t sure she was tough enough for the water polo.

“After my first try at water polo, I never picked up a racket again,” she said.

As a senior, Wong shared BIIF Player of the Year with teammates Halia Nahale-A, a senior, and Katelynn Kubo, a junior.

Nahale-a also could have played college water polo, but her course also changed after attending a water polo camp in California.

“After I got back and had time to reflect, I realized I didn’t need to play water polo,” she said.

But she does need to travel.

Nahale-a will attend the University of Hawaii at Hilo for a year and plans to study abroad. When she does, she hopes the first stop will be New Zealand.

Not that she’s completely done with water polo.

“While I’m still (on the Big Island) I want to help with middle school programs,” Nahale-a said. “That’s the first step with competing with the Oahu schools.”

Just like Wong, some of Nahale-a’s fondest high school memories revolve around athletics.

In addition to being on Kamehameha’s water polo juggernauts, Wong and Nahale-a were each a member of the Warriors’ BIIF paddling championship crew in the winter.

“It was a fun experience being with people who worked hard and loved to compete,” Nahale-a said.