Pinsoom Tenzing appoints the captains for the Hawaii soccer team. The UH coach has his reasons for not letting team members vote and potentially turning the process into a popularity contest. Tenzing’s captains
make the gradeBy Al Chase
achase@starbulletin.comThe only reason that means anything to the UH coach is that a captain must have her academic house in order.
"They must be a a really good student, a committed student for me to consider anyone to be a captain," Tenzing said.
Senior midfielder Wanette Miyashiro, sophomore outside midfielder Joelle Sugai and sophomore defender Krystalynn Ontai have those qualifications. All said they were surprised at being named a captain.
Miyashiro was informed during spring practice following her sophomore season, and Sugai and Ontai were selected this fall. They all wanted to stay home and play for the Wahine although Miyashiro thought she was done playing soccer after her senior year at Aiea High School."I came to UH because my sisters (Wynne and Wendy, now an assistant coach) came here. They offered me a manager's position, but as that first year went on, I knew I wanted to play again," Miyashiro said.
She turned out her sophomore season and discovered that getting her skills back up to par was a challenge although she felt she was there tactically.
"I was excited to play and practiced more on my own," said Miyashiro who started 54 of 60 matches over the last three seasons.
"I didn't expect to be appointed a captain. There were seniors I thought would be captain, but maybe they didn't excel in academics," said the physical education major who will graduate in December 2003.
As the senior captain, Miyashiro is responsible for getting her teammates together for stretching and warmups before practice, and matches and warm down after. If there are problems the coaches don't know about, she brings it to their attention.
"I want to make sure the new kids feel they are a part of this team," Miyashiro said. "We had the best practices this spring since I've been here. The incoming players have good attitudes and fit right in. That makes my job easier."
Ontai and Sugai are sort of captains-in-training and admit they don't think they will be too vocal in the role this season. They say the best way they can lead is by example.
"Being named a captain was unexpected, but a pleasant surprise and I was excited," said Ontai, who captained the Kamehameha Warriors her senior year.
"I knew we had some good players coming in and would be a good team, but I really don't have a lot to say."
Ontai began her freshman season on the bench and realized that wasn't where she wanted to be. So, she made it a point to do whatever was necessary in practice to catch Tenzing's eye. It worked. She started 16 of the final 17 matches at left back. Ontai turned in a solid season and tied Sugai for the freshman record for assists with five.
"The UH coach was the first one I talked to. Playing for the Wahine is the most convenient, the best deal staying home, plate lunch, you know," said Ontai who expects to major in English. "We know how far we went last year and want to push ourselves to go farther, to test out limits this year."
Tenzing called Sugai on the first day (July 1) the NCAA rules allowed after her junior year at Aiea High School and she said yes to his offer just as fast.
"Everything was done. I didn't have to look anywhere else. I just wanted to stay home and play. The home crowd is so much nicer and I wanted to play with Wanette again," said Sugai who plans to major in business.
If that major leads to a business dealing with motors it would be understandable because Sugai's motor is constantly in gear on the field. She defies fatigue while patrolling the left side from penalty box to penalty box. She impressed Tenzing enough last fall to step in and start all 20 UH matches as a freshman. Nothing changed this year.
"Before I came to UH, I thought it was going to be really, really hard, but I found out I could handle it, I like the competition at the Division 1 level," said Sugai.
When: Today, UCLA vs. San Francisco, 7 p.m. Tomorrow, Hawaii vs. San Francisco, 7 p.m. Sunday, Hawaii vs. UCLA, 5 p.m. Outrigger Hotels & Resorts Classic
Where: Waipio Peninsula Soccer Park Stadium
Radio: None.
TV: Sunday's match, KFVE (Channel 5).
Admission/Parking: Free.
Series record: San Francisco leads Hawaii, 3-0-2. UCLA leads Hawaii, 3-0.
Last meeting: The Wahine and Dons battled to a 0-0 overtime tie Sept. 13, 1999 at UH. UCLA beat UH 4-1, Oct. 4, 1998 at Ala Wai Field.
Notes: UCLA midfielder Jill Oaks was a member of the United States team that defeated Canada 1-0 in overtime Sept. 1, 2002 in Edmonton, Alberta, to win the inaugural FIFA Under-19 Women's World Championship. She played central defender and was a key player in denying Canada's long-ball offense. ... UH coach Pinsoom Tenzing is 58-83-10 in nine seasons. ... UCLA coach Jillian Ellis is 56-13-2 at UCLA in her fourth season and 75-31-2 overall in her career. ... Pamela Kalinoski is 11-10-2 in her second year at USF. ... This is homecoming for Dons' midfielder Jodie Tanga, an Iolani graduate.
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