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A pitcher and catcher warm up on a softball diamond, conversing between every throw. At home on the diamond
By Ben Henry
bhenry@starbulletin.comBut it's not the pitcher's change-up or riser that's the topic of discussion.
"I'll ask him about schoolwork, if I'm arguing with my boyfriend he'll give me a guy's perspective, I ask him about my job," the pitcher says. "I'll tell him the things that happened in my day."
It's not your typical pitcher-to-catcher relationship.
Chaminade junior Kelly Ka'aihili has helped the Silverswords to a 12-10 record overall and 7-3 mark in the Pacific West Conference this season, and she will play a key role in the team improving on last season's sub-.500 mark.
She is third in the PacWest with 31 strikeouts. She also has a 2.44 ERA in 43 innings pitched as the team's No. 2 pitcher. And she'll tell you that she owes all her success to her father, Chaminade coach Walter Ka'aihili.
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"Everything he's pretty much taught me already, so it's a matter of going out there and doing it," said Kelly Ka'aihili, who has been coached by Walter since she was 5."He's always been my coach, so there's a fine line. At home, there's still a coach-to-player relationship, and I still respect him as a coach, but if I'm pitching and he's catching, we'll talk about other things. If I ask him a question when I don't really want an answer, my dad will just let me vent."
Walter spends much of his time on the softball field being his daughter's father.
"If she does want my attention on the softball field, a lot of times it has nothing to do with softball," Walter Ka'aihili said. "And I kinda like it that way. Basically, she knows what she has to do out there as a ballplayer."
Kelly Ka'aihili got the chance this season to contribute as a hitter and has responded. She has a .269 average, a .462 slugging percentage and a .367 on-base percentage this season. Not bad for someone playing full time on offense for the first time.
"She likes hitting the ball, and she's always been good at it during practice," Walter Ka'aihili said. "She hits the ball harder on a consistent basis than most of the team. We gave her the opportunity early in the season and she made the most of it. She knows what she needs to do. She's been doing this for a long time."
Kelly Ka'aihili's older sister, Regina, starred at the University of Hawaii from 1996 to 1999. Kelly transferred from UH to Chaminade for her sophomore year.
"We've been at this for so many years that now, away from the softball field, we really don't talk softball that much," Walter Ka'aihili said. "We really do leave it on the field. Maybe I need to learn a little bit of this, maybe because I've been more of a coach over the years, she's looking for more of a father."
A curious twist in their relationship came when Walter Ka'aihili made the jump from the community leagues to the collegiate level.
Walter, who has coached a summer league team for 17 years, has had to adjust his strategies for the college level.
"The first couple of months, it was a little rough," Walter said. "There was a lot for me to learn, and believe it or not, my daughter and (No. 1 pitcher Melissa Marquez), in terms of pitching, actually taught me a little bit in terms of the college level.
"Pitching is a large part of the game. On my summer teams I usually handle what pitches to throw, and I've been very successful with it. But at the college level batters are very good, and it took some adjustments for me. In the summer leagues, it would work for me, but it wouldn't work at the college level. And my pitchers would let me know it."
But Kelly, a 1998 graduate of Kamehameha Schools, says she and her teammates are the ones who have benefited from Walter's coaching philosophies.
"I think he's doing great," she said. "I can tell the girls are much more receptive to him, they're not afraid to make mistakes. They enjoy coming to practice."
If winning is any indication of a coach's success, Kelly is right. Chaminade was 18-23 overall and 9-15 in the PacWest last season. And with more home games than road games left, the Silverswords' chances of getting a winning season look good.
Their tight relationship comes in handy when Kelly gets herself into a jam in the pitcher's circle. Only dad knows how to calm her down.
"Sometimes we'll just talk about something that has nothing to do with softball," Walter Ka'aihili said of his trips to the circle. "We'll maybe talk about dinner that night, or a family gathering over the weekend. I just try to get her mind off that immediate situation, just to calm her down.
"Mostly, it's to try and get a smile on her face. When that smile is there, more good things tend to happen than bad things."