DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARBULLETIN.COM Laosamoa Misa-Uli, a key player for the Farrington basketball team this spring, chose to play for the Governors despite being courted by private schools.

Banking on Sunshine

Misa-Uli's upbeat personality
and athletic exploits are a
big plus at Farrington

---

By Jack Danilewicz
Special to the Star-Bulletin

EVEN when Laosamoa Misa-Uli's game face seems firmly in place, her engaging personality is highly evident.

Indeed, for "Sunshine" -- as she is known to the world at large -- basketball is far too all-consuming for her infectious smile not to break through during the course of a game or a practice session.

"Basketball is my love," she said. "It always has been. It always will be."

She has had a lot to smile about lately. Less than three weeks ago, she was crowned a state wrestling champion in the 175-pound weight class as a junior, no small feat for one who was competing in the sport for the first time this winter. But to hear her tell it, wrestling can never measure up to basketball.

"It (wrestling) looked kind of gross, rolling around on a mat," she said. "I decided I should try it, and I ended up doing well this year. I was shocked that I won (state). But wrestling doesn't make me feel the way basketball makes me feel. I'm a positive person, but on the court, when I have my game face on, I don't always look that way. I just love the game; it's exciting; it's me. I'd choose basketball over anything."

Loyalty, make no mistake, is also big on Misa-Uli's list. Although her considerable basketball skills led to her being courted by private schools out of junior high school -- especially Punahou -- her decision to attend Farrington was instinctive and without hesitation. Her love of hoops was born in Kalihi, after all.

DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARBULLETIN.COM After winning a state wrestling title, Farrington's Laosamoa Misa-Uli shifted gears this spring to her favorite sport -- basketball.

While older sisters Evelyn and Lusi were playing for Farrington, Misa-Uli became such a fixture at their practices that Governors coach Jenic Tumaneng had little doubt that she would attend high school in the community.

"She'd dribble on the side at our practices; I could see that she was going to be good," Tumaneng said. "Knowing that she was at Kalakaua (Middle School), that was a pretty good assurance that she would be coming here. But I knew that other schools were interested in her and I just told her, 'make the decision that is best for you and your family.' "

Said Misa-Uli: "I learned the (Farrington) alma mater when I was pretty young. I was a water girl here. My friend and I would come early to every game to set up the water bottles. I felt like I was already on the team. Coach (Tumaneng) used to tell me to 'keep it up -- you're good enough already to play with the big girls.'

"You can succeed in a public school, too," said Misa-Uli, who also plays volleyball for Farrington. "And I had a lot of friends here (at Farrington). I didn't want to pick up and leave them. We all planned to come to high school and play together, and now we are."

While in grammar school, Misa-Uli's whereabouts were never in question when the bell rang to signal the end of another day of classes.

"I used to go to the Palama Settlement every day after school and stay until 8 at night," she recalled. "And that's what was 'in' -- basketball. Everybody was playing basketball. I thought I should learn how to play."

It was yet another sign of her loyalty that as a freshman, she elected to play on the junior varsity with her peers rather than move up to the varsity, which was an option.

She played on the varsity last year as a sophomore, and the best is likely still to come. The Govs take a 2-1 Oahu Interscholastic Association mark (they were 6-1 in the preseason) into tonight's home game against Moanalua at 6:30. Misa-Uli has been a consistent performer, averaging 13 points per game. Against Kahuku's formidable front line on March 22, she had 15 points and 11 rebounds, but the Governors suffered their lone loss of the season, 48-41. Much of her influence on her teammates has little to do with her athleticism, however.

"She's gifted in whatever she does, but it's her personality. She brings an energy onto the court and she encourages the girls," Tumaneng said. "She wants to compete, but she manages to have fun while competing."

Added teammate Tanya Alualu: "We don't really have a captain, but by her actions, (Misa-Uli) is our captain."

Much of Misa-Uli 's own guidance is drawn from a higher counsel.

"I went to a convention recently through the Waianae Samoan Assembly of God," she said. "And although I'd been going to (Our Lady of the Mount) church for a while, it (religion) really hit me at this latest convention. I appreciate everything more now. I'm involved in the Bible Club and the Polynesian Club (at Farrington) called Island Harmony.

"Family is also big for me -- they're very supportive," said Misa-Uli , who has three older brothers and two older sisters. "They come to all of my games and they fill a whole area. I always know when they enter the gym because I can hear all of them. As the youngest, I get a lot of attention. There's also a lot of pressure to succeed, but that just motivates me more."