Senior Tiare Kaopua has been thriving on the court this season, as the team has made improvements.
In 12 of the team’s 15 games to date, Kaopua has had double digit kills. She has also won conference player of the week twice.
“I definitely worked really hard in the pre-season to get to where I’m at and I practiced a lot harder and kept a focused mentality and I definitely attribute a lot of the success I have to my teammates,” Kaopua said. “I definitely wouldn’t be the player I am without them.”
She gained experience on the court and training intensively to build her leadership skills.
“I feel like on the court, [my freshmen teammates] look to me for that composure and that mentally that they need to focus,” Kaopua said. “For the rest of the season that’s what I’m going to try and do: be a leader.”
Kaopua contributes much of her success to her teammates this season.
“We definitely have a really good chemistry, I love how [my new teammates] just throw themselves in there and aren’t afraid to work hard every day and it’s definitely a better team experience,” Kaopua said. “The fact that we’re all really good friends with each other really helps with the team chemistry on the court.”
Kaopua also credited the help she has received from her coaches throughout the season.
“We love our coaches. They de nitely know how to guide us,” Kaopua said. “We know they wouldn’t be yelling at us, they wouldn’t be making us do punishments, if they didn’t think we could do it. They’re really encouraging.”
With all the success Kaopua has had this season and all the fun she has had, she is sad to see it nearing its end.
“I didn’t think it would come this quickly,” Kaopua said. “I know I’m leaving behind a team that is going to continue this legacy. I know the upcoming juniors are a great bunch of girls and I know they’ll lead the team. I have no doubt about that so I’m excited to see what they do next year. I’m just really thankful for the time I did have here and the time I have left. I have four weeks left of volleyball so [I’ll] take it all in one game at a time and just enjoy the ride.”
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