A Night for Seniors to Shine
January 31, 2019
As the seniors suited up to play on their home court for the last time, they all shared the same goal, which was to win, according to senior Aiya Souphilavong. And they accomplished that goal.
Kalani girls basketball defeated the Mckinley Tigers for Senior Night on Tuesday, Jan. 8 at Kalani High School to conclude the regular season of the Oahu Interscholastic Association. There are six seniors on this year’s squad, Kamalu Kamakawiwo’ole, Heidi Kinshaba, Shelby McDaniel, Aiya Souphilavong, Kandyce Woods and Daesha Viela.
Junior guard Lile Oyama has been helping to plan Senior Nights since freshman year.
“I like setting up the gym because it’s fun and it’s a nice thing to do for the seniors especially with everything they do to help all the underclassmen,” Oyama said. “Everyone is more excited going into the senior game because its an important game to our team considering we’re doing it for our seniors and we want to win for them.”
Senior Souphilavong is thankful for the experiences and memories she has gained playing basketball for Kalani over the past four years.
Knowing she doesn’t get much playing time, Souphilavong said she made changes entering the game.
“My mentality changed because I was ready to get more playing time so I imagined game situations and how I would deal with them,” Souphilavong said.
According to Oyama, the seniors make a crucial impact on the team and will be missed next year.
“Considering that most of our starters are seniors, I feel like we will be losing a big part of our team,” Oyama said. “Everyone who will be playing next year are really going to need to work harder to be able to fill in for those spots, and it’s going to suck when they leave because the seniors are what helped us get to where we are.”
