KAPAA — It’s been weeks since Kapaa High School graduate Kade Kupihea stepped foot on the Ron Martin Field at the high school.
He’s known it as home field for years. Being back on it gave him a case of nostalgia.
It brought him back to when the team clinched its league title in early May.
“(I’m thinking) about that last game, and how excited we were breaking that four-year losing streak,” Kupihea said Wednesday.
He added: “It was worth it, putting in all that time and work with my team. Always knocking on the door and never quite finishing, and then last year we finally got to close it out and won the (Kauai Interscholastic Federation championship) on my last year. It was good.”
The former Warriors second baseman and is now looking ahead. Kupihea, 18, of Anahola, received a partial scholarship and will play baseball at Olympic College, a community college in Bremerton, Wash.
“I was excited. It’s a new chapter in life,” Kupihea said. “I get to experience life on my own, and I get to ball out. I’m not in Hawaii anymore, but I’m still playing baseball.”
Olympic was one of three schools he was considering, he said. He committed to Olympic soon after he visited the school earlier this month.
“The partial scholarship helped me out a lot. Talking to the coach, they felt like they have a good program coming up, and they think I can really help. I felt like it’s a good spot for me,” Kupihea said. “I like the area. It was nice. It’s a small town, which is what I’m used to. I really didn’t want to go into a big city area.”
This past season, Kupihea was named KIF Player of the Year and was a Hawaii High School Athletic Association Division II All-Tournament Team selection.
Kupihea had a 0.448 batting
average with 13 hits in 29 at bats. He also had eight runs and 10 stolen bases, according to ScoringLive.
Kapaa won the KIF varsity baseball championship this past season and placed third in the 2018 Wally Yonamine Foundation Baseball Championships-Division II state tournament.
At Olympic College, Kupihea will compete to start at shortstop and make plays with his athleticism, said Olympic College baseball head coach Ryan Parker.
“He’s not going to be a big power guy. With guys that don’t fit that mold, we want them to be athletic, steal some bases. That’s what we want,” Parker said in a phone interview Thursday. “We want guys that can run the bases, that can go from first to third on a base hit, maybe score from first on a double — put pressure on the other team offensively.
“I like, personality-wise, that killer instinct that he’s got. I think he’s got a good passion for the game. We want guys that are willing to run through a wall for you to help you win a game. I feel like he’s got that makeup. That was a big draw for us.”
Parker added whether Kupihea gets a starting job or or not, he will still get plenty of playing time.
“He’s going to have to come in and compete right away. But we tell every one of our guys, whether they’re returning or they’re incoming freshmen, nothing is set in stone,” the Olympic coach said. “Everybody’s got to compete the same in the fall and winter to earn that starting spot in the spring. Kade’s going to have just as good a chance to come in and earn a starting spot.
“If he doesn’t end up as a starter, he’s still going to play quite a bit. The way our schedule is set up, we play four games every weekend. Those guys that don’t start for us, they’re going to see their time,” he continued. “It’s tough to ask your main guys four games every weekend, and they’re all nine-inning games. We play a ton of innings every weekend. Those bench guys, if that’s what Kade ends up doing as a freshman, he’s still going to get his share of time on the field.
Kupihea, who’s been playing baseball since he was 6 years old, he’s ecstatic to have the chance to play baseball in college after that possibility was almost derailed from an injury in his throwing arm during his junior year.
“I took my MRI. They were telling me, ‘Don’t worry. It’s going to get better.’ I was going through my physical therapy, but nothing was working,” he said. “I was in total panic mode. I was like, ‘I think I’m done. I think I need surgery.’ Then I went to that last physical therapist. They really buckled me down and got me into a solid program.”
After about eight to nine weeks recovering, he returned in the middle of the season last year.
“Once I started throwing and I didn’t feel any pain, it was a big sigh of relief. Even my dad, my dad was really worried because he knew how much I loved the game. He didn’t like seeing me sitting down. I hated sitting down. You could see it in my face watching practice. I didn’t like that feeling at all.”
Kupihea will make the move to Washington state in early August. When he leaves, he will miss his family on Kauai.
“I spend most of my time with my family — my parents, my grandmas, my uncles, my cousins. That’s going to hit me when I’m there by myself,” Kupihea said.
He lastly wanted to acknowledge those who have helped him along the way.
“I’d like to thank my family and my coaches for pushing me and getting me to where I am today,” he said.
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Are you taking your game to the college ranks? Share your story with us. Nick Celario, sports writer, can be reached at 245-0437 or ncelario@thegardenisland.com.
