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Honma Confident
Thursday, October 29th, 2009
Head Coach Daphne Honma
by Bill O'Rear
Tribune-Herald Sports Editor
Published: Wednesday, October 28, 2009 7:44 AM HST
University of Hawaii at Hilo women's basketball coach Daphne Honma has never been one to hide her emotions. So, it's no surprise when you ask her about her 2009-10 squad that she gets wide-eyed and gushes about the upcoming season.
"I think we'll play some exciting basketball," she said before a recent practice at UHH Gym.
"This year, we've got a bunch of good athletes and we're going to try to push the ball -- to play more uptempo and see what happens. Our strength is our guards. But overall, we've got some good kids who've come a long way over the past month while getting ready for the season."
The Vulcan women open their season with an exhibition game against the alumnae on Nov. 6 at UHH. The following day in Honokaa, the Vuls will play D-One, an all-star team comprised of former prep and college cagers. Both games start at 7 p.m.
The UHH women play their first nine collegiate games and 12 of their first 13 on the road. For the season, the Vulcans have 17 road games and nine at home.
Honma, starting her fourth season at the helm, has eight returnees from last year's 15-9 squad, including a 5-6 record in the Pacific West Conference. She believes she has enough returning talent to go with 12 newcomers to fare well in the rugged conference.
"I think we can be one of the top four teams," Honma said. "You've got to favor Grand Canyon, since they've won the PacWest title three straight years. Dixie State has a lot of returnees and will be good, plus Hawaii Pacific has a lot of talent. We should be in there, with BYU-Hawaii and Academy of Art potential darkhorses."
Hina Kimitete
Heading the list of returnees is senior Hina Kimitete, a 5-foot-3 shooting guard from Kailua-Kona who averaged 12.8 points per game last year. She had a team-high 56 3-pointers, hitting a sizzling .406 from trey range, to go along with 90 assists and 70 steals. She's also the UHH basketball program's two-time 3-point shooting champion from the annual men's/women's contest.
"Hina is one of the top guards in the conference," Honma said of the former Konawaena High School standout. "She's a great shooter, but she also plays excellent defense and provides us with a lot of leadership. I look for her to have an outstanding year for us."
Joining Kimitete among the returnees are Mana Camara (5-8, senior, from Honolulu), Leesa Deniz (5-8, senior, from Kealakekua, HI.), Richline Batoon (5-2, junior, from Honolulu), Ruby Harris (5-11, sophomore, from Sterling Heights, Mich.), Kayce Kirihara (5-6, junior, from Seattle, Wash.), Sheena Pio (5-8, sophomore, from Anchorage, Alaska) and Vaaimamao Hotia (5-10, sophomore, from Kahului, HI.).
"Hina is our leader," Honma said. "But Mana, Kayce and Leesa have stepped up and shown a lot of leadership. They're making sure things are getting done. They're more focused this year and it's showing."
Mana Camara
Camara is a dangerous outside shooter and an aggressive rebounder; Kirihira, a versatile point guard with a defensive mindset; and Deniz, a tough defender and rebounder.
Hotia gives the Vulcans a strong inside force and could be a key player this season.
"We're more of a perimeter team this year," Honma said. "But we really need Hotia to establish herself down low. We need to be an inside presence and she has the ability to step up and get it done."
Harris and Pio can play in the paint or step outside and drill the mid-range jumper. Gabres-Batoon is a good shooter from deep who can also handle the ball.
"We need our returnees to keep improving and lead the way," Honma said.
Newcomers include Jazmine Corpuz (5-5, sophomore, from Kihei, HI.) Carol Howard (5-4, freshman, from Seattle, Wash.), Kirsty Imai (5-4, freshman, from Keaau), Dayna Jandoc (5-6, sophomore, from Honolulu), Ashlee Kalauli (5-2, freshman, from Honokaa), Natalie Mata (5-6, freshman, from Honolulu), Amanda Muller (5-11, junior, from Red Bluff, Calif.), Tressa Torres (5-7, freshman, from Honolulu), Shantel Buckner (6-0, freshman, from Waianae, HI.), Genevieve Cuesta (5-4, freshman, from Waianae, HI.) and Lindsay Cartwright (5-5, junior, from Honolulu).
Corpuz and Imai redshirted last year and could provide quality minutes this season. Both can shoot and handle the ball as well as defend.
Kalauli, a former Kamehameha-Hawaii standout, is an aggressive point guard with a solid all-around game.
Howard is a talented guard who can score from outside or take it to the rim while breaking down the defense.
Jandoc, an Iolani graduate, can play the point or shooting guard and adds to the Vulcans' depth in the backcourt.
Mata is a gifted athlete with excellent ballhandling skills and a deadly outside shot.
Muller, a junior-college transfer, and Torres, a promising forward from Punahou, both shore up UHH's inside play and add to the team's rebounding strength.
"I feel good about this season," said Honma, who'll still commute each day from her teaching job at Honokaa High School to coach the Vulcans.
"I think it's going to be a fun year. Like every year, it's a learning experience and we'll keep trying to get better. I think the girls that helped start the program gave it a good foundation. Now, we're looking to build on it."
Honma is assisted this year by Fred Collins and Cheyenne Meyer.
Following the pair of exhibition games in early November, UHH hits the road and opens its collegiate schedule with two games against the University of Alaska-Anchorage (Nov. 15-16) and University of Alaska-Fairbanks (Nov. 18-19). The Vulcans also play in the four-team Hawaii Challenge on Nov. 27-28 before heading back to the mainland for games at Western Washington (Dec. 3) and St. Martin's (Dec. 5-6).
"It's a challenging schedule with all the road games," Honma said. "But we're getting a chance to play some real quality West Region teams, like Alaska-Anchorage. They've been a Final Four team before, and we're looking forward to that challenge.
"It's not the easiest way to schedule, but you need games and have to take what you can. We want to play quality teams and if it takes us on the road to do it, we're going to do it."
The Vulcans first collegiate home game is Dec. 21 against Hawaii Pacific University at UHH Gym. Then it's back on the road with Pacific West Conference games at Academy of Art (San Francisco, Calif.) on Jan. 5, Notre Dame de Namur (Belmont, Calif.) on Jan. 7 and Dominican University (San Rafael, Calif.) on Jan. 9.
The Vulcans finally get two games at home with Brigham Young University-Hawaii on Jan. 16 and HPU on Jan. 18.