Princess of the court

She’s royalty on the basketball hardwood, no doubt about it.

Princess Faafetai Lauvao did more than rule the floor at Kaimuki. She did all the blue-collar work, diving for loose balls, taking charges, getting her share of bruises from head to toe, and even playing through a chipped bone in her right foot.

For a season with enormous ups — she scored at least 30 points three times — and downs, it was a surprise to the senior that coaches and media voted her as the Star-Advertiser Girls Basketball All-State Fab 15 player of the year.

For those who saw the Lahainaluna transfer lace up the sneakers, it was no surprise. She averaged more than 10 rebounds per game and rarely left the court as Kaimuki coach Mona Fa‘asoa made use of her thin roster.

"She’s a great kid. She has a lot of potential. She has room to grow," Fa‘asoa said. "She’s a great shooter, she can handle the ball and when I needed solid defense, she played solid defense. To me, she’s the whole package."

Despite constant attention — double teams, triple teams and the occasional mauling — the 5-foot-8 playmaker averaged nearly 19 points per game. That included a 36-point effort against Kalani that featured 16-for-21 shooting at the foul line. She poured in 39 points against Kalaheo, including 25-for-27 at the charity stripe, in a narrow 77-71 win.

In the opening round of the state tournament against ‘Iolani, the Bulldogs were tied with the Raiders late in the third quarter before she took a charge and a wallop to the head as she hit the ground. ‘Iolani pulled away for a tough 69-58 win while Lauvao finished with 31 points (14-for-17 from the foul line) and 14 rebounds.

‘Iolani forward Alex Masaquel finished a close second in the voting. The 5-10 senior was a double-double machine in just about all of ‘Iolani’s biggest games. At the Hawaiian Airlines/HHSAA State Championships, she had 15 points, 13 rebounds and two blocks against Kaimuki, and 17 and nine against Lahainaluna.

Hilo’s lightning-quick scoring guard, Aliyah Pana, was third in the voting, just ahead of Mid-Pacific’s Kiki Robertson and Konawaena freshman Chanelle Molina.

Darold Imanaka, who guided Kamehameha to the state title, was voted coach of the year. Hilo’s Ben Pana was second, followed by Leilehua’s Elroy Dumlao, Konawaena’s Bobbie Awa and ‘Iolani’s Eddie Maruyama.

Lauvao’s family moved from Palolo to Lahaina six years ago, returning in 2012 for her senior season.

She became the Bulldogs’ primary weapon on the post, but usually stepped out to the arc to shoot the 3 or drive hard to the bucket, opening up lanes for teammates like Canny Aikau.

The ankle injury — to Lauvao’s surprise, the doctor examined the X-ray and found bone chips from previous injuries — came during a 39-point outburst against Kalaheo, but she finished the game and kept suiting up, game after game.

"It was painful, but my dad (Loto Lauvao) is Samoan, so he told me to suck it up. I had to suck it up," she said.

It was a far cry from the start, and it took a demanding coach to extract the full impact from Lauvao.

"I expected a lot out of her," Fa‘asoa said. "When she came back to Oahu, I specifically told her, ‘You’ll have to prove what you’ve got.’ Princess got chewed out so much at practice. I told her, ‘If you’re not going to work hard, get out of here.’ She cried.

"But she said, ‘I want to do this.’ Those were some of the hardships during the season, but it helped her and pushed her to get better."

Lauvao and her coach are tight now, so much so, she’s playing softball for Kaimuki and Fa‘asoa — "Aunty Mona" — who is also the softball coach.

It takes a few moments before she’s willing to share her dream: to play for the Rainbow Wahine.

"I predict I’ll be playing for them on TV," she said.

See more on the all-defensive team and most improved player at hawaiiprepworld.com.