After staying committed to Washington State for his entire senior season at Kamehameha, safety Taylor Taliulu called the Cougars the weekend before signing day and said, “Thanks, but no thanks.”

Taliulu was swayed by Norm Chow and the new coaching staff at Hawaii following Greg McMackin’s departure at the end of the 2011 season and decided he wanted to stay home for college.

Or so he thought.

Instead of getting angry at Taliulu’s late change of heart, the Washington State staff doubled their efforts to win Taliulu back, reinforcing the reasons that he committed to WSU in the first place.

As signing day grew closer, Taliulu went back and forth on where he would sign. In the end, the Cougars won out.

“I had an opportunity to go do something big (playing in the Pac-12) and do something a little different,” Taliulu said. “(Defensive line) Coach (Joe) Salave‘a is a big believer in Hawaii and getting some of the guys from the islands and I just got a lot of cool vibes when I visited Pullman.”

After Chow took over for McMackin at UH, Taliulu suddenly felt much more wanted by the home school.

He took a visit to the Manoa campus the weekend before signing day with then-Punahou senior Steven Lakalaka and actually decommitted to Washington State before eventually signing with the Cougars.

“When Norm Chow got hired it was a different mind-set (at UH),” Taliulu said. “They were trying to really get guys from Hawaii, so they started coming on real strong, but it was late (in the process).”

Taliulu simply called it “a good vibe” as the reason for choosing Washington State and he’s watched his college career fly by since.

He appeared in 10 games as a true freshman and started 24 of the 27 games he played at safety for the Cougars during the past three years.

He recently surpassed 150 career tackles for the Cougars, who are 2-2 after bouncing back from a shocking season-opening loss to FCS-member Portland State at home.

“Obviously the game didn’t turn out like how we wanted it to turn out, but I think rallying around our coaches and each other was a huge thing for us to get the next two wins,” Taliulu said. “We have a new defensive coordinator from Missouri (Alex Grinch) that does a great job getting us to believe in ourselves to be confident and I think we’ve done that since.”

The Cougars opened Pac-12 play last weekend losing 34-28 to No. 24 California, which was playing its first game as a ranked team in six years.

The deciding moments came late in the third quarter when the Cougars gave up two touchdown passes in two minutes as Cal recovered an onside kick that caught the Cougars off guard.

Despite the loss, the Cougars played the Bears close after winning at Rutgers and at home against Wyoming. The Pac-12 North Division is much more wide open this season than in years past, with Oregon falling out of the Top 25, and Taliulu wants to help position WSU to make a run.

“We’re close to putting it together for a great season,” Taliulu said. “This is my last semester and I’m excited to get that degree and finish off the season with a bang.”

The Kamehameha alumnus is one of four players from Hawaii on the roster. Kapolei graduate Kingston Fernandez and Lahainaluna alumnus Hercules Mata‘afa are playing as redshirt freshmen and Mililani alum Kainoa Wilson walked on in the fall.

Mata‘afa is tied for third on the team with four tackles for loss and has 11⁄2 sacks and a fumble recovery.

Taliulu is the old guy of the bunch after playing as the young sidekick to linebackers Chester Sua (Kaimuki) and Cyrus Coen (Pearl City) in recent years.

“My role has definitely changed,” Taliulu said. “Cyrus played with my cousin at Pearl City and I played against Chester a couple of times, so I knew them coming in.

“Now we got (Mata‘afa) and (Fernandez) and Kainoa and it’s just really cool and a special honor to bring those guys up (from Hawaii) and kind of create a tradition for local kids to play here.”

Taliulu will see familiar faces on the opposing sideline this weekend when Washington State plays at Oregon on Saturday.

The Ducks have seven players from Hawaii on their roster, including three fellow Kamehameha alums in tight end Koa Ka‘ai, who Taliulu played with in high school; defensive back Dylan Kane and linebacker Kaulana Apelu.

Chiarella notches runner-up finish

San Diego senior Alex Chiarella finished in second place at the Nick Watney Invitational on Tuesday, closing with a 3-under 68 to finish four shots behind the leader at 12 under. The 2012 Seabury Hall alumnus entered Tuesday one shot behind the lead after shooting a 7-under 64 in his second round played on Monday. Chiarella made four eagles in his second round, including two on par-4 holes. He made five birdies on Tuesday but had a double bogey on the fifth. University of Pacific senior SeungJae Maeng (Moanalua ’12) vaulted 35 spots up the leaderboard Tuesday into a tie for 15th after shooting 7 under. Maeng made five birdies, one eagle and no bogeys and was 5 under over the final four holes of the day.

AROUND THE NATION

Football

>> Isaako Savaiinaea, Punahou ’13: The UCLA linebacker had a team-high 15 tackles and intercepted a pass in the fourth quarter in a 38-23 loss to Arizona State on Saturday.

>> Kaimi Fairbairn, Punahou ’12: The UCLA kicker converted a 53-yard field goal in the loss to the Sun Devils and also made a solo tackle on special teams.

>> Kamalei Correa, Saint Louis ’13: The Boise State defensive lineman made two tackles and forced a fumble in a 55-0 thumping of Hawaii on Saturday.

>> DeForest Buckner, Punahou ’12: The Oregon defensive lineman made five tackles with one for a loss and two quarterback hurries in a 41-24 win over Colorado on Saturday.

>> Breiden Fehoko, Farrington ’15: The Texas Tech defensive tackle made two tackles in a 63-35 loss to Baylor on Saturday. The true freshman has started every game this season for the Red Raiders.

>> Dakota Turner, Mililani ’13: The San Diego State linebacker made two tackles for loss in a 21-7 win over Fresno State on Saturday.

>> Peni Vea, Kealakehe ’11: The UNLV safety made nine tackles in a 23-17 win over Nevada on Saturday.

>> Tau Lotulelei, Maui ’12: The Rebels linebacker tallied eight tackles with one for a loss in the victory over the Rebels.

>> Keoni Piceno, Leilehua ’13: The Western Oregon receiver caught a 52-yard touchdown pass and finished with 71 yards on two catches in a 42-24 win over Dixie State on Saturday.

>> Eli Biondine, Saint Louis ’12: The Linfield (Ore.) linebacker had a sack and assisted on three tackles in a 73-0 win over Lewis & Clark State on Saturday.

>> Warner Shaw, KS-Hawaii ’12: The Pacific (Ore.) quarterback was 25-for-32 for 353 yards and three touchdowns in a 34-7 win over Pacific Lutheran on Saturday.

>> Greg Alip, Waipahu ’12: The Pacific fullback carried three times for 7 yards and scored on a 1-yard TD run against the Lutes.

>> Bronson Barretto, Kamehameha ’12: The Pacific running back rushed for a team-high 47 yards on 14 carries against Pacific Lutheran.

>> Kamana Pimental, Saint Louis ’12: The Boxers running back added 37 rushing yards on 10 carries against the Lutes.

>> Trey Kodama, Kamehameha ’12: The Pacific linebacker had a team-high nine tackles with 31⁄2 tackles for loss and 21⁄2 sacks against the Lutes.

Men’s Golf

>> John Oda, Moanalua ’14: The UNLV sophomore finished in a tie for 20th place after shooting a 2-over 72 on Tuesday at the Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate.

>> Kalena Preus, Punahou ’13: The Texas junior closed with a 1-under 71 for his low round of the tournament to finish in a tie for 58th place at 6-over 221 in the Nike Golf Collegiate Invitational that ended Tuesday.

Women’s Golf

>> Kacie Komoto, Punahou ’13: The Northwestern junior shot a bogey-free 5-under 67 on Tuesday, closing with a birdie on the par-4 18th to finish in a tie for fourth place at 5 under in the Windy City Collegiate Championship that ended Tuesday.

>> Rose Huang, ‘Iolani ’15: The Brigham Young freshman is currently in a tie for fourth place at 2 under, three shots behind the leader, heading into Wednesday’s final round of the New Mexico State Aggie Invitational. Huang shot a 2-under 70 on Tuesday after opening with even par on Monday.

>> Brittany Fan, Kamehameha ’14: The Colorado sophomore improved by five strokes in her second round played on Tuesday to shoot a 1-over 73 to sit in a tie for 27th place at 6 over heading into today’s final round of the Edean Ihlanfeldt Invitational.

>> Marissa Chow, ‘Iolani ’12: The Pepperdine senior shot consecutive rounds of 76 and is in a tie for 34th place heading into the final round of the Edean Ihlanfeldt Invitational.

>> Ciera Min, Waiakea ’13: The Gonzaga junior is also tied for 34th place at 8 over after opening with a 73 in the Edean Ihlanfeldt Invitational.

Men’s Swimming

>> Makoa Haneberg, Campbell ’15: The University of Pacific freshman won the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 49.60 seconds in his first collegiate meet and also placed third in the 100-yard butterfly (50.54 seconds) and sixth in the 200 backstroke (1:58.49) and swam the first leg for the 200 medley relay team that placed second in a dual meet loss to Arizona State on Saturday.

Women’s Swimming

>> Corrine Shigeta, Kaiser ’14: The Oregon State junior finished third in the 200-yard breaststroke with a time of 2:22.51 in a dual meet loss to Arizona State on Saturday.

Women’s Tennis

>> Alyssa Tobita, Mililani ’14: The Oregon sophomore advanced to the final of the Crimson flight in the Washington State Invitational before losing in a second-set tiebreaker on Sunday. Tobita went 2-1 in singles and 5-1 in doubles in the top flights of the tournament.

>> Bobbi Oshiro, ‘Iolani ’12: The Boise State senior won a consolation singles match on the final day of the WSU Invitational to finish in sixth place in the Crimson flight.

Women’s Volleyball

>> Carly Kan, Punahou ’13: The Missouri junior outside hitter had a match-high 17 kills, 13 digs, two block assists and two aces as the Tigers rallied from two sets down to defeat No. 9 Florida in five in their SEC opener on Friday.

>> Kalei Mau, Kaiser ’13: The Arizona junior put down a match-high 19 kills, 10 digs and three block assists in a four-set win over California on Friday.

>> Penina Snuka, Kahuku ’13: The Arizona setter had a match-high 47 assists, 16 digs, five kills, four block assists and an ace against the Golden Bears.

>> Brittney Markwith, Punahou ’13: The Portland middle blocker hit .423 with 13 kills and three block assists in a five-set loss to Santa Clara last Thursday.

>> Keaupono Fey, Punahou ’14: The Winthrop sophomore middle blocker had five kills in six swings and added four blocks and an ace in a sweep of Presbyterian College on Friday.

>> Anna Uhr, ‘Iolani ’15: The Harvard freshman finished with 11 digs, two assists, a kill and an ace in sweeps of Princeton and Penn over the weekend.

>> Kalehua Katagiri, Kamehameha ’13: The Siena (N.Y.) defensive specialist had a match-high 21 digs, five assists and an ace in a four-set win over Canisius on Friday.

>> Bobbi Lin Kalama, KS-Maui ’13: The Siena junior had 11 digs, two assists, an ace and a kill against Canisius.

>> Kaylen Higa, Punahou ’15: The Willamette (Ore.) senior had a team-high 27 digs and three assists in a five-set win over Pacific Lutheran on Friday to help the Bearcats improve to 6-0 in Northwest Conference play.

>> Alexa Dowdell, Maryknoll ’13: The Willamette junior hit .296 with 10 kills, eight digs, five block assists and two assists against the Lutes.

>> Macy Hayashi, Waiakea ’12: The Bearcats senior had 13 digs and an assist against Pacific Lutheran.

>> Taylor Lum, Maryknoll ’13: The Willamette junior middle finished with four kills, two block assists, a solo block and an ace against Pacific Lutheran.

>> Caylie Shiramizu, University ’15: The Pacific Lutheran freshman totaled 13 digs against Willamette.

>> Taylor Komagome, Maryknoll ’13: The Pacific Lutheran junior finished with nine digs, an assist and an ace against the Bearcats.

Compiled by the Star-Advertiser’s Billy Hull. To submit an athlete for publication, email bhull@staradvertiser.com.