Maryknoll made a bold move in baseball on Friday by hiring Eric Kadooka as its head coach.

Kadooka, who has been an assistant at Kailua under Corey Ishigo for six seasons, led Punahou to an unprecedented seven Division I state championships in a row from 2004 to ’10. The hire by the Spartans is pending approval from the Catholic Diocese of Honolulu.

Kadooka takes over for Randy Yamashiro, who was responsible for bringing Maryknoll three straight D-II crowns from 2013 to ’15. The Spartans made the jump up to D-I this spring and finished 2-14.

“It’s definitely something I feel very fortunate to be able to do,” Kadooka said during a phone interview Friday. “Not everybody gets a second chance to be a head coach. I feel like I’m a different person and a different coach than I was six years ago.”

Kadooka, 48, was referring to the time he spent as a Surfriders assistant, when he could focus on teaching baseball skills and assessing the various aspects of the team’s game without the pressure of being in charge of the team’s administration.

“I’ve had a lot of time to formulate a lot of different thoughts about the game,” he said. “I’m older and more centered, don’t have as many insecurities, am not worrying about the little stuff as much and have a much better perspective. I want to incorporate all of that as the Maryknoll head coach. There’s a lot of stuff that is just as important as winning.”

Kadooka gave a nod to Yamashiro, who stepped down after the spring season for personal reasons.

“Randy has done a great job, and I’m just taking over a program that has already been built,” Kadooka said. “I want to make it about the kids. That’s what we did at Punahou.”

Kadooka had no coaching experience when he was hired by the Buffanblu at age 31. After leaving Punahou, he said he has soaked in more baseball knowledge from Ishigo, who he said is “baseball 24/7.”

“The experience of being in a different league (the Oahu Interscholastic Association) has been a tremendous help,” he said. “And I love the fact that I’m going to be back in the (Interscholastic League of Honolulu).”

Maryknoll athletic director Ben Valle said many qualified coaches applied for the job, but that Kadooka was the right fit.

“I was so impressed with how important it is for him to establish caring relationships with the players,” Valle said. “He definitely has a track record. Who better than Eric to take over our program where we’re at now? The players are excited.”

Higgins out as Kaiser’s football coach

Cameron Higgins stepped down as the football head coach at Kaiser after going 9-9 in two seasons.

The job search for his replacement is underway. Cougars interim athletic director Bryan Almadova posted the opening on Thursday.

Higgins, who took over in 2014 after previous head coach Rich Miano led Kaiser to the Division II state championship in 2013, is going to concentrate more on his work in real estate and property development.