The wave of emotions has a source on National Letter of Intent signing day.

The source is memory. Every one of the 69 signees at the Education 1st signing ceremony at the Hawaii Convention Center has a wonderful voyage to recall. But on Tuesday, Bubba Akana unexpectedly created another memory.

Akana, a St. Francis three-sport athlete, was looking forward to the 6:05 a.m. signing with his parents, grandparents and siblings nearby. He was with his family on Tuesday night.

“My dad (Kip) said, ‘Bub, I’ve been waiting since you were 5 for this day.’ To hear him say that was overwhelming. I didn’t want to let my emotions out, but it was a tear-jerker,” said Akana, who signed with Hawaii to play baseball.

Akana played quarterback for the Saints’ football team and forward for the basketball team. He may put hoops on hiatus to train more for baseball, where he plays shortstop for the ILH Division II title contenders. During his time, the Saints rose from a fledgling program to a D-II powerhouse.

Braelyn Akana, no relation to Bubba, was wide awake at 3:30 a.m. as her family made the trek from the North Shore. The Kamehameha volleyball standout signed with Hawaii.

“From the start of this week, I was super excited. This morning, it was really weird because I didn’t feel tired,” said Akana, a middle. “My mom, my dad, my grandparents, my sister and some of my friends were there.”

Akana was a late bloomer of sorts, but her training and dedication propelled her to elite status in high school. It all led to that long table with dozens of other signees Wednesday morning.

“When they told us to sign and I opened the envelope, oh … there’s a lot of emotions. I was super excited and I was having flashbacks. It felt super weird, but super cool,” she said. “Playing a game is physical, and this was calming. It’s bittersweet because you realize you’re getting older. It’s a new chapter.”

Softball players were also featured at the ceremony. Kaena Keliinoi of St. Francis and Cira Bartolotti of Kapolei signed with Hawaii. D’Aisha Saiki of Punahou and Aleia Agbayani of ‘Iolani signed with Cal. Former Kamehameha pitcher Kamalani Dung is already playing for the Golden Bears.

“My pen was actually broken,” Saiki said.

A shortstop who bats lefty with power, Saiki grew up leaning toward UCLA. She committed to California, however, after her sophomore year.

“I’d gone to camps at UCLA when I was 10 and went all the time, but I really like Cal. I went up for my first time the January before I committed. We did a camp there and I love the school and the San Francisco area. Al the coaches and girls are nice. The facilities are amazing.”

Keliinoi, a catcher, is another student-athlete who made a long journey each day, from Waianae to Manoa, to study and compete. The standout catcher signed with her mother, father, grandmother, two aunts, a cousin and, of course, her sister by her side.

“I guess since I was a little girl my dream was to sign with my dream college. I used to want to get off the island and explore, but after talking with my parents, UH is the best option for me to go to. My friends and family don’t have to travel to see me,” she said.

If signing the most important document of your life at 6 in the morning isn’t memorable enough, maybe the preparation is.

“I had to wake up at 3 to do my hair and do all the leis. We ate at Zippy’s in town and got to the Convention Center at 5:20,” she said.

Then it was time for school once the signing ceremony ended around 7:20 a.m. It was almost 10 a.m. when she got a bit of a breather between classes. She was in AP English and AP Government this morning.

“I just have to get through one class then I can take a nap,” said Keliinoi, who is looking forward to living on the UH campus soon.

“I’m happy to know that I won’t have to wake up early every morning,” she said.