Texas-Arlington senior Pono Anderson doesn’t dwell on the past or the times that don’t go according to plan. Especially when there’s room to change things.
As a senior at Saint Louis, Anderson signed a letter of intent to pitch for Hawaii. He thought he’d spend his college days playing his home games at Les Murakami Stadium, the site of his biggest high school triumph. It was there that he tossed 11 innings of shutout ball over the course of three games to help the Crusaders win the 2014 HHSAA championship, the school’s first state baseball title since 1974.
But the summer before he was set to enroll, the NCAA Clearinghouse did not give him the OK to do so. South Mountain Community College in Phoenix then gave Anderson a roster spot on short notice.
“It was a big culture shock for sure when I first got to Arizona. I did not want to be there at all, I was just like ‘I want to go home, it’s hot,’ ” Anderson said. “I told my mom and dad I’m coming home and they told me the opportunity is greater out there and you just gotta stick it out and grind it out, which I did and it was worth it.”
Despite the initial homesickness, it didn’t take Anderson long to embrace the blue-collar mentality of being a junior college athlete. Unlike the NCAA, which places practice limitations on teams, there are no such limits in the NJCAA.
“When I first got there, my mind changed real quick. All the opportunities people have out of junior college from going to a Division I or getting drafted are just as high as high school,” he said. “Junior college is such a grind that it’s day in and day out, hour after hour. Constant practice, constant weights, it’s a different vibe, but you grind harder.
“You bond with the guys that are there and the end result is all worth it because you put in the time and effort every day.”
Anderson first caught the eye of UT-Arlington head coach Darin Thomas and pitching coach Jon Wente as a freshman at South Mountain. By the time his sophomore year was over, he had offers from Arizona, New Mexico State, Grand Canyon, Cal State Bakersfield and UTA to choose from.
In his first year with the Mavericks, Anderson started all 14 games he appeared in, going 0-4 with a 4.42 ERA. But those numbers don’t tell the story to Thomas, who has entrusted Anderson to be near the top of the rotation for each of his two years on campus.
“He’s been an innings-eater for us for two years. Even when he doesn’t have his best stuff, he’ll still give you six or seven innings,” Thomas said. “He’s always went out there and given us everything he’s got.”
This season, Anderson is 5-3 in nine starts, but his ERA shot to 6.14 when he allowed five runs in 2⁄3 innings in a loss to Arkansas Little-Rock last weekend. Thomas and Anderson agreed that the uncharacteristic start will serve as an outlier this season, and the skipper trusts his senior to flush it and move on.
“That’s one of the best characteristics you can have as a pitcher, especially in college: the ability to learn from an outing but at the same time, forget about it,” Thomas said. “The next one’s all that matters, and he’s been very good about turning the page and getting ready for that next one.”
The Mavericks are 20-13 and tied at the top of the Sun Belt conference at 8-4. Perhaps the biggest obstacle to a regional bid is nationally ranked Coastal Carolina — the 2016 College World Series champion is also 8-4 in Sun Belt play. That series won’t come until May 10-12, but Anderson says the approach to every series before and after it remains the same.
“I knew that coming in when I committed here that I had a chance to step up and be a guy, and perform as much as I can every weekend,” he said. “I tried to do that and work hard every day, especially with my teammates and the pitching staff, and just prepare myself week in and week out for a start. It’s a grind and whatever opportunities my coaches give me, just go out there and give it my best.”
Anderson expects to graduate from UTA with dual degrees in marketing and management. If pro ball doesn’t work out, he hopes to eventually coach at the college and pro levels.
If his four years away from home have been any indication, he already has a huge stamp of approval in that aspect.
“He’s been a pleasure to coach. A great teammate, which is the best thing you can say about anybody,” Thomas said. “He’s a great teammate, he’s been a great student for us and hopefully we finish strong and he finishes strong. I’ve really enjoyed having him here.”
BASEBALL
>> Wyatt Young, Mid-Pacific ’18: The Pepperdine freshman went 4-for-13 in a weekend series against Santa Clara over the weekend as the Waves (16-11, 7-5 West Coast Conference) took two out of three games against the Broncos. Young is hitting .314, leading off all 27 games this season.
>> Codie Paiva, Kamehameha ’15: The Loyola Marymount senior improved to 4-2 after tossing 61⁄3 scoreless innings against San Francisco on Friday, allowing just five hits and a walk with six strikeouts for the Lions (19-10, 8-2 WCC). In West Coast Conference games, Paiva is 3-0 with a 0.64 ERA and 0.79 WHIP.
>> Keith Torres, Saint Louis ’17: The Sacramento State sophomore went 4-for-11 in a weekend series against Cal State Bakersfield as the Hornets (21-10, 7-2 WAC) swept the Roadrunners in a three-game conference series.
>> Tyler Yamaguchi, Mid-Pacific ’15: The Northern Colorado senior went 4-for-12 in a weekend series against Utah Valley, including a 3-for-5 performance against the Wolverines in Sunday’s series finale, an 11-10 win for the Bears (7-20, 3-6 WAC).
>> Ryne Oshiro, Moanalua ’17: The Saint Martin’s (Wash.) sophomore batted 8-for-15 in a weekend series against Montana State Billings with a home run and three RBIs. The Saints (12-21, 8-16 Great Northwest Athletic Conference) dropped three of four games to the Yellowjackets.
>> Aaron Renaud, Saint Louis ’17: The Saint Martin’s freshman batted 6-for-14 in a weekend series against Montana State Billings with two RBIs.
>> Tanner Inouye, Moanalua ’16: The Saint Martin’s junior pitched 52⁄3 innings against Montana State Billings, striking out eight while giving up seven hits and three runs.
>> Micah Jio, Maui ’17: The Oregon Tech sophomore and 2017 Star-Advertiser position player of the year went 8-for-15 with six RBIs over a weekend series against Corban (Ore.) as the Owls (11-31, 5-19 Cascade Conference) split a four-game series with the Warriors. Jio leads the team with a .379 batting average.
>> Kai Fong, ‘Iolani ’15: The Oregon Tech senior went 8-for-15 with nine RBIs and a home run over a weekend series against Corban.
>> Riley Guieb, Punahou ’17: The Grinnell (Iowa) sophomore went 5-for-15 with three stolen bases in a weekend series against Knox (Ill.). The Pioneers (11-13, 5-3 Midwest Conference) split the four-game series against the Prairie Fire.
>> Micah Hee, Kamehameha ’16: The Cal State LA junior (5-1) suffered his first loss of the season in a 3-0 defeat to Sonoma State on Sunday, allowing three runs and three hits in six innings with three strikeouts as the Golden Eagles dropped to 15-18.
SOFTBALL
>> Cydney Curran, Campbell ’16: The Cal State Bakersfield junior went 3-for-8 in a weekend series against Grand Canyon, but the Roadrunners (13-19, 2-4 WAC) were swept by the Antelopes. Curran has 32 hits and a .348 batting average for the season, both team highs.
>> Kamalani Dung, Kamehameha ’15: The California senior pitched a total of 61⁄3 innings over two games against Washington over the weekend, allowing seven runs with two strikeouts as the Golden Bears (21-10, 1-8 Pac-12) were swept in the three-game series.
WOMEN’S GOLF
>> Malia Nam, Kaiser ’18: The Southern California freshman finished in a tie for second at the Silverado Showdown in Napa, Calif., which concluded Tuesday. Nam’s three-round total of even-par 216 put her in a tie with San Jose State’s Natasha Andrea Oon. Northwestern’s Brooke Riley took home medalist honors with a 1-under 215. USC finished in second with a team total of 10-over 874, while Northwestern won the team title with a 6-over 870.
>> Mariel Galdiano, Punahou ’16: The UCLA junior finished in a tie for 11th at the Silverado Showdown. Galdiano’s three-round total of 5-over 221 was the team-best individual score for the Bruins. UCLA finished in 11th with a team total of 44-over 908.
WOMEN’S TENNIS
>> Lisa Owen, Kaiser ’16: The Puget Sound junior won Northwest conference women’s tennis student-athlete of the week after winning all four singles and doubles matches at the No. 1 spot against Pacific Lutheran last weekend.
