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When “Grey’s Anatomy” hit the airwaves, Maui Robins was still in diapers.
The show is a huge hit with the young and the young at heart. Robins, an All-State volleyball player, never saw the popular TV show until the pandemic began in 2020.
“My first time watching was during lockdown. It’s a really long show with 16 seasons. It was weird. I would binge, I’m not really a binger, so I would watch two (episodes) a day. I would have to take mental breaks whenever my favorite characters died. But I did finish,” she said. “The new season, but I just didn’t finish it yet. That’s the 17th season.”
The year “Grey’s” first aired, 2005, is when coach Chris Blake first led Kamehameha to a girls volleyball state championship. The Robins family has been a big part of the 10 total state titles under Blake’s watch since ’05. Maui Robins knows the legacy well. As a youngster, her dad, Duke Robins, would bring her to Kekuhaupio Gymnasium, where he was an assistant coach.
“It was my favorite part of the day. My dad would pick me up from Waikiki Elementary and take me back up to Kamehameha. I would sit on the side and watch practice, eat snacks and whenever someone was free, I would ask to pepper with them,” said Robins, now a senior co-captain.
Robins’ family tree is rooted in volleyball. The fruit of success is on many branches, from older sisters Alexis and Kili, to cousins Alohi Robins-Hardy and Kahiau Ka‘alele. Auntie Mary Robins played for the Hawaii Rainbow Wahine. Maui Robins, an outside hitter with tremendous versatility, was selected Gatorade Player of the Year in Hawaii last season, she added yet another accolade to an immense collection of them.
Yet, it is rarely a topic of conversation.
“She’s one of the most humble people you’ll ever meet. Hands down, one of the most loyal friends you could ever ask for,” teammate Nadia Koanui said. “She plays at a higher level, but school-wise, personality-wise, you can share a secret that she’ll never tell.”
Robins looks after her teammates with the pride of an older sister. Kamehameha won the last state tournament in 2019, then captured the ILH title in the spring of 2021.
“This is Maui’s second year as a captain, and part of it is her volleyball IQ is so high,” Blake said. “Continuing to improve athletically as she matured, she’s been able to put it together and handle the pressure, handling her load and making sure the team is performing well.
“We’ve been lucky. Maui has seen Keonilei (Akana), Brae (Akana), Langi (Sua-Godinet), great leaders that we could depend upon. Brianne Soares. That’s something that we’ve been blessed with, having great leaders in our gym.”
Kamehameha (1-1) is now in the midst of an epic volleyball war with rivals ‘Iolani and Punahou one week into the ILH season. Playing without Devin Kahahawai, Kamehameha lost at Punahou last week. Punahou then lost at ‘Iolani. Tonight, Kamehameha will host ‘Iolani, and on Friday, Punahou makes the trek to Kekuhaupio. The gauntlet of ILH sports never ends.
“It’s really a lot of mental strength. I think a lot of the girls on the team are doing well mentally. I was proud of everyone because they handled it pretty well,” Robins said. “Just being mentally prepared, talking positively about themselves, believing in themselves. Sometimes we do doubt our abilities and what we can do. What will set us right is having confidence in ourselves if we have a bad play or a bad practice. Always having confidence will keep us going.”
Blake expects his players to journal daily. To embrace the cerebral part of the game, of being a teammate.
“Last year, Maui was Gatorade Player of the Year, but that kind of honor she doesn’t necessarily talk about. She’s willing to do that work to make sure she’s getting better every day,” he said.
Robins, who has a 3.6 grade-point average, has committed to the University of Portland.
“The most appealing aspect of the school is the diversity and how much locals I know there. As a volleyball program, the coaches are very communicative and are also from Hawaii, which made me feel very comfortable,” Robins said.
Portland is also where older sister Alexis attended before transferring to UH. Robins has a keen interest in dermatology and optometry.
“I wear contacts and glasses. Last year, I got an ulcer in my eye. I had to go contact-less for a month. After that, I started having an interest,” she said. “Contacts can suffocate the eye. I wear them so much.”
Her vision isn’t restrained. One day, her name may become her home.
“I’d like to live on Maui because that’s where my mom is from. I would probably wait until later, not right after college,” she said.
For now, Robins and her teammates hope to defend their home court. Kahahawai may return by the end of the week from her busy schedule with the U.S. national team.
“Devin and I have a chemistry that is honestly like no other. We’ve been on the same team playing together since seventh grade, and every year we set goals together,” Robins said. “We’ve grown to understand each other and our game. She’s definitely my partner in crime on the court.”
MAUI ROBINS’ FAVORITE THINGS
>> Favorite foods: Homemade egg toast, chicken veggie omelette (Bogart’s), Blue Bunny chocolate ice cream.
>> New life skill: Making crumble cookies.
>> Funniest coach: Daryl Tamashiro. “He definitely tells all the jokes. A lot of our humor is just roasting each other. Everyone banters with him because it’s so easy. If he roasts us, he knows we will roast him back.”
>> Funniest teammate: Marley Roe. “She’s just really goofy. She does random things, just dances randomly. Makes random stupid noises. She’s really funny. She got MVP her freshman year as a goalie in soccer.”
>> Most artistic teammate: “Probably Nadia (Koanui). She paints a lot. She has a water bottle with all her paintings on it. Really cute paintings. Scenic things. Sunsets. Flowers. Nature.”
>> Most underrated teammate: Kalei Watson. “She’s a sophomore, really hard working, but I feel like a lot of people don’t see that. She’s really young, but she has a lot of leadership in her.”
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