By the time Theresa Anakalea is up, TheBus is in Waianae, leaving Makaha Towers precisely at 4:19 a.m. each morning.

Luckily for Anakalea, she doesn’t have to ride the vehicle formerly known as “Uncle Frank’s limousine” to Kalihi, but she is always in bed by 10 p.m., awake by 4 a.m. It is the way.

“It’s definitely hard waking up at 4, but I’ll do anything and sacrifice to go to Damien,” the senior said. “My auntie (Ivone Saromines) lives in Ewa Beach, so my dad (George) drops me off. She takes me and my niece to town. My niece goes to Anuenue.”

By 6:50 a.m., Anakalea is on the Damien campus. It is the place she dreamed of being as a young basketball player. The daily cycle is important to manage.

“Sometimes during school, I try to get my homework done during my free time so I don’t have to come home and stress about it,” said Anakalea, who has a 3.65 grade-point average.

Her academic and time management skills are as good as her hoop skills. Anakalea started as a freshman and averaged 24 points per game. Through the pandemic, she and her Monarch teammates trained consistently. Relentlessly.

“She never took a break. When the parks were closed, she would do dribble drills at home, work out,” Damien coach Mark Arquero said. “As soon as she could, she was back shooting, going to different trainings and always putting in work. Her work ethic is amazing and her dedication is impeccable.”

Arquero noted the support Anakalea gets from her family.

“There’s days she would go to three different workouts from Kaneohe to Kalihi to Ewa,” he said.

That love for basketball began when she was around 10. Arquero’s daughter, Tiare, also plays guard for Damien. The coach saw Anakalea play back then.

“She was fearless, high motor, skilled and very humble. Even at that age, you could tell she was going to be special,” he said.

There were opportunities elsewhere before Anakalea began high school. However, at Damien, Anakalea is a big fish in a small — Division II — pond compared to some ILH basketball programs. Her club coach, Tony Ho‘olulu, is in his first season as head coach at Maryknoll, inheriting a program with a long history of league titles. Sacred Hearts was alluring, too. Her grandfather, Raymond Patcho, is the volleyball coach there.

“Coach Tony did want me to go (to Maryknoll), but I didn’t want to go. I had Maryknoll and Sacred Hearts that looked at me, and I didn’t get into Kamehameha. I got wait-listed. I didn’t go to Maryknoll because it wasn’t the best fit for me personally, not just education, but balancing that and basketball,” she said. “I went to Damien because it’s somewhere that I wanted to be, a good school, and it feels good to be there.”

There’s also her alpha-esque personality.

“I wanted to be the go-to,” Anakalea added.

Wherever she is, she is a force of nature.

“She speaks up a lot on and off the court. She’s pretty comfortable,” said her teammate and friend, Tiare Arquero.

When Damien was ready to roll in the winter of 2020-21, word came from the state’s leagues that winter sports were canceled.

“I don’t think words can express how difficult that was. She’s so passionate about basketball, and to have that taken away was heartbreaking,” Mark Arquero said. “I think we were just lucky it was her sophomore year and not her senior year.”

A lot of time surrounded the constant workouts during the pandemic. Together, they did their drills, played in leagues on windy outside courts and in gyms as the tier restrictions lightened. Now, wearing the purple and gold of their school is a real thing.

“I don’t miss the lockdowns. Being in our home gym again, it feels good. I’m happy with whatever as long as I’m touching a basketball. I’m just happy we’re inside,” Anakalea said. “I feel like it was just our mindsets got a little stronger.”

The short preseason in 2021-22 is filling up with great memories already for the Lady Monarchs.

“It definitely feels amazing for all of us. We’ve been eager to play since COVID. The feeling of playing together, it feels like home for all of us,” Anakalea said. “It’s opened our eyes to see where this season takes us.”

Mark Arquero already has a favorite memory of Anakalea in preseason.

“We were down four with about a minute left,” Arquero said, recalling a game with Campbell. “She hit a 3 to bring us within one. We exchanged free throws to tie the game. Then Theresa hit a runner with about 10 seconds left to go up two. On the defensive end, she blocked Campbell’s last shot attempt to seal the victory.”

Two years ago, Damien and Sacred Hearts squared off with a state-tournament berth on the line.

“We were down a couple of players due to injuries so we relied heavily on her. She finished with 26 points. If there was ever an embodiment of leave it all on the floor, that was it,” Arquero said.

This season, ILH D-II is nearly as stacked with talent as it was two years ago. Mid-Pacific is the defending champion. Hanalani has lost some talent that transferred out, but is still a title contender. Hawaii Baptist returns some starters from the 2019-20 team and gave Kamehameha a battle before losing 55-45 two weeks ago.

“We’re excited to play and maybe take the ILH and state championships,” Anakalea said. “If we do that, maybe next year we can go up to D-I. We can do it if we put our mind to it and put God in us. Coach sees the potential in us. At the end of the day, you win some and lose some, but it’s about the experience and going out on the court, and having a good time.”

After going 3-0 in the Jesse Baugh Memorial Tournament at Nanakuli, Damien’s tournament last week was canceled for of health and safety protocols.

“It sucked really bad. For me personally, that day we were supposed to play Waipahu. Me and my teammates were definitely ready to play,” Anakalea said.

Damien is heading into an exhibition matchup with Kamehameha on Wednesday.

“We’ve been practicing over the (winter) break. We’re not going to force anything against Kamehameha. Our games at Nanakuli, we learned a lot about each other,” Anakalea said.

—

THERESA ANAKALEA’S FAVORITES

>> Funniest teammate: “They’re all funny. Maybe Kody (Wengler), one of the twins.”

>> Smartest teammate: “Tiare (Arquero). She has a good mind-set, especially when it comes to school. She probably has the highest GPA.”

>> Most honest: “I would consider myself honest. I’m definitely honest and open with everyone so that they know. Honesty comes with being a team leader.”

>> Strongest teammate: “Shayna Selesele. She’s a strong person down there on the block.”

>> Favorite movie/show: “Coco,” “Twilight,” and “Teata.”

>> Favorite food: Hawaiian. “Laulau or kalua pig, that’s my favorite.”

>> Favorite music artists: Ariana Grande, Josh Tatofi

and Kolohe Kai.

>> Favorite class: Physical Science.

>> Favorite teacher: Miss Sellona. “She’s a really good person and in her class, she makes everything fun and interesting.”

>> New life skill: bodyboarding.