Hall of Honor: Zola O’Donnell of Mililani
ANDREW LEE / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISER / APRIL 22
Mililani’s Zola O’Donnell
Soccer’s loss was a golden win for Zola O’Donnell.
Cut trying out as a freshman, she took her futbol energy and directed it toward running. Mililani’s elite harrier never stopped until she secured gold for the Lady Trojans.
As a senior, O’Donnell peaked with first place in the state cross country championships after finishing eighth the year before. Her winning time of 19 minutes, 7 seconds was a personal record as well.
At the state track and field championships at War Memorial Stadium in Wailuku, O’Donnell gritted her way through one of the most difficult combinations: gold in the 1,500- and 3,000-meter runs. Her 4:50 in the 1,500 and 10:29 in the 3,000 capped the perfect peak performance.
“I crushed my 3,000-meter time from last year by 32 seconds, and I also crushed my 1,500-meter time, nine seconds faster than last year,” she said. “I want my story to encourage people to be ambitious, set goals and work hard.”
It all started in the fall of 2019.
“I actually thought I was going to run and play soccer. Plans changed when I didn’t make the school soccer team. This was a blessing in disguise because I was able to focus a lot more on my running career and join the swim team,” O’Donnell said.
The continual challenges as a runner — and swimmer — are practically embedded in her DNA.
“My first competitive sport was swimming. I started taking swim classes at 3 years old. It’s about trusting the process and continuing to try my best. Even the mistakes I made were a good learning experience. I definitely could have started improving on my running form in freshman year rather than senior year, but that worked out eventually, too,” she said.
Even with success, one of her lasting memories as a cross country runner goes back to the horrendous mud bog at Hawaii Preparatory Academy in Waimea in the fall of 2021. With the state title at stake, most harriers did as much mud sliding as running.
“It was storming and the course was so muddy, with massive up and down hills, that I was nervous they would cancel the race. I ended up falling three times and remember screaming ‘Watch out’ as I barreled uncontrollably down a muddy hill. Cassie (Chong) was on the news for accidentally tripping three girls as she lost control running down a hill,” O’Donnell recalled.
Chong still finished 11th.
“There was one massive uphill so coated in mud that running up it seemed so futile. I started to walk for the only time ever in a cross country race. It was a fun, unforgettable experience,” O’Donnell said. There were more random moments that stick. During the winter, at a swim meet at Kalani, O’Donnell remembers downing five packs of gummy bears after racing in the 500-meter freestyle.
The 2023 OIA track and field championships were about team. The Trojans family.
“That was a massive team success for the Mililani boys and girls teams, who both took first place. I was very happy and impressed with my teammates and all their hard work and talent, especially Ellie (Ikemura), Payton (Mukkada), Roberto (Espinoza), Robbey (Navarro) and Deiona (Carter),” said O’Donnell, who also broke school and OIA records in the 1,500 run.
“It was a moment of realization for me where I realized I had a chance of winning states for both the 1,500 and 3,000,” she said.
Competition among runners often leads to friendships.
“I think my natural tendency of sportsmanship helped a lot in my experience as an athlete. In my junior year, I met and competed against a lot of great distance runners like Kaylee Volner, Isabella Ford, Emily Naylor, Kaylee Noda and Mai Pham. These are people who inspired me,” O’Donnell said. “Even though most have graduated, they are people that I’ve looked up to and learned from throughout my junior and senior years as a runner.”
Anxiety was one of O’Donnell’s challenges as a younger athlete.
“Stressing out. Learning to deal with pre-meet anxiety is a big part of being a good athlete. I would get so nervous before a race that it would consume me. I overcame this by accepting that it’s OK to feel nervous before a race, and also reminding myself that my friends and family care about me no matter what,” she said. “My bad races have taught me more and improved me more as an athlete than my good races.”
The next stage isn’t too far away. O’Donnell will enroll at the University of Hawaii, where she will do track and field — outdoors and indoors — and cross country.
“I will be majoring in kinesiology, and taking pre-med classes to become a doctor,” she said.
Support at home has been a cornerstone.
“Thank you so much to my mom (Mercedes O’Donnell) and dad (Michael O’Donnell) for all the love, help and encouragement. Also, thank you to my brother Eanon for coming to so many races despite that track races are not the most entertaining event for a 6-year-old,” she said.
“Thank you to all my teams, especially the distance runners. Thank you to Ellie and Cassie for being my best friends on the cross country and track team. Thank you to Payton for running with me on his easy runs and giving such great running advice. Thank you to Kaylee for inspiring me by showing what it means to be a great athlete and runner. Thank you to all my coaches, especially the cross country and track distance coach, Coach Nate (Aragaki), for all the time, effort and encouragement they have given both me and my teams.”
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Hall of Honor inductees
>> Milan Ah Yat of University Lab and Pac-Five
