The University of Hawai'i women's basketball team is taking the #SISTAHHOOD international with a 10-day trip to Japan to start the summer. The Rainbow Wahine will stay in Tokyo and Osaka with a day-trip to Kyoto scheduled on their first foreign tour since 2018. Along the way they'll play two exhibition games and take part in a youth clinic while taking in the culture and scenery of Japan.
Follow along on the Hawai'i women's basketball social media accounts on X (@HawaiiWBB), Instagram (@hawaiiwbb) and Facebook (University of Hawai'i Rainbow Wahine Basketball).
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Thursday, June 13 (Parts 1 and 2) — An appreciation of culture
OSAKA — On the team's final full evening in Japan,
Laura Beeman gathered the Rainbow Wahine in the lobby of the ANA Crowne Plaza and put each member of the travel party on the spot.
What was your favorite memory of the trip?
Some picked Shibuya and its chaotic crossing, others the immersive exhibits at TeamLab Planets in Tokyo. The spirited youth clinic in Shibuya came up, as well as the various historic and cultural sites, facing international competition, and, of course, the food.
For the Rainbow Wahine head coach, one of the last spots of the trip — Wednesday's visit to bamboo forest in Arashiyama — topped her list.
"The serenity, the zen, and just the beauty of that place really brought Japan completely together for me," Beeman said.
While individual highlights may vary, the collective takeaway was an unforgettable 10 days spent building bonds within the program while savoring the team's stay in Tokyo and Osaka.
"We really connected as a team," said senior
MeiLani McBee, one of the 'Bows who picked up the first stamp in her passport. "No one was left behind and I think our chemistry and our bonding has gotten stronger throughout this trip."
The team wrapped up the trip by spending their first June 13 at Universal Studios Japan in Osaka. After sampling Butterbeers in Hogsmeade and bouncing through Super Nintendo World, the Rainbow Wahine headed to Kansai International Airport for their return flight to Honolulu. Turbulence on the way home represented some of the biggest bumps of the trip before landing at HNL for their second June 13 afternoon.
Upon returning to campus, Beeman's appreciation for Japan's beauty was matched by her admiration for the team's approach throughout the trip.
"I felt like they were true ambassadors for the state of Hawai'i and for this university and for our program," she said. "I thought they represented our program as well as they could have. They conducted themselves with respect and integrity and they definitely respected the culture of Japan and they shared our aloha spirit. Like I told them in the lobby, I could not be more proud of how they handled themselves and how they represented Hawai'i."
As the players finally dispersed from the Stan Sheriff Center's parking lot, they left with insight into the customs of another while having enhanced the culture within the program.
"I think the memories they've made with one another and relationships that were already strong have been strengthened and relationships that are new, the foundation's been laid," Beeman said. "I think this trip will definitely gives us launching pad for a great season."
Wednesday, June 12 — Freshmen building bonds in Japan
OSAKA — It's been a week of first impressions for a trio of Rainbow Wahine freshmen.
Danijela Kujovic, Rebecca Moors and Ritorya Tamilo experienced just the latest in a series of introductions on Wednesday night when they attended their first baseball game. The Rainbow Wahine were part of a lively capacity crowd packed into Osaka's Kyocera Dome for the game between the host Orix Buffaloes and the Hanshin Tigers.
"I had no clue what was going on, I'm not used to baseball," Kujovic said after taking in the distinctive flavor of Japanese baseball, with the constant songs and chants emanating from flag waving cheering sections in the outfield. "It was cool though, with the atmosphere. Everyone was very involved."
The ballgame capped a day spent largely in Kyoto, where they visited the gleaming Kinaku-ji Temple and the famed Golden Pavilion and the lush Arashiyama Bamboo Forest.
As a trip packed with activities winds down, so does a two-week whirlwind for the UH newcomers. Kujovic, from Victoria, Australia, was the first to arrive in Mānoa for the pre-trip practices on campus. Tamilo followed from New Zealand and Moors, also from Auckland, joined the team two days before the departure to Japan.
"As freshman it's always good to connect with the team and get to know them on a personal level," Tamilo said.
The arrival of the newcomers gives the 'Bows an international quartet with the return of guard
Jade Peacock, who went through the transition last season as a freshman from Gold Coast, Australia.
"Honestly, I realize how much I needed it until it was here," Peacock said of now having teammates from Down Under. "I felt like I was accustomed to how they do it (in Hawai'i) and I was doing a lot of things independently, sorting out things, and now I have people around me that I can help out, but they can help me just as much with acclimating to a different situation."
Peacock's mother, Laeneigh, accompanied the team through the Japan trip and her week with the team reinforced the decision to send her daughter to Hawai'i for college.
"We've always had a good feeling about Hawai'I … and it was not just the basketball. It was the off-court things as well," Leineigh Peacock said. "It gives me that really nice feeling inside that you know she's in the right spot."
The freshmen made a positive first impression on the court in UH's two exhibition games. Tamilo led the team in both contests with 12 points against the University of Tsukuba and 11 against Tokyo Healthcare University. Moors contributed 13 points over two games and UH coach
Laura Beeman praised Kujovic's defense and rebounding.
"To give them this all experience, you're not going to be able to put a price tag on it," Beeman said. "It's going to come back at the right moment at the right time in the regular season."
The freshmen will have some time to settle into life in Hawai'i following Thursday's return to Honolulu, although Moors and Tamilo have international events lined up later this summer. For now, they're soaking new experiences in Japan with their new teammates.
"I think it was really good for team bonding, and coming into the team not knowing anyone and having this trip to be all squished together in one place at the same time it was good to get to know everyone on the team," Moors said.
"A lot of countries I've been to have been quite similar to what I've experienced with cultures. So just being submerged in a whole new culture, new people, new language, it's a crazy experience and loved every minute of it."
Tuesday, June 11 — Liv and Tommy making moves + Adventures at Nara Deer Park
OSAKA — A trip to Japan brought good fortune for the newest Rainbow Wahine alumnae.
After completing their college basketball careers in March,
Ashley Thoms and
Olivia Davies rejoined the Rainbow Wahine for the Japan trip and both received word on their near-future plans in the last week.
Just about a week ago, as the team bus headed toward the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport when Thoms' phone buzzed with call from Las Vegas. She had applied for a job with the Raiders and was told she'd been hired for an "ambassador" position, a post allowing her to serve in various areas of the organization, starting shortly after the team's return from Japan.
"I was so excited," said Thoms, whose grandfather was a defensive end for the then-Oakland Raiders in the 1970s. "I could finally relax and really take in Japan and spending time with everyone for the last time.
"I definitely wanted to stay is sports and the NFL has always been a goal just from the family background," she said. "I was taking any opportunity that came my way and this one felt perfect to get my foot in the door and to feel out what I really want to do within the organization."
Davies, a co-recipient of this year's women's Jack Bonham Award, will be staying around UH for a while more. She is finishing her master's degree and received word on Tuesday that she had been accepted for an internship for her practicum doing "behavioral and mental health work" with the athletics department.
As both of last season's seniors embark on their next phase, they're savoring one more experience with the Rainbow Wahine as non-playing members of the travel party.
"It's super exciting," Davies said. "Being here for so long it was really exciting to finally get an international tour. We've been separated (from the team) for a little bit and now we're back into it and it feels like home again."
The feeling of home while in a foreign land may be even more pronounced for Thoms, who is sharing the experience with her father, also Art Thoms, who has accompanied the team for much of the trip.
"He's been courtside for every game. He's been part of the team for a long time, so it feels very natural," Ashley said. "But it's also nice that I get to spend that time with him because we've been wanting to come to Japan for the longest time, so it's been really awesome."
For Art Thoms, the trip just reinforces the decision three years ago for Ashley to transfer to UH from Weber State.
"Coach (
Laura Beeman) bringing her along means the world to us," he said. "It's been really special and being able to do all the events with her, it's one of the better trips I've ever been on.
"She's just a tough gritty kid," he said of Ashley's playing style. "Every coach says they want one of those players, but not all of them stand behind that and actually value that and this coaching staff surely does. They've been amazing. I honestly could not have thought of a better place to be, better situation, better coaching staff, and better teammates."
Of the highlight of the trip so far, both players pointed to having former Rainbow Wahine teammate
McKenna Haire make a last-minute trip to meet the team in Tokyo.
"That was full circle,"
Ashley Thoms said. "The trip was complete."
Thoms has been assisting with social media coverage during the trip and Tuesday's itinerary provided myriad content opportunities.
The 'Bows started a jam-packed day with an hour-long bus ride to Nara for a visit to the historic Todaiji Temple and Nara Deer Park. The Daibutsu-den (the main hall) houses a 49-foot Buddah statue and deer wander just outside the temple grounds. Some of the UH group bought wafers to feed the deer, who (sometimes aggressively) pursued just about anyone carrying the snacks, including Associate Athletics Director Lois Manin (see below and wait for it).
The team returned to Osaka for an okonomiyaki lunch in the famed Dotonbori district, then back on the bus for a visit to Osaka Castle in the heart of the city. Then it was on to the Tempozan district to visit the Kaiyukan Aquarium, best known for housing whale sharks in its centerpiece tank.
Monday, June 10 — On to Osaka
OSAKA — Monday marked moving day for the Rainbow Wahine.
Bidding
sayonara to Tokyo, the team embarked on the second leg of the trip with a 2-1/2 hour ride aboard the Shinkansen to Osaka, where the 'Bows will be based until returning home on Thursday. They began their stay by literally taking in an overview of the city from the observation deck on the 35
th floor of the Umeda Sky Building.
Hustling the travel party of 30-plus through a foreign train station was just the latest task on the to-do list of UH Director of Basketball Operations
Jason Hill. Now in his sixth year at UH and second in his current post, Hill has coordinated much of the logistics prior to and during the trip. UH marketing specialist Yutaro Takada, a graduate of University of Tsukuba, aided in the arrangements and has helping the team navigate around the language barrier.
"Having our tour guide, Nao, has been awesome," Hill said of the red-clad Japan-based guide who helped shepherd the team through Japan with a sunflower topped telescoping stick. "That has been helpful for me to have an extra person keeping track of everybody and our girls listen pretty well and are well behaved, so they make the job easier."
Hill is one of three staff members who were part of the program's last international trip — a tour of Australia and New Zealand in 2018 — along with head coach
Laura Beeman and associate coach
Alex Delanian. His duties include frequent headcounts, distributing tickets/passes/room keys. and overseeing myriad details inherent in crafting and executing the itinerary.
NCAA programs are allowed a foreign tour every four years and the seeds for a trip to Japan were planted upon returning from Down Under. The pandemic shelved those plans until discussions picked up again in spring 2023. Planning took root in earnest in September and were finalized after the season ended in March and Hill said the staff "had a lot of help from people who have been to Japan before, different groups who wanted to help us out."
"It's been really great to see (the players) enjoy everything that has been put together — the games, the clinics, all the cultural experiences. To see them enjoy it has made it feel worth it," Hill said. "With Coach B's vision of what she wanted out of this trip, there's been a lot of planning, a lot of meetings, organization. To see it come together, it's been long days, but it's been very enjoyable days, and I think the players are finding a really good experience out of it."
Sunday, June 9 — Two sides of Tokyo
TOKYO — The UH travel party's final full day in Tokyo encapsulated the city's blend of traditional and modern.
Having completed the basketball portion of the trip on Saturday, the morning itinerary took the Rainbow Wahine to the Meiji Jingu Shrine. The maze of concrete gave way to a forested area shrouding the Shinto shrine in the heart of the capital city. Crossing under the wooden gates and into the grounds, the team took in a display of intricately crafted bonsai and watched a traditional wedding procession make its way through the courtyard.
The contrast in surroundings crystalized with a return to Shibuya and a couple of hours in the Harajuku area's vibrant shopping district and a visit to teamLab Planets in Toyosu. Players and staff went barefoot through the immersive exhibits of strings of LEDs cascading from the ceiling to a mirrored floor in one room and shin-deep water providing the canvas for a display of shifting color and light in another. The tour culminated with a hanging flower garden.
After a free night it was time to pack up for the next leg of the trip to Osaka.
Saturday, June 8 — Sister City #SISTAHHOOD + Game 2 vs. Tokyo Healthcare University
SHIBUYA — Basketball's role as a universal language again came into focus on Saturday.
The Rainbow Wahine started the day by running a clinic for youngsters from Shibuya in the first event since a May 31 signing ceremony formally establishing the sister city relationship between Honolulu and Shibuya.
The clinic was put together in conjunction with the Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi's office and the Hawai'i Tourism Authority and drew more than 80 youths eager to spend close to two hours with the 'Bows.
"Being to come to Japan is an honor," UH head coach
Laura Beeman said, "and I look forward to being able to cultivate the relationship with Japan basketball and anything else that's going to strengthen the relationship between our two cities."
UH strength coach Trevor Sackmann directed warmups and associate head coach
Alex Delanian led a spirited game of "tsuchi (land), umi (sea), kuuki (air)." The group then separated into four stations and the UH players directed the layup, shooting, dribbling and defensive drills, communicating the concepts and keeping the kids engaged despite the language barrier.
"I truly believe that for those young kids today, for our players, for myself, our staff, this will be a lifelong memory," UH coach
Laura Beeman said. "There may have been a language barrier, but there was no barrier when it came to getting on the court and having fun."
SHIBUYA — Officially, the 'Bows added three newcomers to the roster for the Japan tour. Effectively, guard
Jovi Lefotu's return gives UH rotation another new look.
Lefotu hadn't competed in a game since suffering a knee injury on Jan. 26, 2023 at UC Santa Barbara. She redshirted the past season while continuing to work her way back and UH's two exhibitions in Japan marked her return to game action.
"Super fun," Lefotu said of being back under game conditions. "It's something I missed for a while, so it's good to be back with them and building the chemistry and just feeling that adrenaline again. I feel like I missed that a lot.
"Sitting out on the sideline I learned a lot both on and off the court. So being back made me really appreciate the game and this team."
The basketball portion of the trip ended with a Rainbow Wahine rally coming up just short in a 68-64 loss to Japan collegiate power Tokyo Healthcare University — the runner up in the 2023 All Japan Intercollegiate Basketball Championship after winning the previous six titles.
UH trailed 62-52 with just over four minutes left, but drew to within a point with a 9-0 run capped by Lefotu's layup with two minutes remaining. She ended up scoring UH's final five points, finishing with seven, but THCU put the game out of reach with a 3-pointer with five seconds left.
"To see her back on the floor playing at the level she's already playing, regaining her confidence, she's going to be a difference maker for us," UH coach
Laura Beeman said.
Freshman center Ritorya Tamilo led UH with 11 points and sophomore
Jade Peacock hit two 3-pointers to add 10 points.
"In Japan the physicality was really different for us," Lefotu said. "So adjusting to that was a big eye opener, especially in the first game. So today we knew what we were getting into and we made some good in-game adjustments. One of the things Coach was talking about was trusting each other and just playing with chemistry. It's going to come over time so I feel we did good job just playing two days together."
Along with group of boosters who made the trip, the 'Bows' cheering section included former teammate
McKenna Haire. The 2023 alumna now works for Hawaiian Airlines and made a last-minute decision to hop a flight to meet the team in Japan.
Friday, June 7 — Tokyo by land, sky and water
TOKYO — A break between game days offered the Rainbow Wahine an opportunity to take in the scenery of Tokyo with views from the sky and water.
They began the day with a bus ride into the bustling Asakusa district to visit the Sensoji Temple. Vistiors packed the path lined with food and shopping booths leading to the temple and even out of uniform, the Rainbow Wahine drew the attention of group of students who took a photo with
Olivia Davies and
Ashley Thoms. The players also picked up
Omikuji, a slip of paper telling their near-future fortunes.
The team's first venture below ground into Tokyo's subway system took the 'Bows to the Tokyo Sky Tree. An elevator ride to the observation decks more than 1,100 feet skyward presented sprawling views from high above the city.
One train stop and a bit of a walk later, the team got another perspective of the city via a cruise along the Sumida River. A cooling breeze on the hour-long loop made for a relaxing tour outside of the hectic pace of the city. They also filled out ribbons with their wishes and tied them to a bamboo branch in keeping with the
Tanabata festival.
The Rainbow Wahine will start the weekend by holding a youth clinic on Saturday and will play their second and final exhibition of the tour at 5 p.m. (10 p.m. Friday Hawai'i time) against Tokyo Healthcare University at Higashi Health Plaza.
Thursday, June 6 — Food, Friendship and Healing on Day 1
TSUKIJI — After departing Honolulu on Tuesday afternoon and crossing the international dateline to arrive in Tokyo on Wednesday night, the Rainbow Wahine started their first full day in Japan with a visit to the famed Tsukiji Fish Market and a sushi making class at a nearby restaurant. Outfitted in traditional sushi chef attire, the players and staff learned the techniques of crafting several types of nigiri sushi before dining on their creations. The team then went into the Tsukiji Outer Market to further explore the vast array of tasty offerings.
TSUKUBA CITY — At the end of an hour-long drive,
Kelsie Imai's first glimpse of the University of Tsukuba created an immediate connection.
As the team's bus entered the grounds, the Rainbow Wahine senior was struck by the similarity between the school's logo and her grandmother's family crest — a resemblance that took on deeper significance given her grandmother's passing prior to the trip.
"I immediately had to call my mom," said Imai, who has the crest tattooed on her forearm. "It means so much. My mom said that's grandma showing me she's here and supporting me."
While she wrestled with being away from family this week, making her first trip to Japan along with her teammates — and the reminder of her grandmother on walls and court at the Tsukuba Central Gymnasium — has helped the healing process.
"My mom was like, 'Kelsie, you need to go, it's a once in a lifetime opportunity, embrace your culture and just enjoy,' " Imai said. "As soon as we landed and I felt the energy."
Once in the gym, the host school provided an energetic and welcoming atmosphere for the Rainbow Wahine. Pregame festivities featured a taiko performance, the school band performed Hawai'i 5-0 during UH's introductions, and Hawai'i Pono'ī followed the national anthem.
"This was an amazing environment," UH coach
Laura Beeman said. 'The band, the cheerleaders, the crowd being loud the entire time, that was amazing. I think for the girls to see the support that a place like this gets, I think some of our girls might have aspirations to come to Japan and play pro and I think that would be phenomenal."
Over the 40 minutes on the court, Tsukuba's relentless pressure and hot shooting in the first and fourth quarters powered the hosts to a 70-54 victory, though the result was secondary to the lifetime memories of the cultural exchange. Beeman and senior
MeiLani McBee thanked the crowd, the Rainbow Wahine presented Kukui nut lei to the Tsukuba players, and Imai swapped jerseys with one of the Owls.
"The exchanging of a gift after a game, the gratitude the Japanese players showed toward our players, the gratitude the fans showed, it's all very exciting and memories these players will take with them," Beeman said.
Tuesday, June 4 — Tokyo Bound!
HONOLULU — After years of waiting and more than 12 months of planning, the Rainbow Wahine
embarked on their first international tour since visiting Australia and New Zealand in 2018. The travel party includes 14 players on the active roster, plus two of last year's seniors,
Ashley Thoms and
Olivia Davies, along with coaches and staff.
#HawaiiWBB
