The tears came a little bit earlier for the University of Hawai‘i soccer team in 2025.
Already out of Big West tournament contention entering Thursday's season finale, the Rainbow Wahine fell to UC Irvine 2-0 at Waipio Peninsula Soccer Stadium. UH's 2025 season ends at 4-8-8 overall and 2-4-4 in Big West Conference play.
In 2024, the Rainbow Wahine won the Big West regular season title and hosting rights to the conference tournament. Some of the contributors on that team, such as Amber Gilbert, Eve Bleam and Cate Sheahan were part of the 10 seniors honored following Thursday's contest as part of the senior night festivities.
Despite falling short of preseason expectations in which it was picked to finish first in the Big West preseason poll, head coach Michele Nagamine expressed gratitude towards the senior class. So did the rest of the team.
"It's a very bittersweet evening. I love the fact that we're honoring our seniors. This was our elevator class, right? They took us to the next level and led us to the Big West championship last year," Nagamine said. "Asking our team to deal with so much adversity another year in a row was just a little bit much. ... I've been a part of 14 senior nights. I have never seen an entire team cry in the way that they were. I couldn't even turn to my right because every single girl was just sobbing, and it just shows how much they love and care about each other."
Logistical challenges have been part of the routine for the Rainbow Wahine, who drove five and a half hours between Davis and Bakersfield in last week's road trip. The Rainbow Wahine also did not have a solidified practice venue until their new grass field on campus was deemed ready at the end of September.
"I'm so proud of the effort. I know they're tired. I know we've what we've asked them to do this year, battling through all the travel and the injuries, that's sports, that's what this is all about. We told the seniors in the circle at the end that this was a blip on the radar. We're going to come back stronger and we're going to do it in their honor."
Although the new grass venue on campus was meant to eventually host Rainbow Wahine soccer matches, Nagamine says "we have some logistical and operational issues that we need to take a look at on campus. Phase one is just about done, and I think phase two is getting ready to go out to bid. We will wait to see what happens. Those are decisions that are way over my pay grade."
In Thursday's contest, UC Irvine took a 2-0 lead at halftime behind goals from Mia Colombini in the 27th minute and Kelsey Swyney in the 34th. The Anteaters will be the 4 seed in the upcoming Big West Tournament.
Thursday's match was also Hawai‘i's last as a member of the Big West Conference. Starting in 2026, the vast majority of UH's sports will be members of the Mountain West.
"We're going to make sure that we work really, really hard with our very small team in the spring season and and ensure that we can vault ourselves to the top of the Mountain West. It's going to be a lot of uncharted territory. Just as I was driving out here today, I was like, 'What's the temperature in Wyoming and New Mexico and Nevada in late October?' There's going to be some things that we need to figure out. For the first time ever, I wish I was Laura Beeman and I coached an indoor sport. ... I think every single coach told us, man, we're going to miss you guys. We're going to miss Hawai‘i and what you guys brought to our conference. It was nice to hear."
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Christian Shimabuku can be reached at christian@alohastatedaily.com.
