Women's Soccer 11/3/2020 2:20:00 PM

A Former Defender Against Goals, Nishioka Now Defends against COVID

Women's Soccer 11/3/2020 2:20:00 PM

A Former Defender Against Goals, Nishioka Now Defends against COVID

VULCAN FRONT LINES

For four seasons, Hilo native Chloe Nishioka fought off opponent's scoring opportunities as a defender with the UH Hilo soccer team.

Now, as a registered nurse working three different jobs, she is a front line defender against the coronavirus. But that is just the tip of iceberg of duties for the UH Hilo School of Nursing graduate, who still is a Vulcan defender in a couple of different ways.

A 2014 graduate of UH HIlo in biology and a 2020 grad of the UH Hilo School of Nursing, Nishioka juggles working at the Hilo Medical Center, the Keaau and Hilo Urgent Care facilities and for the Premier Medical Group Hawai`i. Before COVID, she also worked as a volunteer assistant coach for the UH Hilo women's soccer team and the Hilo High School girls soccer team, while serving as the head coach for the Hilo HS junior varsity program.

Her work with the Premier Medical Group Hawai`i brings her back on the UHH campus to help test Vulcan athletes for COVID-19---in a different way, still defending Vulcans.

Her college career was one to remember, as much for her work in the classroom as on the field. The 5-foot-5 fullback played four seasons (2011-14) for the Vulcans, including the 2013 campaign when UHH went 10-4-2, one of the best seasons in school history. In each of our her four years at UHH, she was awarded the Sakai and Harue Wakakuwa Female Student-Athlete of the Year award at the spring banquet, given to the top Vulcan among all seven female teams, based on academic and athletic accomplishments.

No one else has ever won the award twice, much less four times over. Nishioka graduated in the fall of her senior soccer season with a 3.92 grade point average in biology. She would go on to graduate from the UHH School of Nursing (2020), winning another honor, this time the Hawaii Nurses Association Award.

Even while attending Hilo High School, where she was a two-time All-BIIF selection (graduating in 2010), she was already working and learning in her field. She worked for Nakao Physical Therapy, beginning her junior year of high school, and continued there until August of this year.

Busy from the beginning, her time at UH HIlo as a student-athlete helped prepare her for what seems like an impossible schedule now.

"There are so many skills that you develop in order to be a successful student-athlete," she said. "Flexibility, the ability to adapt in situations, and critical thinking are crucial to being a student-athlete as well as in the field of nursing. A lot of the time things do not go the way you planned or anticipated, but you cannot simply give up. People are depending on you, whether it's your teammates or coaches, or your patient and other healthcare team members."

COVID would certainly fall into the category of things not anticipated, but Nishioka spends a good deal of her time these deals dealing with it. You may see her at the Hilo Airport swab testing or at UH Hilo doing the same. Her full-time job is at the Hilo Medical Center as a new grad registered nurse. At the Keaau and Hilo Urgent Care facilities, she works different responsibilities. " I am a medical assistant that assists with patient triage and performing any necessary testing or bandaging at the clinics," she explained.

Chloe is following a family line of Nishioka's that have deep ties to Hilo and the campus. Her father Curtis was the UHH Director of Admissions for many years before retiring in 2013. Her mom Dee has helped organize twice-yearly Vulcan physical exams with athletic trainer Kensei Gibbs since 2012. Chloe's brother Keenan played baseball for the Vulcans from 2012-16, and he graduated from UH Manoa in 2019.

What's next for this achiever? "It's hard to think too far ahead, but I hope to continue to learn and gain experiences as a registered nurse,". she said. "Possibly continue my education to become a nurse practitioner."

Whatever is next, the communities of Hilo and UH Hilo can give thanks for this Vulcan Front Liner, who gives her all every day protecting and fixing those around her.

Print Friendly Version