Former UH Hilo basketball standout and longtime Hawaii Tribune-Herald sportswriter Bill O'Rear offers Vulcan fans another historical gem, this time giving us the Mt. Rushmore of Vulcan Athletics--Three coaches and an administrator who have had the most influence in putting UH Hilo on the sports map. (for O'Rear's previous story on the all-time Vulcan basketball team, go here.)

(Photos from L to R: Ramon Goya, Jimmy Yagi, Joey Estrella and Sharon Peterson)

By BILL O'REAR
Retired sportswriter

When University of Hawaii at Hilo fans talk about their favorite Vulcans over the years, they usually mention a handful of athletes in various sports.

After all, the Vulcan program has had solid success in several sports during its 44-year history and many athletes have earned not only all-conference honors, but also some regional and national recognition.

However, when it comes to deciding who belongs atop the mythical Mount Rushmore of UH Hilo Athletics, there are four names that rise to the top of the list and each individual played a vital role in the growth and success of the overall program.

The Vulcan Mount Rushmore includes three highly respected coaches and an athletic director that helped build the program's early foundation and set a standard for future success.

Here is the list.

* Jimmy Yagi, who coached the Vulcan men's basketball program for 18 years, including the final 12 in the NAIA. He averaged 23 wins per season and finished with a 218-87 record, the most wins by a men's basketball coach in the program's history.

The Vulcans officially joined the NAIA during the 1976-77 season and went on to capture two straight District 2 titles and earn back-to-back trips to the NAIA National Championships in Kansas City, Mo.

The Vulcans then finished runner-up during the 1978-79 season before returning the following year to win the district title again and go on to play in the nationals.

Yagi's teams were praised for their unselfish style of play and each of his squads shot better than 50 percent from the field during their strong run in the NAIA.

Yagi, 85, is considered by many coaches and media in the state as the "Father of Small College Basketball in Hawaii." He is a member of the UH Hilo Athletic Hall of Fame.

* Sharon Peterson, who coached the women's volleyball team for 25 years and led the Vulcans to seven national titles and three national runner-up finishes (AIAW, NAIA).

Peterson, 78, complied a 511-251 record and had 42 All-Americans play for her over the years. She also earned various coaching honors during her highly successful tenure, including five times as the National Coach of the Year.

Peterson coached UH Hilo from 1976-2002. She is a member of the UH Hilo Athletic Hall of Fame as well as the NAIA Athletic Hall of Fame.

Peterson was an outstanding volleyball player in college at Long Beach State and played in two Olympics, two Pan Am Games and the World Games for Team USA. In 1969, she was named the National Player of the Year by USVBA and later enjoyed a standout professional volleyball career.

* Joey Estrella, who helped establish the UH Hilo baseball program and was its head coach for the first 37 years.

Estrella, 68, was hired as the Vulcans coach in 1976 and led the team through a 17-year run in the NAIA, a 15-year run in NCAA Division 1, and the first 5 years in NCAA D-II.

Estrella is a 1969 St. Joseph High School graduate who went on to a sterling baseball career at UH Manoa under legendary coach Les Murakami.

As the Vulcans head coach, Estrella led the team to a 361-275 record in NAIA play, including a trip to the NAIA World Series and 11 postseason berths. He finished his overall career with a 660-931-5 record.

Estrella is a member of the UH Hilo Athletic Hall of Fame.

Estrella also spent time as UH Hilo's athletic director and as an assistant coach for Yagi's championship 1976-77 and 1977-78 teams. He is currently helping the Vulcans women's softball program as an assistant and is a public address announcer for the volleyball and baseball programs.

Yagi, Peterson and Estrella were considered "player's coaches" during their UH Hilo careers and popular with their teams. Their ability to recruit quality student-athletes and build strong relationships were keys for those coaches turning out successful teams.

The athletic director is:
* Ramon Goya, a highly respected UH Hilo Health and Physical Education Associate Professor who became the Vulcans athletic director in 1976, oversaw the university's move to the NAIA and guided the program through some of its most successful years.

Goya, 79, hired Yagi and his two valuable assistants, Dwight Sumida and Estrella, plus Peterson in the mid-1970's to help set the program's foundation for success.

During the late 1970's, the Vulcan men's basketball team and women's volleyball team were playing before packed crowds in Hilo and competing in national tournaments despite being such young programs.

But Goya was able to work closely with then UH Hilo Chancellor Edwin Mookini, Yagi and the growing Vulcan Booster Club to help put UH Hilo on the national map and become a respected small college power in the Pacific

During those early years, the Vulcans played in the NAIA's District 2, which included Oregon, Idaho and Hawaii.

Goya's vision and his close relationship with California junior college coach Herb Livsey helped open the door for Yagi and the Vulcans to recruit some outstanding JC talent to build those early successful basketball teams.

Livsey, who went on to become a longtime NBA scout, introduced Goya and Yagi to other California JC coaches and that helped set up talent pipelines in both Northern and Southern California.

The soft-spoken Goya will always praise those other key UH Hilo individuals and the strong community support that was invaluable during those early years. But without Goya's humble leadership and his willingness to bring aboard the right people, UH Hilo might have struggled for a long time before finally developing into a competitive small college program.

Now, there should be no doubt that when UH Hilo fans talk about the Vulcans' Mount Rushmore, the names Yagi, Peterson, Estrella and Goya certainly deserve to be atop the list.

(Editor's note: Bill O'Rear is a former UH-Hilo student-athlete who went on to become the Hawaii Tribune-Herald's sports editor. He covered Vulcan sports for almost 40 years.)