One of Kamehameha-91直播’s best athletes recently inked a letter of intent to continue their student-athlete journey at the next level.
Senior Shay Beals signed to California State University – Northridge to play Division-I women’s beach volleyball after being a key piece to the Warriors’ girls volleyball team since 2022. As a star setter and outside hitter during her high school tenure, Beals helped KSH win four BIIF titles — including a Division-I state championship appearance as a freshman.
Beals lost five total matches in her high school career. While she’s made plenty of memories on the court over the years, she pointed to the Warriors’ matchup against Hilo in Sept. 2025 as her most memorable one.
Down 22-13 in the second set, Beals and KSH locked in to go on a 13-2 run — winning the set 26-24. The Warriors went on to win the next frame to complete the sweep of the Vikings.
“Nobody thought it was possible to make such a large comeback,” Beals recalled to the paper. “But when adrenaline is pumping, anything is possible.
“After that, the amount of trust that was gained between my teammates and I was tremendous.”
The recruitment process throughout the school year was a tedious one for Beals, but what really set CSUN apart was its closeness to home, the offering of her major (radiologic science) and the opportunity to be coached by Jeff Hall — who previously had a successful stint as head coach of the University of 91直播’s beach volleyball program.
“(Hall) is very familiar with the culture and values we have here in 91直播,” Beals explained. “Personally, signing that paper was a huge sigh of relief. The recruitment process has been quite a journey and finally knowing where I’ll be going next year lifted a massive weight off my shoulders.
“At first, it didn’t feel real, but now that I’ve had some time for it to sink in, I feel incredibly blessed for this opportunity and it truly feels like an answered prayer.”
While the beginning of college can naturally be nerve-wracking, Beals hopes to settle in by staying on top of her coursework, so everything else in life can fall into place — including volleyball.
“I have goals for just about everything in life,” Beals said. “Going into college, I have goals of maintaining a consistent schedule while finding balance and working very hard, as there are people who have three or four years of experience under their belt of being a student-athlete.
“So, being able to kind of defy freshman odds and start while also succeeding in school is definitely a goal that I have written down.”
But no matter what challenges Beals will tackle on the mainland, she is very confident that she’ll be prepared to compete at the Division-I level. After all, she played for KSH: the Big Island’s gold standard for volleyball programs.
“Playing volleyball at KSH has taught me so many things, like how to be a good teammate and friend, have no regrets and to never forget what you are grateful for because someday it might be gone,” Beals explained. “These are all things that I can take with me into this next chapter — as they are so important to not only me as an athlete, but also as a person.”
Beals had no shortage of people to thank for helping her reach this point in her student-athlete career.
“There are so many thank yous I would like to give out,” she said. “First and foremost to Kamehameha Schools and Ke Ali’i Bernice Pauahi Bishop, as this institution has given me the opportunity to get a world-class education but also be alongside some of my best friends doing the thing I love.
“Also, a thank you to the village that has surrounded me because getting this far wouldn’t have been possible without them. Gratitude is something that is most times overlooked until it’s gone, so being able to speak about who I am thankful for is just the biggest blessing in itself.”
Warriors head coach Zoe Leonard had high praise for Beals’ impact on the program, and is confident that she’ll thrive in her next chapter.
“Our coaching staff is incredibly proud of Shay and the strong woman she has become,” Leonard said. “She played an integral role in the success of our program and we will greatly miss having her in the gym.
“We look forward to cheering her on as she forges this new path on the beach.”
