Utah has been lucky enough to see a few sibling groups or pairs go through the athletic program over the past 10 years. From the Kruger brothers on the football team to the Odale sisters on the volleyball court, the Utes have been known to bring in families as well as single athletes.
The women’s basketball team is the latest Ute squad to boast a sibling pair with sisters Valerie and Malia Nawahine. But the family affair doesn’t end there — the Nawahines’ cousin Wendy Anae is also on the team.
The trio is experiencing a reunion of sorts this season at Utah. The Nawahines spent much of their youth in Hawaii but then moved to San Diego. While attending Cathedral Catholic High School, they teamed up with Anae on the basketball squad.
“It’s like a once in a lifetime opportunity,” Anae said. “They are family, and they have always had my back. It is a good experience. It was fun playing with them in high school, now it’s even more fun playing in college as well.”
After she graduated from Cathedral, Valerie Nawahine wanted to continue to play basketball at the next level. Even though her grandfather was a quarterback for Utah in the ‘60s and her brother currently plays for the Utes, she chose to take her talents to Provo and became a walk-on at BYU in 2011. The Cougars were also keeping their eye on Malia, who was a junior in high school at the time, but because of their father’s job, the Nawahines had to move from San Diego before Malia’s prep career was over. She was not happy with the decision, as it forced her to leave her team and cousin behind. The Nawahines took their nine children and came to Springville, Utah, where Malia finished out her high school career as a Springville Red Devil.
Although reluctant with the move, Malia’s time spent in Utah boded well for her, as she went on to become the state’s best girl’s basketball player in 2012. She was named the Gatorade Player of the Year in Utah and led her new team to an undefeated season, capturing the 4A state title. Throughout her prep career, she was recognized as an aggressive player, which had a lot to do with her older sister being the only one not afraid to guard her.
“Everybody knows she is the fighter,” Valerie said. “Nobody really wants to guard her when she is the aggressive one. When I would guard her, we would actually fight, like fight-fight. But it was fun.”
By committing to Utah, Malia all but assured that the Nawahines would square off against one another at least a few more times in their careers. That is, until Valerie heard her baby sister was going to be a Ute.
After hearing news of Malia committing, Valerie decided not to be the “black sheep” of the family and transferred to Utah. Although she saw playing time in two games for BYU her freshman season, playing with Malia was too hard to pass up. Adding to the family reunion, the third member of their trio, Anae, also committed to the Utes and was influential in the decision for Malia.
“She was a part of decision,” Malia said. “[Utah] was recruiting both of us at the same time, and then she told me she was going to accept their offer here, and I did the same.”
Eve, the mother of the Nawahine sisters, said it truly is a blessing to see her family all back together at the same school and in the sports that they love.
“We are just so blessed that it all worked out where they could play together,” she said. “They all played together since sixth grade. It was tough to move but great how it all worked out, and they’re back together to
play again.”