Feb. 11, 2015
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -
By Miranda Kulp, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -When juniors Reina Furuya and Megan Tupinio left the Hawaiian islands for central Pennsylvania they officially made Happy Valley their second home and quickly found family in their teammates.
"I think that's one of the great things about college sports," said head coach Amanda Lehotak. "We grab players from all over the country and can see them form their own little family despite coming from completely different areas."
Both veteran players admit it was a culture shock coming to State College but each of them fell in love with the university and area immediately.
"Although I left a lot of my family back on the island I couldn't be happier here, coming to Penn State is one of the best decisions I've ever made," said Maegan Tupinio.
"I've always loved the East cost and knew at a young age I wanted to go to a school in this region, I love the pace and historical aspect of it all," she added. "Penn State has everything I ever dreamed of in a school and the fact I get to play softball at a Division I level only makes it better."
Not only is Tupinio dedicated to her sport, she takes her academics very seriously. Majoring in biological science, she plans on being a doctor one day.
"Maegan Tupinio is kind of our silent warrior. Although she's quiet, her impact on the team is essential," said Lehotak. "She takes school very seriously and is always giving her best at practice. She's one of the hardest working kids I've ever met, she may not say a lot but she always gets the job done."
Alongside Tupinio, another Hawaiian native rounds out the roster. Shortstop Reina Furuya left her hometown of Waipahu, Hawaii to pursue her collegiate softball career by being in the right place at the right time.
"I got really lucky with Penn State finding me," said Furuya. "The coaches were looking at a girl on my travel ball team and encouraged me to look into Penn State's program and I instantly fell in love."
With most of her family still in Hawaii, Furuya said with the support of her family and love for the sport moving so far away for school was exciting for her.
Currently, Furuya is majoring in energy business and finance, and makes sure she is always keeping a balance schedule, especially since the spring season is in action.
"It's sometimes challenging but I can't imagine not playing a sport in college," she said. "It's an instant family and we're all sisters on this team, it can be a grind but it's so much fun playing the game with my teammates."
Although she misses Hawaii sometimes, Furuya explains having another island native on the team is a constant connection to back home.
"In Hawaii we have this saying `ohana' which means family, everyone from the islands is instant family so seeing Maegan is always a little reminder of my culture," Furuya explained.
Although they always have each other, both girls credit their teammates for making the transition from the 808 to the 814.
"I'm here with 21 other sisters," said Tupinio. "Although I miss my parents, my teammates always make me feel at home," said Tupinio.
Regardless of where anyone is from, when these players and coaches get together they create a large softball family.
"College athletics is all about meeting different people from different places while playing the sport we all love," said coach Lehotak.
Furuya and Tupinio will be back in action with their Penn State teammates this weekend when they take part in the Aggie Classic, hosted by Texas A&M in College Station.