Codie Paiva signs his national letter of intent, as Pono Anderson does the same in the foreground. Brien Ing | SL

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Codie Paiva signs his national letter of intent, as Pono Anderson does the same in the foreground. Brien Ing | SL

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One year ago, then-Saint Louis senior baseball player Jordan Yamamoto found himself in the very spot of the 32 student-athletes he addressed Wednesday morning.

Yamamoto, who recently completed his first season of professional baseball in the Milwaukee Brewers' organization, was a guest speaker at the Pacific Island Athletics Alliance National Letter of Intent Signing Day Event at the Elks Club Lodge in Waikiki.

He spoke of the importance of hard work, commitment and following your dream, words that resonated to his former Crusaders' teammate and current senior Pono Anderson.

"It was very cool just seeing Jordan up there and just having an opportunity to come to signing day," said Anderson, who signed with the University of Hawaii. "It was a great experience and with Jordan talking it meant that much more. Just seeing him and thinking about the championship was good."

Both Anderson and Yamamoto were pivotal in helping Saint Louis capture its first state championship in 40 years last Spring.

"I played in the state tournament at the Les (Murakami Stadium), so I feel comfortable there, and then just getting an opportunity to play college ball over there you can't go wrong," Anderson said. "I'm already used to the environment and I really like it over there. It's a pitcher's field."

Yamamoto, who was named All-Hawaii Player of the Year as a senior, committed to the University of Arizona at the 2013 event, but ultimately signed with the Brewers after they drafted him in the 12th round of the Major League Baseball Amateur Draft in June.

Kamehameha third baseman Codie Paiva, who also earned First-Team All-Hawaii honors last year, said Yamamoto's ascent to professional baseball serves as motivation for him headed into his senior season.

"It was really inspirational because he's doing his dream and that's what I want to do after college, so it just makes me want to work harder to become what he has become," said Paiva, who signed with Loyola Marymount.

Paiva, who is expected to be among the top prep prospects from Hawaii eligible for the 2015 MLB Amateur Draft, said he has received interest from several organizations, but is focused on preparing for his final year at Kamehameha.

"It's nice to get this off my shoulders with signing, so now I can just focus on the season and just winning as a team," Paiva said.