Anny Malufau, who stood proudly behind her daughter as she signed her letter of intent Wednesday, credited Vae for being strong through a difficult time for the family despite being in the midst of her senior season of volleyball for the Buffanblu. Greg Yamamoto | SL

Purchase image 1 of 1

It was always the dream of the late Feso Malufau that his daughter would play college basketball.

Wednesday morning that dream became a reality when Vonica "Vae" Malufau, along with 43 other high school seniors, signed their national letters of intent at an early signing ceremony hosted by the Pacific Islands Athletic Alliance at the Waikiki Elks Club Lodge.

Vae Malufau, a two-sport star at Punahou, inked her name to attend Northern Arizona University, where she will be on a basketball scholarship, fulfilling the wishes of her dad.

"She's played volleyball and basketball for a number of years, but (Feso) would always rather her play basketball, but we always thought she'd play volleyball in college," Vae's mother, Anny said. "The year before last she found her niche, I guess, and he was so proud. He was so happy."

Feso Malufau was a beloved member of the football community on the North Shore, where he was fondly known as "coach Juice" by the many players he impacted over the years through the Laie Park Big Boys youth football team he coached. After a long battle with stomach cancer, Feso Malufau passed away in August of this year. He was 44.

"Whenever someone close to you passes away it's like a make-or-break situation," said Vae, one of six siblings in the Malufau household. "It definitely made me a better person and it made me stronger I would say, because I depended on my dad a lot and now that he's gone I have to use what he has taught me and just make him proud."

Wednesday morning's signing brought about more emotions for Vae, who wiped away tears while speaking about her father.

"I think it just makes it so much more special for me because now I have a reason to do everything that I do," Vae said. "Before I know I did it for my family and stuff, but now it's like I'm more motivated to do good and to make my dad proud."

Anny, who stood proudly behind her daughter as she signed her letter of intent Wednesday, credited Vae for being strong through a difficult time for the family despite being in the midst of her senior season of volleyball for the Buffanblu.

"Of all my children, she's so headstrong," Anny said. "She's just so focused, she knows what she has to do. She has set her goals from when she was young and she's always been self-motivated. I never have to get on her about anything, whether its school or training. She trains seven days a week for almost the whole year and there's no complaining from her. She knows what she needs to do to be a better student-athlete and she's always been that way."

Feso passed away just a few weeks before Vae made her commitment to NAU, which came late this summer while she was on her official visit to the Flagstaff, Ariz. campus.

"This is so special especially because this is what he wanted: for her to play basketball at the next level. It's something that he always wanted," Anny said. "This is surreal. I can't explain it. I just wish he were here to share this special occasion with us because I know he's just so proud of her. I'm sure he's smiling down on her right now."