Coach Howard Okita begins his 21st season with the Sea Warriors, and his fifth as assistant coach. Okita is regarded as the most successful skipper in Lady Sea Warrior softball history. Now as an assistant coach, he works with head coach Bryan Nakasone on the various aspects of the program.
In 2009, he took a role as an assistant but still remained heavily involved. The Sea Warriors won the PacWest and went to the NCAA three more times and won the NCAA National Championship in 2010. Okita was a key member of the staff that was named the National Coaching Staff of the Year. Overall, as a Sea Warrior “Coach O” has a record of 701-274 and has taken HPU to the postseason 12 times.
Okita joined HPU as an assistant in 1993 after the University merged with Hawai'i Loa College, and helped guide the program to their first NAIA National Tournament appearance. Okita was handed the reins in 1994, and guided his team to the National Tournament for four consecutive seasons. His 1997 team posted a then school-record 49 wins during which time they held an NAIA #1 ranking. Okita produced 12 NAIA All-Americans and six All-America Scholar-Athletes along the way.
In the fall of 1998, Hawai'i Pacific University became a fully sanctioned NCAA Division II institution. That spring, Okita captured his first Pacific West Conference Championship and finished second in the NCAA Division II West Regional. His team posted the nation's best fielding percentage (.981).
Prior to his Sea Warrior coaching days, Okita led the Hawai'i Loa College program for five seasons, and, in 1991, recorded his greatest triumph as a coach when the Mongoose won the NAIA National Championship. Okita was also named the NAIA Softball Coach of the Year. In his five seasons as head coach at HLC, the Mongoose were 125-65 (.658).
Winning championships is nothing new for Okita. At Kailua High School (Kailua, Hawai'i), he created a monster program that dominated the Hawai'i state prep leagues during the 1980s. His Surfrider teams won six state titles (1981, 1982, 1983, 1986, 1988, 1989), eight OIA championships, and every OIA East Division crown from 1981 until his retirement after the 1989 season. His overall record at Kailua was a phenomenal 181-24 (.883). In addition to his softball titles, Okita also posted two Little League Baseball Major Division State Championships.
Okita has announced that 2013 will be his final season in the dugout.
Coach Okita and his grandson Kale Sumner (former HPU infielder)
