Shay Moloney is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Mesa High School for AZPreps365.com

For Kiana Hiapo, volleyball translates to family. The woman in charge of Mesa High School’s beach volleyball program has an entire lineage built on the sport and is now spreading her love for it through coaching. 

Hailing from the island of Hawaii, Hiapo comes from a long line of volleyball players. Her grandfather was a 21-time All-American volleyball player. Her mother Vee is the head coach of Mesa’s indoor volleyball teams, and her sister Kanani is the head coach for freshman girls volleyball. 

Kiana Hiapo herself has played indoor and beach volleyball her entire life, even reaching the collegiate and professional levels. Now, she’s settling in as the head coach for both the girls and boys beach teams at Mesa. 

“It’s a way of life for my family. We’ve been playing volleyball since its conception, since my ancestors were playing with fishing net strung across coconut trees,” Hiapo said of her deep roots in the sport. 

Now that Hiapo has exchanged her uniform for a coaching clipboard, her focus on family remains as strong as ever. 

“I am coaching right now because I have seen it change my life, and I love seeing how it changes my kids’ lives. We’re all one big family, and because of that, even when we’re losing, we don’t really lose,” Hiapo said. 

With Hiapo family members at the helm of every volleyball team at Mesa, the familial culture permeates the sport. The beach and indoor volleyball teams train with each other on numerous occasions throughout the season, and fill the stands on game days. For the Mesa boys beach volleyball’s senior night this season, the entire girls team showed up after its practice to cheer them on. Hiapo has successfully used the sport to turn teammates and classmates into an unwavering support system for one another. 

For her athletes, Hiapo’s love and knowledge of volleyball are apparent at every team meeting, practice, and match.

“Kiana’s amazing. She is really dedicated to the sport, and has heart like no other coach I’ve had before. She knows everything about the game, she’ll tell you exactly what you need to do, and if you listen, you’ll increase your skill tenfold,” Ryan Gray, a senior for the beach and indoor volleyball teams at Mesa, said. 

Gray’s teammates, Turner Berrett and Drew Blaylock, share similar sentiments. Both players immediately used the word “passion” in their descriptions of what makes Hiapo a great head coach, smiling ear to ear during their responses. 

Melissa Allen, Hiapo’s assistant coach on the boys beach volleyball team, has been thoroughly impressed with her devotion as well. 

“She is an incredible planner. I call her a ninja when it comes to planning. She watches videos, researches mental health and kinesthetics, and comes to every practice with a detailed plan to strengthen the boys’ skills and work on their weaknesses,” Allen said. 

Allen not only lauded Hiapo’s technical coaching abilities, but also her position as a role model.

“She lives out what she preaches. We work really hard with these boys on grit, perseverance, and humility, and her practices are crafted to really work on those mental aspects of the game,” Allen said. 

With adoration and respect for Hiapo oozing out of every interview with her players and coaches, it’s clear she’s intent on extending her family’s volleyball legacy past the Hiapo name. Every Mesa Jackrabbit who steps foot on the sand with coach Hiapo is bound to learn something from her, both on the court, and off it.