By Pat Jenkins The Dispatch Kevin Aoki, a former Bethel High School volleyball coach who has gone on to find success in the same sport at Pacific Lutheran University, will be one of the stars of the Tacoma Athletic Commission's 2016 Banquet of Champions June 23 at the Tacoma Dome. He'll be in good company. The event will include the induction of 37 individuals GÇô including three former Olympians, four former National Football League players and one NFL referee GÇô into the Tacoma-Pierce County Sports Hall of Fame. Doug Baldwin, the Seattle Seahawks wide receiver, will be the featured speaker. Also in the spotlight will be the commission's award winners for amateur athlete of the year, among other honorees. The latter include Aoki, who will receive the Frosty Westering Excellence in Coaching Award. Named for Pacific Lutheran's late football coach, the award recognizes commitment to excellence and devotion to the personal growth of players. Since taking the head volleyball coaching job at his alma mater 20 years ago, PLU has won Northwest Conference championships in 1999 (the first ever for the Lutes in volleyball), 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2013 and 2014. He's been named the conference's Coach of the Year three times, and his teams have a combined win-loss record of 360-161 (including a 60-4 mark in conference matches during one four-year stretch). They also have advanced to the NCAA Division II regional tournament 10 times. Aoki, a Hawaii native and 1984 graduate of PLU, previously led the Bethel High School program for 12 seasons, with nine of those teams qualifying for the state tournament. He still works for the Bethel School District as a math teacher at Bethel Middle School and a ninth-grade girls basketball coach. The impact of Aoki's volleyball coaching was on display last month at the middle school. Aoki and his PLU players hosted a clinic for the school's three teams May 6 in what he described as an effort to grow the game in the local community. "As none of these (middle school) girls play club ball, we thought the opportunity to work with our student-athletes during a special clinic would be a great chance to improve their skill level" and to "share what it means to be a student-athlete," Aoki said. Eleven PLU players spoke to the seventh and eight-graders about the importance of academics and athletics. The team worked with the 25 members of the Bethel program on drills and other skills to help improve their game during the two-hour clinic. Vera Wright, the middle school's coach, said her players "were very excited with the help and encouragement they received from coach Aoki and his team."
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