BI athlete’s corner: Paulekas coaches two BIIF divers to state glory

Although she has been leading the program for a short period of time, Hawaii Preparatory Academy head diving coach Lindsey Paulekas gets the most out of her students.

The coach just finished her second season leading Ka Makani’s program after co-coaching with Patricia Kassis from 2020-23, and the Big Island Interscholastic Federation (BIIF) diving scene saw its most successful season in years.

Paulekas’ top divers, HPA junior Holden Lahey and Kealakehe senior Hailey Barker, each placed first overall in the 1-meter dive at the K. Mark Takai/HHSAA Swimming and Diving Championship last weekend on O‘ahu. Barker is faced with the hurdle of there being no diving boards or coaches along Kona’s coast, so for the past three seasons, she has driven to Waimea every practice to train with Paulekas and Ka Makani as the only Waverider diver.

Barker finished the 1-meter dive at states with an impressive score of 380.85, while Lahey posted a 408.00 to dominate his field — becoming the first BIIF boys diver to win the state award since 2017.

“To my knowledge, this is the first time that both a boy and girls from the Big Island won this (state) championship together,” Paulekas told West Hawaii Today. “(Lahey) and (Barker) both come in with a strong desire to be the best divers they can be. That self motivation and self drive is present with the rest of the team, which makes them super fun to coach.”

Barker and Lahey dominating at states marked a huge achievement for BIIF diving, as the program only has around 10 divers in total — making them a small portion of competition compared to the rest of the state.

While working with Lahey and Barker throughout the 2024 season, Paulekas emphasized the importance of consistency and positive mindsets to the pair — which are two core elements that she believes go a long way in the sport.

“(Lahey) came into the season with big goals,” Paulekas said. “He wanted to win first place in state with his eye on that gold medal, and had all of his ambitions laid out in the beginning. (Barker) just has beautiful form with amazing techniques when it comes to diving. Not everyone has beautiful form like she does.

“Working with both of them, we really focused on repetitions and consistency as the season went on. The state meet had a dive list with the hardest degrees of difficulty, so we also worked a lot on mindset and how to perform those really difficult dives.”

Although Barker will be graduating this spring, Lahey will have another year of high school diving to add to his decorated resume. Given how much the young star grew throughout this season, Paulekas believes there is another level he can hit as a diver, explaining that Lahey has ambitions of diving collegiately.

“He knows exactly what he wants to achieve to become an NCAA athlete,” Paulekas said.

Paulekas’ passion for teaching diving was sparked soon after she took up the sport herself. A gymnast growing up on the mainland, Paulekas discovered diving in early high school — soon picking it up quickly and turning herself into a three-time Wyoming state champion. She then went on to Fresno State, where she dove for the Bulldogs. Paulekas worked as a gymnastics and snowboarding coach before moving to the Big Island.

Paulekas just finished her fifth season at HPA, calling the role her “favorite thing to do in the world.” Working alongside Kassis in the beginning of her tenure, the former head coach saw the potential of Paulekas as a developer and motivator from the very start.

“When I first met her, I knew immediately that she knew her stuff,” Kassis said, who coached at HPA from 2013-2023. “From a technical standpoint, she has a lot of strengths. She is a great technician. She’ll watch a dive, and right away will have a strong sense of the right correction to give the diver. She has the experience as a diver herself, and she’s just super warm, positive and friendly. Kids will tell you they have had nothing but good experiences with her.”

Kassis also praised Paulekas’ dedication to her divers, explaining that she goes above and beyond to ensure her students maximize their potential. Kassis gave an example of a routine Paulekas does at practice.

“(Paulekas) records every practice, slices it up into every individual diver’s dives and then emails it out to each diver,” Kassis said. “It’s such a big time commitment, but she makes it work.”

Another routine Paulekas likes to utilize in her practices is working on specific techniques and basics with her divers before they even set foot in the water, also known as dry-land activities. Paulekas makes sure to break down and analyze each dive process carefully to her students before they attempt it.

“We like to go through the motions of each dive, break down the basics and move on up from there,” Paulekas explained.

With Paulekas making her mark in the local diving community so early on, the future of BIIF diving remains bright — and she looks forward to being back on the poolside next season doing what she loves.

“It’s my passion,” Paulekas said. “I find it just as rewarding as it was to be an athlete. I love experiencing the success that comes with each diver. Diving can be very scary and takes a lot of guts, so it’s really fun to work through that with the kids, see them excel at dives and see them believe that they could never fail.”