Waipahu Dedicates Basketball Victory To Noel Esteban

Wednesday - December 23, 2009
By Jack Danilewicz
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Noel Esteban Jr.

Preaching the importance of her players understanding the bigger picture in life has always been a high priority for Waipahu head girls basketball coach Nadine Villarmia.

When the Marauders opened their OIA White season last week at home against Waialua, Villarmia had the most glaring example yet of how wins and losses on the hardwood are secondary to more important matters.

Waipahu recently lost a valued member of its student population when 16-year-old Noel Esteban succumbed to a brain tumor after a long battle with the illness. His memory was honored before and during the game.

A junior, Estaban had been a cross country runner and a bowler for Waipahu. His sister, Nomielynn Estaban, played basketball at Waipahu under Villarmia before completing her eligibility and graduating from the school last spring.


“It’s pretty sad,” said Villarmia. “I had him as a student, and he was the nicest kid. He was a really smart kid and the hardest worker. Whatever he did, he did well. We wanted to do something for him.”

Noel Estaban handled his illness with no shortage of courage, according to Villarmia.“He’d go to bowling practice after receiving his radiation treatments, and he somehow dragged himself to school. He just didn’t want to miss school or miss out on anything.”

Estaban’s funeral had been held only three days before the night the girls program honored him. In attendance was Nomielynn Estaban.

“I had told her that we’d be honoring him and invited her to come if she was up to it. She made it to the game, and that was nice. She looked good. She looked really happy. It was cool.”

Fans attending the game - the Waipahu students in particular - were encouraged to wear the color purple, which is the color associated with American Cancer Society. Waipahu players wore purple socks (the school’s uniforms are blue and gold) during the basketball game, and Villarmia and her assistants also were dressed in purple.

The athletic department sold paper basketballs for its Wall of Hope display for a dollar each. The project raised $108, which was given to the Estaban family. Banners also hung in the gymnasium in honor of Estaban, and a memorial near the spot on campus he frequented most includes messages and photos left by his friends.


Nearly lost in the emotion of the evening was the game itself. Waipahu won 49-41, but it was a bittersweet victory for Villarmia and the Marauder Nation.

“I do think the kids were happy (to win),” she said.

For some teenagers, losing a peer can be their first experience with coping with a death, given their relatively young age, she admitted.

“A lot of people think that cancer is just in older people. Hopefully, something like this helps the kids get the bigger picture, and they appreciate just being able to play basketball.”

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