With one signature, Keleah-Aiko Koloi reached two long-standing goals.

It was in the sixth grade that Koloi set a college scholarship high among her aspirations. Along the way to an All-State career at Lahainaluna, her desired destination came into focus, and it turned out to be not all that distant.

The Lahainaluna senior took care of both when she signed with the University of Hawaii women’s basketball program.

“I’ve always wanted to go to UH since I was little,” Koloi said. “I think the fact that I get to represent where I come from, represent my home … and being able to wear Hawaii on my jersey was the biggest thing that convinced me.”

Koloi, a 6-foot-1 forward, is the seventh member of UH’s class of incoming freshmen and will take a versatile skill set from Maui to Manoa.

“We like our bigs to be able to be difficult matchups,” UH coach Laura Beeman said. “We’re going to be looking to replace a lot of height and versatility, and so to bring someone in who can run up the floor hard, get on the boards and pound and have a little bit of an outside shot and stretch things out … that’s a good thing to have on your roster. We need that.”

Koloi averaged 16.5 points and nine rebounds for the Lunas and was fourth in the Star-Advertiser’s Fab 15 voting last season. She closed her high school basketball career by averaging 20.7 points and 9.3 rebounds while shooting 66 percent (25-for-38) from the field in the Division I state tournament.

Lahainaluna coach Todd Rickard played Koloi primarily in the post, but she has the ability to knock down shots from the perimeter as well.

“She has good low-post moves, she works well in the paint, and she’s an outstanding shooter,” Rickard said. “I think just her understanding of the game is probably her biggest strength.

“We ran some offense based on getting her outside to get her some shots too. She can shoot the ball, but for us we needed her in the paint to do the majority of her work.”

Koloi said she learned her early post moves from her father, Sione, and Rickard and the Lahainaluna coaches refined her game. She also credited Mufi Hannemann, an uncle on her father’s side of the family, for helping polish her game with Team Aloha.

“Everyone that I’ve been around has pushed me and taught me to want to get to that next level,” Koloi said. “Even when I get to college, to push to get to that next level.”

Koloi said she grew up watching Rainbow Wahine volleyball and former UH All-American Kanani Danielson was one of her early role models. More recently, Koloi said she looked up to Destiny King and Kalei Adolpho, who completed their senior seasons in the NCAA tournament in March.

Koloi will follow Adolpho in progressing from the Maui Interscholastic League to Division I basketball. She’s among three Lahainaluna starters to sign with D-I schools, joining Cameron Fernandez (Washington State) and Fa-Ko-Fiemea Hafoka (San Jose State).

“It’s a full ride, so my parents won’t have to pay for anything and being close to home … it worked out in the end,” Koloi said.