Sophomore Xeana Kamalani Dung took an uncommon path that brought her from a run-down neighborhood in Hawaii to Fresno, where she is a Bulldog softball ace.

Born in a small town on the western coast of the island of Oahu, she lived near the stereotypical Hawaiian coast, lined with resorts and million-dollar homes. But she was just a girl in a run-down neighborhood in Waianae, Hawai'i, looking for a way out.

"There are homeless people everywhere and drug abuse is a big problem," Dung said. "A lot of people don't make it out of that town. It's a big deal to me that I made it to the mainland and I am doing a bunch of things with my life."

Both of her parents were raised in Waianae and attended the local high school and knew they wanted a better life for their kids, so they enrolled Dung in a high school that was a two-hour bus ride away.

"They kept us on track and they made us know that there's bigger things in life," Dung said of her parents.

Her parents wanted her to participate in sports, along with keeping her grades up. So they had her give softball a shot. In one of her first games, the coaches needed someone to pitch. Dung was ready to try it out, even though she had never done it before. She was a natural.

Soon she started garnering attention from colleges.

Fresno State was one of the lucky schools that would get an official visit from Dung.

"It was a good experience and it seemed like home," Dung said. "It's a perfect fit for me."

So she made her choice. Fresno State was going to be her new home.

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