From the diamond to the desk

Kimi Daniel had just finished a stellar career on Portland State’s softball team and was getting ready to graduate with a heath sciences degree this past spring, when she was approached with an opportunity to contribute to the athletic department in an entirely different way.

Portland State’s NCAA compliance office needed a new assistant to aid assistant athletic director for compliance Christopher Moore, and softball head coach Amy Hayes recommended Daniel for the part-time opening.

“She started this summer,” Moore said. “It’s been a great hire.”

Daniel works around 20 hours a week and helps Moore with everything from data input and monitoring recruiting logs to working with athletes on a range of compliance issues, including dealing with the mountains of paperwork the NCAA requires of its student athletes.

Daniel said the familiar faces and knowledge of the ins and outs of being a student athlete helped in her decision to take the job.

“The people are great here,” she said. “It’s pretty cool seeing the other side of athletics. It’s very different. It is very complex, very. I’m still learning the ins and outs. There’s always something to do.”

Moore said Daniel has adapted quickly to the challenging new job, making it “a seamless transition.”

“They know the rules as a student athlete,” Moore said. “Now she knows why the rules are in place. She picks it up fast. She’s a fast learner. She’s been absolutely wonderful. There’s been very little instruction needed.”

Moore pointed to Daniel’s communication and organizational skills as keys to her success, especially since the compliance office isn’t always the most popular part of any athletic department.

“We’re getting our money back [on her scholarship], so to speak,” Moore said. “It’s not an exciting job. It’s a thankless job.”

Teri Mariani, now an athletic department administrator, met the former outfielder when she was a walk-on in Mariani’s penultimate year as head coach of the softball team.

“She’s the kind of person you want to clone,” Mariani said. “From the first day out, she was special. No one worked harder. She comes from a superb family. You can see they’re the ones that instilled those values in her.”

Daniel was born in Kaneohe, Hawaii, to Val and Deanne Daniel and chose Portland State for the opportunity to play Division I softball and to be close to her family. Her grandparents and sister Krista live in Portland. The job gives her a reason to stay.

“I liked the fact that PSU was in a city but not a huge city,” Daniel said. “It grew on me.”

When Daniel isn’t keeping PSU athletes in compliance with NCAA rules, she’s coaching a whole new crop of softball players at Mt. Hood Community College as head coach Meadow McWhorter’s lone assistant coach. Daniel works with players on hitting and bunting, as well as coaching the outfield and helping out with strength and conditioning.

“I love it. I’ve got to stay involved in the sport somehow now that I’m a has-been,” Daniel said. She added that her current coaching job has been the best so far and she might like to pursue coaching in the future.

“I’ve been lucky to have a great group of girls,” Daniel said. MHCC begins their season this weekend and Daniel pointed out that the Saints play PSU on Oct. 18, a game she’s already focused on.

“I’m already planning on that game,” she said. “I want to win so bad. I’m going for bragging rights.”

Daniel will continue to work with the athletic department and coach at MHCC until she decides what her next move will be. She said she would like to attend Oregon Health & Science University for the college’s dietician program.

Until then, PSU will continue to “get their money back,” with Daniel helping out.

“It would be impossible to get through the day without her contributing to this office,” Moore said.