Central Washington University Athletics has plenty of familial connections between coaches and student-athletes. soccer’s head coach Michael Farrand and daughter senior midfielder Keilin; cross country head coach Kevin Adkisson and daughter freshman cross country runner Kourtney; and men’s basketball head coach Greg Sparling and son freshman forward Coleman.

Senior guard Dom Hunter for CWU men’s basketball is part of this trend, too.

Hunter’s dad, Damon Hunter, was a reserve for the Wildcats in the 1991-92 and 1992-93 seasons. According to the 1991-92 CWU Pressbook for Men’s Basketball, Damon played one year of college basketball at Nebraska Wesleyan before serving in the Army for four years. His mother, Sara, ran the 400-meter, 800-meter and 4×400 relay for CWU track and field as well.

“I was born here and we moved straight to the West Side,” Hunter said.  “I didn’t even know I was born here until I was older and familiar with my birth certificate. It was crazy to know my parents went here and played a sport here.”

Hunter, who played high school basketball at Decatur High School in Federal Way, started his collegiate career at Eastern Arizona Community College (2012-14) before transferring to University of Alaska Anchorage for the 2014-15 season. Feelings of homesickness, however, followed Hunter to both schools.” Hunter said. “Arizona and then going all the way up to Alaska, you kind of miss home when in places that aren’t familiar to you,” he said. “It was a good experience for me, but I am so glad to be closer to home now.”

Hunter averaged 13.3 points per game for Alaska Anchorage in 2014-15 while ranking third in free throw percentage (.850) and ninth in three-point field goals per game (2.1) in the GNAC. After experiencing both summer and winter in Alaska, Hunter again found himself looking for a new opportunity.

“I went up there in the summertime before the season and school started. It was a great experience. It never got dark [in the summer], so that sold me right there,” he said. “The transformation over to the wintertime was kind of — I wouldn’t say depressing because I don’t think I got depressed over there — it was just different, much different. It wasn’t familiar to me so I got cold feet a bit and knew that wasn’t going to be the spot for me.”

Hunter decided to transfer from Alaska Anchorage and committed to play at University of Texas of the Permian Basin under former Cal State-Fullerton head coach Andrew Newman.

“Newman is a great coach — got a lot of guys to play after college, and that’s one of my big goals after college: to play professionally.”

The small world that is collegiate sports led Hunter in a different direction. When combined with his feelings of homesickness, that led him to CWU more than 20 years after his parents arrived in Ellensburg.

CWU’s head Coach Greg Sparling played for the Wildcats in the 1989-90 and 1990-91 seasons before becoming a junior varsity head coach and varsity assistant coach under Gil Coleman while Hunter’s father Damon played from 1991-1993.

“I talked to my parents and I talked to Coach Sparling.”  Hunter said. “I trust [Sparling] the most because he respects my last name, respects my dad … I wanted to play with someone I knew instead of another completely new program.”

The decision to come back to his birthplace has resulted in Hunter leading CWU to a 4-1 record while also leading the team (and the GNAC) in points per game (27.0) and free throw percentage (.975). Despite sitting out the entire 2015-16 season due to the GNAC’s policy regarding students transferring within the conference, Hunter hasn’t missed a step in his game.

“He’s fitting in really well,” Coach Sparling said. “He’s a leader and he’s doing a great job for us. It’s been a great fit for him and us so we’re excited to see how his senior year plays out.”

His performance has been noticed and appreciated by all his teammates, including sophomore guard Naim Ladd.

“This year playing with Dom is really fun for me,” said Ladd, the only returning Wildcat who averaged double-digit points per game last season (10.2). “I feel like he knows how to score without the ball and with the ball. With us, being great shooters, we know how to find each other and find spots to get each other open. Playing with Dom is one of the best feelings I’ve ever had — he’s one of the top guards and he can really shoot.”

Hunter’s output will be hard to maintain for the whole season, but if he does, Hunter’s dream of playing professionally won’t be too far from his reach, and CWU will continue to win games behind his offensive firepower.

“This is a blessing. I never expected to be at this level of play I’ve been playing at,” Hunter said. “All the hard work is starting to pay off finally.”