One thing Morganne Comstock learned from Carly Stowell when they played basketball together was to do what you love and love what you do.

Comstock, who graduated from Kentlake in 2010, has decided to transfer from Eastern Washington University after three years to Hawaii Pacific University so she can do what she loves – play basketball.

Stowell, who died in April 2007 while their select team was in North Carolina for a tournament, continues to inspire Comstock.

But, the decision to leave Eastern wasn’t an easy one. Comstock enjoyed her overall experience there, including her teammates and coaches, which drew her there in the first place. But, as a redshirt sophomore who has played just a handful of games, Comstock saw an opportunity to get back on the court.

“I made a lot of new friends who are going to be hard to say goodbye to and a lot of good friends through being on the Eastern basketball team,” Comstock said in a phone interview May 31. “I have a great time in practice, traveling with the girls on the team. It’s practice, but we always have a good time in practice and we make the best out of it. It’s as good as it could be but not quite what I wanted when I looked to come here.”

Hawaii Pacific offers what she is looking for: to continue to pursue her passion for music and a career in the industry as well as her love of the game of basketball.

“I first did my research before I went out there,” Comstock said. “Their coach was coach of the year. They were 19-7 and they said they needed a big because nobody was over 5-10 last year.”

Comstock stands 6 feet, 2 inches tall, so, in theory she could have an immediate impact for Hawaii Pacific. And once she arrived for her visit, she immediately felt like it was right.

“I flew down there, I loved the coach, I loved the girls on the team, I just fit right in,” she said. “It’s Hawaii and I loved everything about it. I already knew by hanging with the girls at night that it was a good fit, I clicked right in.”

And while she’s there, Comstock can finish a degree in the communications school and pursue her love of music, though she doesn’t sing. She played clarinet at one point in her life and has tried to teach herself to play piano watching videos on YouTube. But, she just wants to be around music, whatever that ultimately ends up looking like when she finishes college and begins her career.

“Carly’s quote is ‘Do what you love and love what you do,’” Comstock said. “One of the things I love is music. If I’m not in a game, I’m singing a song or listening to music. If I could just be around (music), no matter what field, then I will.”

And Stowell, who was the starting point guard for the Kentlake girls basketball team when the pair were freshmen, will be with Comstock in spirit at Hawaii Pacific who will wear her friend’s No. 21 while playing there.

“I’m excited about that,” Comstock said. “Nobody had it there and the coach already knew (the importance of the number). He’s saving that one for me. I just like to feel close with her when I’m playing basketball.”

Comstock is hoping to recapture what she experienced at Kentlake, where she was a four-year starter on varsity.

“I got to play, I got to see the perspective on the court 100 percent,” Comstock said. “Then when I got to Eastern, I was on the bench, I got to be a better teammate. I got a different perspective. I feel like I could become an even better player now that I have that bench perspective. At Kentlake, just the game, that’s what I’m trying to get back to and now tying them all together to be the best player that I can be.”

While at Kentlake, wrote girls basketball coach Scott Simmons in an email interview, they could rely on Comstock.

“We got offensive consistency from her,” Simmons wrote. “We could count on double figures every night. She was a playmaker and she had no fear. If it was an important time of the game she wanted the ball. If a shot needed to be taken to win a game, she wanted to take the shot. That is rare for the average player.”

Simmons noted that Comstock brought energy to the floor as a teammate and to everything the Falcons did.

“She was always one of the first to cheer on her teammates when they made plays,” Simmons wrote. “She’s a kid — young lady now — that just loves to play.”

And while Comstock looks forward to pursuing her love of basketball and music in her new adventure at Hawaii Pacific — she will arrive there Aug. 28 after spending the summer with her family and friends — she will miss the friends she’s made at Eastern.

After Stowell’s death, that was another significant lesson she took away from her friend and teammate.

“I’ve learned to just cherish friendships a lot more,” Comstock said. “Leaving Eastern and all the new friends I’ve made and the teammates, it’s going to be pretty hard. I just want everyone to know that, even I tell them a million times.”

Stowell taught Comstock so much and she plans to continue to make the most of those lessons.