Houston Dash forward Kealia Ohai excited to start the season fully healthy

Houston Dash forward Kealia Ohai (7) signals to a teammate before a throw-in by Sky Blue FC during the first half of an NWSL match at BBVA Compass Stadium Saturday, Aug. 25, 2018, in Houston. Houston Dash forward Kealia Ohai (7) signals to a teammate before a throw-in by Sky Blue FC during the first half of an NWSL match at BBVA Compass Stadium Saturday, Aug. 25, 2018, in Houston. Photo: Godofredo A. Vasquez/Staff Photographer Photo: Godofredo A. Vasquez/Staff Photographer Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Houston Dash forward Kealia Ohai excited to start the season fully healthy 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

Houston Dash forward Kealia Ohai is happy to be healthy.

After missing much of the 2017 season with a torn ACL, Ohai made a gradual return back to the field in 2018. She missed the first three games of the season and didn't start full, consecutive matches until mid-June.

A year removed from the toils and frustrations of rehab and recovery, Ohai has a renewed focus. And with a new-look team, she's ready to build on the successes of last year, when the Dash missed the playoffs but set a team record for most wins in a season (nine).

"I keep thinking this time last year I fighting my way back trying to get on the field. Physically that's hard but mentally it's so difficult.

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You want to play so bad," Ohai said after the Dash opened practice last week. "I missed the first five, maybe four games last season and it's tough. It's tough to jump in and you start with 20 minutes, then 30 then 40 and that was really hard for me."

Ohai finished the year ranked third on the team in goals (5) and second in assists (4)--about half of the 11 goals she netted in 2016. She's hoping her 2019 production spikes now that she's spending her preseason polishing her shooting technique instead of nursing an injury.

"I'm feeling really good. I'm 100 percent (and) my knee feels great," she said. "Already, if I'm starting for the first game that gives me confidence as well as using this preseason as a time to get my finishing down. When you come in with an injury you kind of miss that."

Houston's season-opener against Reign FC is scheduled for April 14.

When the Dash take the field, they'll do so with a new coach in James Clarkson.

The roster will also look different after newcomers like defenders Satara Murray and Ari Romero joined the club in early March. Midfielder Sophie Schmidt was acquired on Tuesday.

"Just to get everybody in here; we have so many new girls, so many new faces, a new coaching staff so it's awesome to finally get everybody here," Ohai said, adding that the team's core players still remain.

"At the end of last season we really started to get our momentum going. We said at the end of last year, that if it was longer we really felt confident that we were going to continue to win."

Unfortunately for the Dash, Houston's season ended in early September like the other five teams that missed the postseason. But the team did earn 15 points through a nine game mid-summer stretch that included a draw with eventual champion North Carolina Courage.

It's Clarkson's early approach plus those 2018 successes that's given Ohai confidence in what she and her teammates can achieve with a fresh slate in 2019.

"(Clarkson) wanted really high pressure, a lot of intensity, stepping up getting to goals as quickly as you can. I love that style, that's the style I always want to play so just in the first session I saw that's what he likes and we can be really good at that," Ohai said. "My goal is to be the leading scorer, always. As a team we have to make playoffs."

A month away from the start of her 2019 campaign, Ohai is focused on polishing her offensive arsenal and getting acclimated to new teammates. With a healthy knee, she's happy to feel in control again.

"It's a totally new coach, totally fresh start for us," she said. "It's a whole new team so not looking too much in the past because we're in control right now."