The University of Hawaii has closed the books on a $3,244,391 athletic department deficit for the recently-concluded 2016 fiscal year, it was announced.

It marked the fifth consecutive year of a deficit in the 21-sport department but showed a $990,890 reduction from previous year, athletic director David Matlin said.

The deficit included approximately $830,000 to buy out the previous football coaching staff.

The improvement was credited, in part, to an approximate $250,000 rise in the sales of basketball tickets, an early NCAA stipend and cost savings in several areas.

“I think we are trending in a good direction, but we still have more to do,” Matlin said. “Obviously, we can’t do it without all the support that we get from from others, the legislature, the business community and our partners and fans.”

In its most recent (2015) report, the NCAA said just 24 athletic programs in the 128-member Football Bowl Subdivision “reported positive net revenues for the 2014 fiscal year.”