Noa Sebay is a jack of all trades for the surging Castle football team. 

Sebay, a 5-foot-9, 185-pound junior, has not only filled numerous roles for the Knights this fall, he's thrived in them. Sebay put his many talents on display with his performance in his team's 53-14 road win at Waialua last Thursday. 

Although Sebay recorded one of Castle's three rushing touchdowns, it was on the defensive side of the ball where he made his greatest impact. Sebay tallied not one, not two, but three interceptions to lead a stingy effort by the Knights' defense. 

"It was impressive and a lot of it had to do with him understanding the formations, route recognition — we do spend a lot of time watching film and he's done a great job of understandings where the teams want to go against our defense — he feels where they're gonna look and all of the picks were him just anticipating that that was where the offense was going to go with the ball," Castle coach Eric Stephens said of Sebay, a second-year varsity starter and a team captain. 

Although he did not start the season in a prominent role on the defense, Sebay has certainly made his presence known in the five games that he has assumed the role of starting strong safety. Sebay also recorded interceptions against Kalaheo and Roosevelt and has five picks on the year. 

"We didn't move him over to safety until the fourth game of the year but what he's done in these five games since then has been impressive. He's just a very mentally tough player, he handles the coaching really well, he doesn't get down on himself, he has a high expectation for himself and he holds himself accountable," Stephens described. 

In addition to his duties in the defensive secondary, Sebay is also a starting slotback on offense as well as the backup to sophomore quarterback Draven Kalawa. 

"He does a lot for us; He's probably our most versatile player," Stephens said. 

Sebay, one of just two Knights that start on both sides of the ball, is even a member of the field goal/extra point personnel grouping on special teams. 

"He brings a lot of passion and he's just a competitor, which is why we're able to use him all over the field. He does whatever he needs to do to compete, so he's a huge difference-maker for us," Stephens said. 

While Sebay's ability and versatility serves him well, to be sure, it's his availability that is most beneficial to Stephens and the rest of the Knights. Stephens noted that it does not come without some serious sweat equity from the junior. 

"That has a lot to do with how he pushes himself in practice. He's able to maintain his conditioning because he gives his best at practice and he's such a technician on both sides of the ball that he puts himself in the right position, his form is proper with his tackling, on offense he makes sure he protects himself on the routes and when he's in at quarterback he does a lot of running — he's more of a running quarterback — so he's smart about limiting the amount of unnecessary contact he takes," Stephens detailed. 

Stephens, who is in his first season as a head coach after numerous stints as an assistant at various schools, including Mililani, Waipahu, Moanalua and Waianae, described how Sebay divvies up his time during a typical practice session. 

"It's tough — I've been around players that have played both ways and it's always a sort of difficult thing to do. For Noa, he probably spends most of his time on offense, just because of the intricacy of learning the plays, the blocking assignments and routes and all that, so he doesn't get a whole lot of practice time on defense but because he's a student of the game, he probably knows the offense and the defense the best of all our players. He's great about watching film, which gives him an advantage and that's the type of players you have to have to be versatile enough to play both ways," Stephens said. 

Although he backs up Kalawa at the quarterback position, Sebay has proven to be a solid mentor for the sophomore signal-caller. Stephens explained that as a means to bring Kalawa along slowly, Sebay began the season as QB1. That was only exacerbated by the fact that Castle opened the season against three consecutive Division-I teams in Kailua, Aiea and Nanakuli. 

"That's mainly because of Noa's experience and maturity and for Draven, it's a huge step up from JV to varsity, so what Noa has been able to do is have that calming effect to help Draven understand where we should be going, what we should be doing because Noa knows pretty much everything as far as what play we should be running and where the ball should go, the reads, so he provides that mentor for a young player, that even-keel, calming effect," Stephens said.

From his strong safety position, Sebay used his background as a quarterback to anticipate where the Bulldogs wanted to go with the football. 

"His anticipation was great. The first pick the quarterback scrambled a little bit so Noa read it and moved along with him and made a break on the ball. The second pick we were playing deep quarters (coverage) and he came over to help the corner and did a great job anticipating and caught the ball at the highest point. The third pick was another scramble and he knew the quarterback wanted to go to the team and the ball was pretty high so he had to make a super athletic play to pick it," Stephens recalled. 

The Knights were able to parlay Sebay's second and third interceptions into offensive touchdowns. Sebay also ran for a touchdown in the lopsided victory. 

"We started off slow offensively, but we did get some momentum and his second and third pick allowed us to stretch it out to a two- and three-score (lead) and allowed us to put the game away. Turnovers like that, it helps the entire team and gets the boys to rally around each other," Stephens said. 

With all of the hats that Sebay wears, Stephens pointed to Sebay's versatility and leadership as two of his best traits. 

"I wouldn't say that Noa does anything specific to a position best, but what he does best is lead by example. He has a lot of moxie, to use an old term, and because of that it's infectious throughout the season — that's what he does best," Stephens said. 

Infectious might be the most accurate description of Sebay's effect on the rest of his teammates. The Knights have won four of their last five games since an 0-4 start to the season. In their four victories this fall, they are averaging more than 50 points per game. On the flip side, they have allowed just 32 points in those four wins. 

"This is a very resilient team. I think it's just a belief in each other. They're trusting in themselves, in each other and trusting in the coaching and so we've all been able to gain confidence by just sticking together," Stephens said. 

Stephens detailed a motto — "MADE" — that his squad has lived by this season. 

"Mindset, Attitude, Discipline and Execute," he explained. "We try to make sure we follow the process, hold each other to that standard. The kids have done that and now they're seeing the fruits of their labor and now we're seeing some momentum and consistency and I'm just super proud of the way these players have done a good job of buying in and Noa is a big part of that."

Sebay is involved in an Early College program that Castle has established in conjunction with Windward Community College. He hopes to continue both his education and football-playing career at the next level. 

"He is one of the most consistent and hardest workers and that extends from the classroom to the weight room, to the football field. He's also very physically tough, he's competitive, he's smart and he just has everything that you would love in a player — I'd love to have eleven Noas on the field," Stephens expressed. 

Castle sits in a tie with Pearl City for third place in the Oahu Interscholastic Association Division II standings. 

Sebay and the Knights (4-5 overall, 4-2 league) play host to the Chargers (5-4, 4-2) Friday, 7:30 p.m. in Kaneohe. 

FOOTBALL

Jacob Ballesteros, Kapolei — Threw for 350 yards and four touchdowns on 20-of-24 passing without an interception in a win over Leilehua 

Kaeo Bush, Roosevelt — Threw for 152 yards and four touchdowns on 10-of-12 passing without an interception in a win over Kaimuki 

Jayden Carreiro, Kalaheo — Ran 20 times for 110 yards and a touchdown in a win over Pearl City 

Ryder Chang, Moanalua — Caught eight passes for 155 yards in a win over Waianae 

Champ Colburn, Aiea — Caught six passes for 152 yards in a win over Waipahu 

Teave Crawford, Kahuku — Recovered a fumble and scored on a 42-yard interception return for touchdown in a win over Mililani 

Keoki Cypriano, Kailua — Made five tackles, intercepted two passes and returned one 40 yards for a touchdown in a win over Radford 

Zak Davis, Kalaheo — Caught eight passes for 103 yards in a win over Pearl City 

Zane Fujihara Faavesi, Konawaena — Made 3 ½ tackles and scored on an 18-yard fumble return for touchdown in a win over Kealakehe 

Elston Hooper, Konawaena — Threw for 223 yards and five touchdowns on 12-of-14 passing without an interception in a win over Kealakehe 

Nai Kalauokaaea, Kalaheo — Threw for 282 yards and three touchdowns on 24-of-33 passing without an interception in a win over Pearl City 

Draven Kalawa, Castle — Threw for 208 yards and four touchdowns on 14-of-21 passing with one interception in a win over Waialua 

Zade Kalua, Nanakuli — Ran 14 times for 140 yards and caught a touchdown pass in a win over Kaiser 

Ioane Kamanao, Roosevelt — Caught three touchdown passes, threw a touchdown pass and ran for a touchdown in a win over Kaimuki

Chazz-Michael Kapahu, Kapolei — Ran 16 times for 115 yards and two touchdowns and caught a touchdown pass in a win over Leilehua 

Naehu Kipi, Nanakuli — Ran 15 times for 141 yards and a touchdown in a win over Kaiser

Isaiah Keaunui-Demello, Kailua — Threw for 204 yards and four touchdowns on 13-of-17 passing without an interception in a win over Radford 

Dane Kellner, Punahou — Intercepted two passes in a loss to Saint Louis 

Hiki Kim Choy-Keb-Ah Lo, Aiea — Caught six passes for 101 yards and a touchdown in a win over Waipahu 

Tainoa Lave, Campbell — Recorded one sack and scored on a 12-yard interception return for touchdown in a win over Farrington 

Trent Lepule, Saint Louis — Scored on a 39-yard interception return for touchdown in a win over Punahou 

Arona Liana, Waipahu — Ran for a touchdown, made five tackles, including three for losses and two sacks in a loss to Aiea 

Brayden Medeiros, Campbell — Threw for 255 yards and three touchdown on 19-of-25 passing with one interception in a win over Farrington 

Brystin Melendez, Nanakuli — Intercepted two passes and broke up another in a win over Kaiser 

Marquez Mellor, Kailua — Ran 10 times for 119 yards and a touchdown in a win over Radford 

Kalani Meyers-Tuinei, Waianae — Ran 15 times for 117 yards in a loss to Moanalua 

Pierce Mundell, Kalani — Recorded two interceptions in a win over McKinley 

Kaitin Mundon, Kapaa — Ran 17 times for 136 yards and a touchdown in a win over Waimea

Kamuela Ohia Pratt, Aiea — Made two tackles, forced a fumble and scored on a 9-yard fumble return for touchdown in a win over Waipahu 

Tristan Pacheco, Waipahu — Ran 21 times for 117 yards in a loss to Aiea 

Nicholas Segawa, Kalani — Ran 11 times for 96 yards and two touchdowns and caught six passes for 85 yards and a touchdown in a win over McKinley 

Nikko Smith, Kapolei — Caught three passes for 102 yards and two touchdowns in a win over Leilehua 

Madden Soliai, Kahuku — Forced a fumble and scored on a 93-yard kickoff return for touchdown in a win over Mililani 

Jahsiah Souza-Armstead, Konawaena — Caught two touchdown passes and scored on a 75-yard kickoff return for touchdown in a win over Kealakehe 

Kingston Tachibana, Kalani — Recorded two interceptions in a win over McKinley 

Royale Tavale-Petersen, Aiea — Made five tackles, including three for losses and scored on a 25-yard fumble return for touchdown in a win over Waipahu 

Joshua Taylor, Kalaheo — Scored on a 15-yard interception return for touchdown in a win over Pearl City 

Ethan Toia, Aiea — Made 6 ½ tackles, including two for losses, recovered a fumble and scored on a 40-yard interception return for touchdown in a win over Waipahu 

Rhailey-Zack Tolentino, Nanakuli — Caught nine passes for 131 yards in a win over Kaiser

Luke VanAntwerp, Mililani — Caught six passes for 107 yards and a touchdown in a loss to Kahuku 

GIRLS VOLLEYBALL

Uilani Ahana, Kamehameha-Maui — Had 16 kills and one dig in a three-set win over Maui 

Kalaweloilehua Chock, Kamehameha — Had 18 kills, two block assists, two aces, one block assist and one set assist in a three-set win over Punahou 

Tulsi Erlemann, Seabury Hall — Had 15 digs and one set assist in a three-set win over Hana 

Archer Fabrao, Kamehameha-Maui — Had 15 kills, one dig and one block assist in a three-set win over Maui 

Poema Kalama-Kingma, Iolani — Had 17 kills and an ace in a three-set win over Kamehameha 

Dillon McLellan, Seabury Hall — Had 15 digs, four kills and one ace in a three-set win over Hana 

Bailey Nakanelua, Iolani — Had 35 set assists and three kills in a three-set win over Kamehameha 

Milaniakai Padilla, Seabury Hall — Had 15 kills, nine digs, two set assists and one ace in a three-set win over Hana 

Kealananea Stephens, Mililani — Had 40 set assists, six digs, one kill and an ace in a three-set win over Waialua