The Buffanblu's Noah Goss and the Hurricanes' Laugatausala Pedebone headline this week's top performers. ScoringLive photo illustration

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Male Athlete of the Week: Noah Goss, Punahou baseball
Noah Goss has come up big in whatever position his coaches have asked him to play.

The senior utility had a productive week to help the Buffanblu go on a three-game winning streak to bounce back from a close loss to Mid-Pacific to begin the season.

Punahou also rose from No. 6 to No. 3 in the latest Hawaiian Electric/ScoringLive Baseball Power Rankings and is currently tied for first place with top-ranked Saint Louis in the Interscholastic League of Honolulu Division I standings.

Goss, a three-year varsity member, went 6 for 11 with five RBIs in wins over Iolani, Maryknoll and Kamehameha batting in the two-hole.

"He's been giving us some timely hits that have been absolutely huge, and that's been a testament of his mental and physical preparation that he put in the offseason and during the week," said Punahou second-year coach Keenan Sue.

Sue said Goss' versatility allows the Buffanblu to have some flexibility with the lineup. Goss, who mainly plays in the outfield, was a designated hitter against the Raiders and Spartans, and pitched against the Warriors.

"We have a situation on our team where we actually have four of five starting outfielders," Sue said. "Because Noah switches between pitching and outfield, we just let him hit and focus on that.

"Noah is far and away our best hitter and traditionally people would put him in the three-hole. We just want him to get him as much at bats as possible. His swing is a fundamentally sound swing."

Goss' prowess at the plate was key in the Buffanblu's eight-inning win over the Raiders last Monday. Punahou scored two runs in the top of the first before trailing 3-2 after the fifth inning. Goss belted a solo home run in the top of the sixth to tie things up and Punahou eventually went on to win 5-3. 

"Noah has been so clutch it's ridiculous," said Sue. "His swing is a really clean swing. He gives himself a really wide swap to hit the ball, but he's also mentally prepared to hit. That's probably a better asset than his swing."

The Punahou senior's mental toughness was put to the test when he took the mound against previously No. 1 Kamehameha last Saturday. Although the Warriors scored four runs in the top of the second inning, Goss buckled down and found a way to prevent any more scores before Riley Guieb came in for relief in the seventh.

"What's really great about this past weekend was that he displayed what you want in all great pitchers, which is the ability to persevere in the game when you don't have your best stuff," Sue said. "You can't have your ‘A game' all the time and the best ones are the competitors that figure out a way to get it done."

Sue also said that Goss has matured as person and a player in the past year.

"He's kind of accepted his role as a leader on the team," said Sue. "He's one of our best physical players and the kids respect him. It's kind of a natural fit for him and it's given him the confidence to flourish as a player and a person."

As much as Goss has grown, Sue said that his full potential hasn't been reached yet.

"His upside is far more than what we're seeing now," Sue said. "It's great for us and potentially scary for the rest of the league. He's got a great future in front of him depending on where he wants to play college."

The Buffanblu will face No. 1 Saint Louis Tuesday afternoon at Goeas Field in a 3:45 p.m. contest.

Female Athlete of the Week: Laugatausala Pedebone, Kapolei softball
Kapolei coach Tony Saffery knew that Laugatausala Pedebone was going to be great player way before she played in high school.

Pedebone, a senior shortstop, had timely hits and made some key defensive plays to help the fourth-ranked Hurricanes outlast No. 6 Pearl City, 5-3, in 10 innings last Saturday.

Saffery said he had Pedebone on his radar back in the seventh grade when he would do clinics for her father's outside league team.

"I saw it way back in the seventh grade that she was going to be a special kid," he said. "She just had that toughness and tenacity about her."

Pedebone, an Eastern Arizona commit, scored a run and went 3 for 5 at the plate with a home run and two RBIs against the Chargers to help the Hurricanes improve to 2-0.

Kapolei jumped out to a 2-0 lead midway through the fourth inning before Pearl City tied things up in the bottom of the frame. Pedebone belted a solo home run in the top of the fifth to swing momentum back in favor of the Hurricanes.

"She struggled a bit finding her groove at the plate, but now she's starting to hit it well," said Saffery. "I know for Sala (Pedebone) it was huge. When Sala went ahead and hit that it was chaos in the dugout so it was definitely big for us."

Pedebone's home run was also monumental in the sense that the Hurricanes found a way to keep fighting. In the previous season, Kapolei often built up early leads only to throw it away down the stretch. 

The most notable example of this was in the quarterfinals of the Division I state tournament against defending champion Mililani. The Hurricanes built a 9-4 lead after four innings, but ended up losing 10-9 in walk-off fashion.

"It was big for us," said Saffery. "In the past, we didn't do bad against teams like Pearl City, Mililani and Campbell, we just didn't know how to finish. We didn't know how to respond. I think the kids reacted more rather than respond."

Pedebone has also bounced back from a knee injury that limited her and regulated her to third base for much of her junior campaign. The Kapolei senior made a handful of athletic plays at shortstop against the Chargers that boosted the spirits of her team.

"She was huge not only at the plate but at the shortstop gap," Saffery said. "There was some huge plays that in the past she would fumble. Now she's that much more focus and she was able to come up with some great 6-3 plays.

"There was a play where the third baseman should have gotten it, but Sala was able to scoop it up and make a one-bouncer to first. The play didn't come our way, but just making plays like that kept the spirits up in the dugout. She just came up big all the way around at the plate and the defense."

Saffery has enjoyed watching the progression of Pedebone.

"She's just a good athlete and a great asset, I'm glad she's with us," he said. "I really enjoy working out with her. She just has that mentality of being a student of the game and being more so now that she's going to go to college to play. She's definitely picking a lot of brains to prepare her for the next level."

The Hurricanes take on Waianae on the road Tuesday before facing off with second-ranked Mililani Saturday night.

BASEBALL
Kawena Alo-Kaonohi, Baldwin — Fired a two-hitter with five strikeouts and drove in three runs in a win over King Kekaulike

Matt Aribal, Pearl City — Batted 2 for 3 and drove in three runs in a win over Aiea

Damien Awai, Baldwin — Tossed nine strikeouts against one hit and one walk in a win over King Kekaulike

Matt Campos, Iolani — Doubled and batted 2 for 3 and drove in two runs and scored two of his own in a win over Kamehameha

Roy Clemons, Campbell — Tripled and drove in four runs in a win over Leilehua

Trenton Darley, Pearl City — Drove in two runs with a double and pitched a complete game in a shutout win over Mililani

Steven De Silva, Waipahu — Had a three-run home run and scored twice in a win over Waianae

Reggie Enriquez, Nanakuli — Went 4 for 4 at the plate and drove in five runs in a win over Kahuku

Moses Espaniola, Molokai — Batted 3 for 4 with two RBIs in a win over St. Anthony

Jordan Harvest, Castle — Went 2 for 3 at the plate and had three RBIs and a triple in a win over Kaimuki

Richard Higa, Pac-Five — Tripled and drove in three runs in a win over Hanalani

Matt Inaba, Iolani — Batted 2 for 3 with a solo home run in a loss to Punahou

Quintin Iriarte, Radford — Doubled twice and drove in three runs in a loss to Farrington

Cody Isa, Moanalua — Drove in the game-winning runs in a walk-off win over Kaiser

Hiram Kaikaina, Roosevelt — Batted 4 for 4 with a double in a win over Kaiser

Abel Kanehe, Kalaheo — Went 4 for 4 and had a RBI in a loss to Kapolei

Braden Kojima, Hawaii Prep — Tripled, doubled and drove in three runs in a win over Kohala

Shaun Kurosawa, Waiakea — Went 2 for 3 at the plate and drove in three runs with a triple in a win over Hawaii Prep

Kanen LaMonica, Seabury Hall — Batted 3 for 5 with four RBIs and tossed two strikeouts in relief in a win over Lanai

Chase Meilleur, Saint Louis — Fired a two-hitter and tossed five strikeouts in a win over Iolani

Taylor Meilleur, Saint Louis — Tripled, doubled and drove in three runs while scoring three more in a win over Iolani

Kao Mindoro, Maui — Scored three runs and batted 2 for 3 with two RBIs and a double in a win over Lahainaluna

Bronson Nekomoto, Aiea — Doubled and went 3 for 4 at the plate with one run scored in a win over Leilehua

Jerick Nomura, Punahou — Tripled and drove in three runs while scoring one in a win over Maryknoll

Alexander Oley, Mid-Pacific — Tripled, doubled and scored two runs with one RBI in a win over Maryknoll

Brendan Ono, Kailua — Tripled, doubled and drove in three runs while scoring three in a win over Kaimuki

Christian Ontai, Leilehua — Had two doubles in a loss to Campbell

Kyle Oshiro, Maui — Tossed seven strikeouts and batted 3 for 3 with two RBIs and three runs scored in a win over Lahainaluna

Ian Phillips, Saint Francis — Batted 2 for 3 with three RBIs and a home run and tossed six strikeouts in a win over Pac-Five

Jacob Poole, Saint Francis — Tripled three times and drove in five runs in a win over Hanalani

Mason Quinlan, Kamehameha — Went 3 for 4 at the plate and drove in three runs in a loss to Punahou

Austin Riley-Echiberi, Farrington — Tripled and batted 4 for 4 with five RBIs in a win over Radford

Reyn Romero, Hanalani — Drove in four runs and went 2 for 3 and had a double in a loss to Saint Francis

Lee Tanaka, Pac-Five — Fired a two-hitter and scored two runs in a win over Damien

Royce Tashiro, Waialua — Homered and drove in three runs and tossed 10 strikeouts in a win over McKinley

Kairos Torres-Umi, Molokai — Tossed five strikeouts and drove in four runs in a win over St. Anthony

Jarred Uyeda, Aiea — Batted 2 for 3 with three RBIs in a loss to Pearl City

Elvis Vakapuna, Kahuku — Homered and drove in four runs in a loss to Nanakuli

Jared Yara, Saint Francis — Doubled three times in three at bats in a win over Damien

Matt Yokota, Pearl City — Doubled twice and drove in three runs while scoring twice in a win over Mililani

Connor Zalewski, Kalani — Fired a two-hitter with seven strikeouts in a win over Kailua and batted 2 for 3 with a double in a win over Roosevelt

BOYS VOLLEYBALL
Nicolas Caballes, Hawaii Baptist — Had nine kills, five digs and an ace in a win over Saint Francis

Zavier Lieb, Mililani — Had 20 assists, five digs and three kills in a win over Waipahu

Isaac Liva, Mililani — Had 10 kills, five digs and two blocks in a win over Waipahu

Kristofer Ma, Mid-Pacific — Had 25 assists, five digs and three kills in a win over Iolani

Evan Minami, Iolani — Had 19 digs and five aces in a loss to Mid-Pacific

Zion Shepherd, Mid-Pacific — Had nine kills and a block in a win over Iolani

GIRLS WATER POLO
Adriana Allen, Campbell — Scored seven goals in a win over McKinley

Ava Countryman, Kahuku — Scored five goals in a win over Mililani

Gabriela Delgado, Waialua — Scored five goals in a win over Mililani

Cassidy Essex, Pearl City — Scored four goals in a loss to Kapolei

Dani Kauahi, Punahou — Scored three goals in a win over Kamehameha

Micaela Kauhane, Punahou — Scored four goals in a win over Kamehameha

Charity Lopes, Kalani — Scored six goals in a win over Waialua

Nicolle Martinez, Leilehua — Scored five goals in a loss to Kaiser

Kiana McDonald, Le Jardin — Scored five goals in a win over Iolani II

Kaylee Savage, Campbell — Scored four goals in a win over McKinley

Mailani Wendt, Kapolei — Scored seven goals in a win over Pearl City and had five more in a win over Moanalua

Lara Yasumi, Kaiser — Scored six goals in a win over Leilehua and seven more in a win over Campbell

SOFTBALL
Precious Aholelei, Kaiser — Tripled and drove in two runs in a win over 

Seli Aholelei, Kaiser — Drove in three runs and pitched a complete game in a win over Castle

Jocelyn Alo, Campbell — Doubled three times and scored two runs in a win over Leilehua

Sierra Amor, Konawaena — Tripled, doubled and drove in four runs in a win over Hawaii Prep

Kaipo Castillo, Farrington — Tripled, doubled and drove in five runs while pitching a complete game in a win over Waialua and tossed eight strikeouts in a win over Kalani

Dyana Cummings-Lani, Kailua — Fired a one-hitter with six strikeouts in a win over Kaimuki

Annabelle Delacruz, Kealakehe — Batted 4 for 4 with an RBI in a win over Hilo

Elisa Favela, Campbell — Doubled twice and drove in three runs while tossing seven strikeouts in a win over Leilehua

Mari Foster, Roosevelt — Homered and drove in three runs in a win over Kaimuki and homered and drove in four runs in a loss to Kaiser

Gaylynn Ha, Hilo — Went 3 for 3 at the plate and scored three runs in a loss to Kealakehe

Moana Hillen, Castle — Batted 3 for 5 with seven RBIs and four runs scored in a win over McKinley

Cassie Ho, Iolani — Doubled and scored two runs and the game-winner in a victory over Mid-Pacific

Nohili Hong, Lahainaluna — Scored four runs and batted 4 for 4 with four RBIs in a win over Maui

Chelsea Horita, Kalani — Homered and drove in three runs with four strikeouts in a loss to Farrington

Toni Ibara, Kalani — Had three triples in a loss to Farrington

Kama Kaeo, Nanakuli — Tripled, doubled and went 3 for 3 at the plate with four runs scored in a win over Aiea

Teizha Kaluna, Konawaena — Tossed four strikeouts and batted 2 for 4 and drove in five runs while scoring four of her own in a win over Hawaii Prep

Sadie Kapaku-You, Kapolei — Earned a win over Pearl City pitching 10 innings

Daria Kawaauhau, Nanakuli — Drove in four runs and went 2 for 3 at the plate in a win over Aiea

Mikayla Kekoa, Kohala — Tossed a perfect game with 12 strikeouts and had a solo home run in a win over Kau

Tiani Lastimosa, Konawaena — Homered and drove in four runs in a win over Hawaii Prep

Brandi Leong, Leilehua — Homered and drove in two runs in a loss to Campbell

Akamulei Makua, Kailua — Homered, doubled and drove in five runs in a win over Kaimuki

Kahilu McNicoll, Maryknoll —Tossed a no-hitter with eight strikeouts in a win over Sacred Hearts

Raynette Meyers-Kahalehoe, Nanakuli — Had a grand slam in a win over Aiea

Kawailana Mielke, Punahou — Batted 2 for 2 and drove in two runs in a loss to Kamehameha

Shazzareigh Nakoa-Chung, Pac-Five — Homered, doubled and drove in three runs in a loss to Saint Francis and had two doubles and three RBIs in a win over Pac-Five

Spencer Oda, Iolani — Batted 2 for 3 with a double in a win over Mid-Pacific

D'Asha Saiki, Punahou — Tripled and drove in two runs in a win over Iolani

Bree Soma, Maryknoll — Went 3 for 4 and drove in two runs while scoring three runs in a win over Sacred Hearts and batted 3 for 3 with two RBIs in a win over Saint Francis

Chelsea Soong, Kaiser — Went 3 for 4 at the plate with an RBI in a win over Roosevelt

Taylor Sullivan, KS-Hawaii — Tossed eight strikeouts in a win over Kau

Tanisha Taualai, Farrington — Homered and drove in three runs in a win over Kalani

Mykala Tokunaga, KS-Hawaii — Tossed seven strikeouts and a had a double in a win over Konawaena 

Mele Turner, Castle — Homered twice and had seven RBIs and the pitching win in a victory over McKinley

Makena Wagner, KS-Hawaii — Batted 3 for 3 and drove in four runs in a win over Konawaena

Kekai Wong-Yuen, KS-Hawaii — Tripled, doubled and scored three runs in a win over Konawaena