The Tigers won the OIA D2 boys soccer title while the Warriors won the D2 state title. ScoringLive photo illustration

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Male Athlete of the Week: Kotaro Minawa, McKinley soccer
It did not take John Mai very long to realize he had a rare talent in Kotaro Minawa.

The ninth-year McKinley boys soccer coach recalls his introduction to the Japanese transplant.

"The first day of practice, I knew he could play when I saw him," Mai said of Minawa, a 5-foot-9 senior. "The harder part was getting the connection between me, him and the team. He was always a great talent, but the language barrier kind of played a big role in our team's connection."

You see, English is not Minawa's first language. Nor is he very proficient at it — yet, anyway.

"He can speak a little English, but when we start talking details and positions, if I don't draw it on the board it's kind of hard for him," said Mai, who noted that the school has a translator for Minawa to aide with the language barrier.

Minawa, whose father has business ties in Hawaii, actually transferred to McKinley at the end of last school year, after the soccer season had already concluded.

"Nobody knew about him until he came out to conditioning, but he was there all the time. Even though it was optional, he was always there from September and the players got to know him over time," Mai said.

It didn't take long for his new teammates to take to Minawa.

"They've always bought in with him because he's just an overall friendly guy," Mai said. "He gets along with everybody and he's always smiling. He does gets frustrated sometimes, mostly at himself, but overall he's very positive and the guys all look up to him."

However, that didn't translate to on-the-field success for the Division-II Tigers early on. They dropped their first eight games of the season, but the silver lining was that seven of them were against D-I opponents.

The turning point, Mai said, came after a 4-0 loss to Roosevelt on Dec. 20.

"We were having difficulty as a team with a lot of new players and one of our team captains from last season being hurt, so our chemistry wasn't there, but after that Roosevelt game we had a team discussion about how we want the team to move forward and it was a complete buy-in after that," Mai said. "Even though the scores of some of those games after that didn't show it, I believe that's when the turnaround started for us."

In fact, McKinley went on to lose its next four contests after the game against Roosevelt. It wasn't until Jan. 17 that it recorded its first victory: an 8-0 win over Kaimuki.

Since then, the Tigers have won four of their last five games, including three postseason games last week.

Minawa scored twice in a 3-0 win over Aiea Wednesday in the first round of the Oahu Interscholastic Association D2 tournament. He did not score in Thursday's 2-1 semifinal win over Waipahu, but more than made up for it Saturday.

With his team trailing Kalaheo 2-0 at halftime of the championship match, Minawa scored twice in an 18-minute span in the second half to send it into extra time.

In both overtime periods, Minawa's versatility was evident as he moved back from his usual attacking midfield position to defense. The Tigers eventually won in penalty kicks, but it was Minawa's positive outlook when things appeared dire that stood out to his coach.

"At halftime he just reminded the team to remember why we play soccer — it's just to enjoy — so he has that positive attitude all the time," Mai said.

At the end of the night, Minawa and the Tigers (4-8-1) hoisted their first OIA championship since 1977.

"I'm just proud of the team and all of the coaching staff on this just unbelievable run. It's a proud moment for the school and the program," Mai said.

McKinley has qualified for The Queen's Medical Center/HHSAA D2 State Championships, which get underway next Wednesday at the Waipio Peninsula Soccer Complex.

-Kalani Takase

Female Athlete of the Week: Saydee Aganus, Kamehameha-Hawaii basketball
Saydee Aganus made sure her senior year went out with a bang.

The 5-foot-7 guard helped guide Kamehameha-Hawaii to its fifth state title and first since 2013 as the Warriors defeated Saint Francis, 41-32, in the Snapple Division II Girls Basketball title game last Saturday night at the Neal Blaisdell Arena.

Aganus, a four-year starter, accumulated 44 points, 22 rebounds, 11 assists, nine steals and seven blocks in three tournament games and was selected as the tourney's most outstanding player.

"She's just amazing," KS-Hawaii coach Weston Willard said of Aganus. "She's the heart of the team, she's a natural leader and she just puts it all on the floor."

In the Warriors' first game of the tourney, Aganus' versatility helped KS-Hawaii handle a bigger Le Jardin team in a 53-21 win. She had 12 points, seven rebounds and a game-high three blocks in the Warriors' victory.

"Saydee's ability to defend all five positions and push the ball helped us in that first game," Willard said.

In the semifinals against Roosevelt, Aganus helped the Warriors push the tempo as she dished out a game-high seven assists in a 41-25 win. Aganus, who also runs track, also got down court against the Rough Riders and scored 14 points.

But it was in the title game where Aganus had her best game of the tourney.

With Saint Francis keeping a watchful eye on leading scorer Jordyn Mantz, Aganus poured in a double-double of 18 points and 11 rebounds to help the Warriors hand the Saints their first loss of the season.

KS-Hawaii also allowed Aganus to operate in a half court set when sophomore guard Nikki Pacheco got into foul trouble against the Saints. As the primary ball-handler, Aganus also dominated anybody that tried to guard her one-on-one.

"We played really good competition across D1 and D2, and I really feel like there isn't anybody that can stay with Saydee one-and-one throughout the whole game," said Willard.

Aganus also knocked down 7 of 10 free throws to help the Warriors hold off a comeback attempt by the Saints.

"In the championship game it was Saydee's turn to shine, and she stepped up and she did that," said Willard.

-Michael Lasquero

BOYS BASKETBALL
Charles Abe, Le Jardin — Scored 20 points in a loss to University Lab

Noah Bryant, Hawaiian Mission — Scored 19 points in a win over Lanakila Baptist and scored 18 points in a win over Christian Academy

Naighel Calderon, Lanai — Scored 20 points in a win over Haleakala Waldorf and scored 20 points in a win over Haleakala Waldorf

Zayne Chong, Punahou — Scored 19 points with five assists and two steals in a win over Kamehameha

Caleb Corpening, McKinley — Scored 17 points in a win over Leilehua

Hunter Dias, Kaiser — Scored 21 points in a loss to Kalaheo

Leif Fautanu, University Lab — Scored 21 points in a loss to Damien

Mikael French, Hawaiian Mission — Scored 21 points in a win over Lanakila Baptist

Kolin Galdiano, Damien — Scored 23 points in a win over Hanalani

Justin Genovia, Iolani — Scored 19 points with four steals in a loss to Maryknoll

Aidan Goldberg, Haleakala Waldorf — Scored 18 points in a loss to Lanai

Cameron Henry, Mililani — Scored 23 points in a loss to Moanalua

Josh Hooper, Hanalani — Scored 18 points in a loss to Damien and scored 20 points in a loss to Saint Francis

Isaiah Hopson, Kailua — Scored 22 points in a win over Aiea

Kaethen Kahana, Kamehameha II — Scored 27 points in a loss to Saint Louis II and scored 25 points in a win over Punahou II

Makoto Kamata, Maryknoll — Scored 18 points in a win over Kamehameha and scored 21 points with one rebounds, two assists and three steals in a win over Iolani

Andrew Kearney, Kalaheo — Scored 19 points in a win over Kaiser

Jasmin Khansmith, Kaiser — Scored 20 points in a win over Campbell

Jeffrey Mangahis, Lanakila Baptist — Scored 22 points in a loss to Hawaiian Mission

Micah Mitchell, Hawaii Baptist — Scored 26 points in a loss to Saint Francis and scored 36 points in a win over Le Jardin

Crumel Mooring, Damien — Scored 21 points in a win over Hanalani

Kyle Moraga, McKinley — Scored 19 points in a win over Radford

Kameron Ng, Saint Francis — Scored 23 points in a win over Hawaii Baptist and scored 20 points in a win over Hanalani

Bryce Nishida, Saint Francis — Scored 22 points in a win over Hawaii Baptist

Jerek Prudencio, Waiakea — Scored 21 points in a loss to Hawaii Prep

Geremy Robinson, Moanalua — Scored 21 points in a loss to Kahuku

Jaymin Santiago-Burns, Pahoa — Scored 20 points in a win over St. Joseph

Tolu Smith, Kahuku — Scored 32 points with 17 rebounds, three steals, two assists and one block in a win over Moanalua

Everett Torres-Kahapea, Kailua — Scored 23 points in a win over Aiea

AJ Ulufale, Assets — Scored 23 points in a loss to Island Pacific

Kamren Victorino-Kato, Kamehameha — Scored 19 points in a win over Saint Louis

Micah Visoria, Roosevelt — Scored 25 points in a win over Nanakuli

Boris Vukovic, Saint Francis — Scored 20 points in a win over Hanalani

Mitchell Williams, Campbell — Scored 15 points with 12 rebounds and two blocks in a loss to Kaiser

Jayden Wyatt, Nanakuli — Scored 22 points in a loss to Roosevelt

GIRLS BASKETBALL
Kuilei Aikau, Honokaa — Scored 10 points with 10 rebounds, two steals and an assist in a win over Seabury Hall

Tia Akasaki, University Lab — Scored 13 points with 10 rebounds, four assists and two steals in a win over Seabury Hall

Alayna Akiona, Kalani — Scored 20 points with eight rebounds, two blocks, one assist and a steal in a loss to Waiakea

Gieani Balino, Campbell — Scored 24 points with six rebounds, four assists and two steals in a loss to Waiakea

Bella Cravens, Maryknoll — Scored 15 points with 11 rebounds, four steals and a block in a win over Waiakea and scored 11 points with 15 rebounds, two steals and two blocks in a loss to Konawaena

Jazelle Dorser, Waiakea — Scored 21 points with five rebounds, five assists and seven steals in a win over Campbell, scored 21 points with 11 rebounds, four steals and a block in a win over Kalani

Julia Fisher, Le Jardin — Scored 19 points with 15 rebounds, four assists, one steal and a block in a win over Waipahu and scored 11 points with 12 rebounds, two blocks and an assist in a loss to Kamehameha-Hawaii

Kelsie Imai, Waiakea — Scored 14 points with 12 rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocks in a win over Kalani

Kamalu Kamakawiwoole, Maryknoll — Scored 19 points with seven rebounds, four assists, four steals and three blocks in a win over Waiakea

Sisilia Kaufusi, Kahuku — Scored 25 points with nine rebounds and a steal in a loss to Iolani

Caiyle Kaupu, Konawaena — Scored 12 points with 10 rebounds in a win over Lahainaluna

Taegan Keep, Kauai — Scored 12 points with 11 rebounds, three blocks and a steal in a loss to Hawaii Baptist

Logan Luke, Kalani — Scored 14 points with 18 rebounds and five steals in a loss to Waiakea

Tori Lynn Maeda, Iolani — Scored 16 points with three rebounds, three assists and three steals in a win over Kahuku

Jordyn Mantz, Kamehameha-Hawaii — Scored 16 points with seven rebounds in a win over Roosevelt

Cherilyn Molina, Konawaena — Scored 20 points with 11 rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block in a win over Moanalua and scored 22 points with eight rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block in a win over Maryknoll

Susitina Namoa, Lahainaluna — Scored 17 points with 10 rebounds in a win over Iolani and scored 17 points with 11 rebounds, two steals and two blocks in a win over Waiakea

Kellie Okamura, Iolani — Scored 20 points with three rebounds, three assists and four steals in a win over Moanalua

Ashley Peralta, Kamehameha-Maui — Scored 16 points with three assists, two rebounds and a steal in a win over Mililani

Ti Posiulai, University Lab — Scored 14 points with 16 rebounds and a block in a loss to Castle and scored 10 points with 14 rebounds, two assists, one steal and a block in a win over Seabury Hall

Nani Santos, Saint Francis — Scored 16 points with one rebounds, two assists and three steals in a loss to Kamehameha-Hawaii

Mikayla Tablit, Konawaena — Scored 14 points with 10 rebounds, three assists and two steals in a win over Lahainaluna

Shayla Young, Castle — Scored 18 points with five rebounds, four assists, six steals and a block in a win over University Lab

Ally Wada, Hawaii Baptist — Scored 10 points with 10 rebounds, six assists, two steals and a block in a win over Kauai

Lily Lefotu Wahinekapu, Iolani — Scored 23 points with 11 rebounds, five steals and a block in a win over Kalani

BOYS SOCCER
Eric Aquino, Kapolei — Scored two goals in a win over Castle

Zachary Banuilos, Moanalua — Scored two goals in a win over Leilehua

Jonathan Casey, Kalani — Scored the lone goal in a win over Pearl City

David Erksine, Kamehameha-Hawaii — Scored three goals in a win over Kohala

Christian Fleming, Moanalua — Scored the lone goal in a win over Kapolei

Kalel Hironaka, PAC-5 — Scored two goals in a tie against Iolani

Brison Kim, Kalani — Scored the lone goal in a win over Mililani

Cole Motooka, Iolani — Scored two goals in a tie against PAC-5

Rei Naiki, Kalani — Scored the lone goal in a win over Kaiser

Makana Srivongsana, Kaiser — Scored two goals in a win over Moanalua

GIRLS SOCCER
Sasha Asselbaye, Iolani — Scored the lone goal in a win over Punahou

D'awncey Jones-Black, Kamehameha — Scored a goal and assisted on another in a win over Punahou