For the record, Kamehameha-Hawaii track and field coach Manly Kanoa will be rooting for the school’s softball team to succeed at the state tournament in a few weeks.
But if the Warriors should fall short of reaching the title game, Kanoa definitely can find another assignment on Oahu that day for Taylor Sullivan.
Along with being a full-time softball slugger, the UCLA-bound senior is a part-time thrower and a state medal contender in track and field. The HHSAA qualifiers are at Kamehameha-Kapalama on May 11, the same day the softball tournament wraps up at Manoa.
So, if Sullivan is free of her softball duties …
“Taylor is probably wondering why I always remind her that the Division II (softball) teams are so good,” Kanoa joked. “I want her to do really well (in softball), but if there is a silver lining to them losing, she can come help us out.”
Sullivan would give the Warriors a third point-scorer – she earned bronze in the discus in 2017 – and three might be enough for Kamehameha to make a run at a state title considering the prowess and omnipresence of the first two.
Senior hurdler standout Saydee Aganus is 1A and sophomore sprinter/jumper Chenoa Frederick is 1B, or maybe it’s the other way around.
Either way, Kanoa is ever-thankful to have had two such dynamic athletes on the same compact roster for two seasons.
“I’m appreciative that they constantly put in the work during the week so that they can put on a show on Saturdays,” Kanoa said.
A typical BIIF track and field meet lasts four hours or so and features several moving parts on the infield, track and beyond. It’s easy for an onlooker to get lost, but a series of several small events are often highlighted by one or two standout performances:
• Konawaena’s Hauoli Akau ran a 2018 Hawaii-best 49.86 seconds in the 400 meters in the rain April 14 at Kamehameha;
• In what one BIIF official described as a “beautiful run,” the Wildcats’ Josiah Vallez ran a 1:57.97 in the 800 on April 18 at Keaau, setting a stadium record and a new state standard this season;
• Hawaii Prep’s Jevon Flippin leaped right to the front of the pack in the triple jump, reaching 44 feet, 8.5 inches at Keaau;
• The 800 time of 2:21.47 that Kealakehe’s Leann Hamilton reeled off in mid-March at Kamehameha still hasn’t been surpassed this season;
Then there are Frederick and Aganus, a highlight reel all unto themselves.
“They’re sort of in a different class,” Konawaena coach Patrick Bradley said.
And they’ve been busy, competing in four meets during a recent nine-day stretch.
If Frederick hasn’t already consumed it, someone owes her a prime rib dinner after she reached 38-3.25 in the triple jump last Saturday at Hawaii Prep. That’s not close to the personal-best 39-8 she recorded in winning state gold last season, but, Kanoa said, “If she reaches 38, she gets prime rib. I can’t remember which coach promised her.”
A week earlier, Frederick PR’d in the long jump (17-10.75), and during the meet in between at Keaau she ran a notable 59.87 in the 400.
For those who can keep up, Frederick ranks No. 1 in the state both jumps and No. 2 in the 100 dash, 200 and 400, routinely edging Aganus when the two match up in the sprints. Aganus has top-five efforts in the 100 and long jump heading into the last regul ar season meet Saturday at Keaau.
“A lot of athletes want to take a week off, but not Saydee and Chenoa,” Kanoa said. “They recover and get set.
“And I’m appreciative that they want to compete against each other. They don’t want to shy away from it.”
Aganus hasn’t been tested much in the hurdles on the Big Island since HPA’s Emma Taylor left for Boston College in 2016, but at an ILH meet April 13 at Kamehameha-Kapalama she set a PR in the 300 hurdles (state-best 45.50). She also won the 100, a signature event that she’s already favored to repeat in as state champ the next time she’s at Kapalama.
It’s easy to see why Sullivan could help put Kamehameha over the top.
Last season, Kamehameha held Aganus and Frederick back from competing in the maximum six events, but all bets are off the table this season.
Kanoa likes how a junior-laden relay team has performed, but, “I’m not going to say (Chenoa and Saydee) won’t run relays. A lot will depend on them and their recovery time.”
Relay to watch
One of the more intriguing finals at the BIIF championships May 5 at Hawaii Prep could be a Konawaena-Kealakehe boys duel in the 400 meter relay.
The Waveriders have had the upper hand all season, out-touching the Wildcats in a close race at Kamehameha, then Justyce Kahunahana-Simms, Isaiah Kemp, Bryton Lewi and Calvin McHone-Todd followed that up by setting a school record (43.52) at Hawaii Prep.
Konawaena’s best time so far is 43.99, but Bradley thinks Akau, Noah Bredeson, Chauncey Mariani-Louis and Austin Ewing are capable of running a half-second faster if all goes right.
“It’s going to be really close,” Bradley said.
That’s also how he’s handicap the boys team race between Konawaena, Kealakehe and Waiakea.
“We don’t have the depth that we had last year,” Bradley said. “It’ll be three teams scoring in the 120s.”