Three-time WSL champion Carissa Moore finished third at the Oi Rio Women’s Pro in Rio de Janeiro on Tuesday.
Moore was defeated in the semifinals by Australia’s Tyler Wright, who beat fellow Australian Sally Fitzgibbons in the final to win for the third time in four events to open the season. Wright beat Moore 13.60 to 10.10 in the semis and Fitzgibbons 13.10 to 10.34 in the final.
It was Moore’s fourth consecutive semifinal to open the season and she will head next to Fiji, where Fitzgibbons is the defending champion.
Shoji earns Northern California award
University of Hawaii women’s volleyball coach Dave Shoji will receive the Kulia I Ka Nu‘u Award at the 14th annual Five Star Aloha Gala, hosted by the Hawaii Chamber of Commerce of Northern California in San Francisco, on May 31.
The Kulia I Ka Nu‘u Award is presented to leaders, trailblazers and innovators who have spread the Aloha Spirit beyond the islands’ borders.
Shoji is the second-winningest coach in NCAA Division I women’s volleyball history with a career record of 1,179-198-l in 41 seasons. In addition to being an inductee of the American Volleyball Coaches Association Hall of Fame, Shoji is a 14-time conference and nine-time region Coach of the Year, and was named the National Coach of the Year in 1982 and in 2009.
Pearl City’s Fontes receives soccer honor
Pearl City freshman Sunshine Fontes was named the Gatorade Hawaii Girls Soccer Player of the Year by the Gatorade Company in collaboration with USA Today High School Sports.
The award recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the field. Fontes has a 3.43 GPA and volunteered at a homeless shelter and food bank.
The 5-foot-5 forward led the Chargers to a 16-1 record and the Division I state championship this past season. Fontes scored 29 goals, including 11 in seven postseason games, and was named the Honolulu Star-Advertiser’s Player of the Year.
