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Max Slaughter almost didn’t get a chance to play high school volleyball. Now, he’s among the best prep players in Hawaii.
A Moanalua senior outside hitter, Slaughter arrived with his family from Alabama at the start of his sophomore year. He had always been a gym rat, but that’s because his older sister, Ally, was a standout in the sport. He played basketball because volleyball was not offered for boys in the area.
“I always went to my sister’s games no matter what,” Slaughter said. “Even when she was playing in college. I always wanted that moment when I could play volleyball. Basketball and football were not my sports.”
Slaughter — who is 6 feet 1 and 150 pounds — was part of a Na Menehune team that advanced to the Division I state championship match against Punahou last year, and there is a burning desire inside for him and his teammates to do the same again — or go one step further.
Just a few years ago, though, there were no guarantees for Slaughter in the sport. Standing 5-7 after arriving in Hawaii, he was shy with no real experience and afraid that he might not be good enough at Kuikahi club tryouts.
The heights he’s climbed since then are astounding. As a sophomore, Slaughter played sparingly for Moanalua.
“I came in to serve once in a while,” he said.
Then, as a junior, when it was evident that he deserved a leading role, Slaughter did a great job, according to coach Alan Cabanting, but wasn’t quite ready for the prime time of being the go-to guy.
“He struggled with that role last year,” Cabanting said. “This year, he’s taken ownership of it. He has really flourished here at Moanalua.”
Cabanting, who has been the head coach for eight years, puts Slaughter in some pretty rarefied air in the school’s storied volleyball history.
“Other than Austin (Matautia), I don’t think there’s been any other kid that I’ve coached that is better than Max,” he added.
The coach gets a laugh when recalling what other coaches said about Slaughter at those club tryouts.
“All of them were like, ‘Oh no, here’s that typical blond, haole kid that’s going to go to Punahou,’ ” he said. “They’re going to be even stronger. I was like, ‘Who are you talking about?’ ”
Cabanting made sure to correct them, saying “Yes, you have your typical Punahou kid … going to Moanalua.”
So far, Slaughter calls his selection to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser’s Fab 15 a year ago his biggest high school accomplishment.
A state tournament championship this year would certainly outdo that. It’s also possible he will get picked to the Fab 15 again. Making if farther than seven-time defending champion Punahou, however, will take a herculean effort, but there are vibrations emanating from the body language of Slaughter and setter Cole Fukumitsu indicating that the team has a vision of getting that seemingly impossible task done.
At the moment, Slaughter is recovering from an ankle injury and hopes to be 100 percent soon.
A year ago, when Slaughter was in that transition from role player to indispensable hitter, tragedy struck. His father, Kirk, died in a boating accident.
“He was devastated,” Cabanting said about Max.
“We were all really shaken up by that,” Fukumitsu added. “Whatever he needed, whatever his family needed, we were there for them. We got his father’s name on the sleeves of our warm-ups. That was really special for us, honoring his life. Max knows we’re always going to be there for him.”
On the court, according to Cabanting, Slaughter has deceptive power, is a master of placing the ball where he wants it, and is well-rounded with a great float serve.
“He absolutely fights, competes under pressure,” the coach said. “He’s not going to fold.”
That type of grit comes from being in a family of athletes. Kirk was a quarterback in high school and competed in track and field in college. Max’s older brother, Derek, was a college linebacker at UAB and Samford. The aforementioned sister Ally was a UAB outside hitter. Younger sister Zoe is a setter at Moanalua and his mother, Kim, played high school volleyball and softball.
“I remember seeing my dad at every one of my games, cheering the loudest, which was embarrassing sometimes, but he always went all out for me and my siblings,” Slaughter said.
Consistency is a key word for Slaughter, who said he is likely to commit to play for Menlo College.
“I’m fitting into the bigger role this year,” he said. “I’ve got to be there for my team. Consistency is the main attribute I’m working on right now and have for the past few years, and it’s been getting better each year.”
Against the toughest opponents, Cabanting said, “If we need a kill, we know Max will get it for us.”
As for the team’s chances in the stretch run and beyond?
“We’re getting there,” Slaughter said. “And when the tournaments come around, we’re going to get a lot better with team chemistry.”
MAX SLAUGHTER
Moanalua • Senior • Volleyball • Outside hitter
>> Height: 6 feet 1
>> Weight: 150 pounds
>> Possible college commitment: Menlo College
>> Possible college major: Business
>> Possible career path: Sports management or coaching volleyball
>> Religion/church: Catholic/St. Elizabeth’s in Aiea
>> Other school activity: Yearbook
>> Favorite TV show: “The Haunting of Hill House”
>> Favorite book: “A Long Way Gone”
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