In another year, she may have just been a little too saucy.
Too spicy. Maybe too strong.
This fall, Zoe Slaughter is among her peers and people, a magnetic, electric jolt on a squad of intense, jovial and driven volleyball lifers. Moanalua is ranked fourth in the Star-Advertiser Girls Volleyball Top 10, 2-0 entering the second week of OIA regular-season play.
Slaughter, a libero, is glue gal. Coach Alan Cabanting calls her “spunky” and the positive charge who keeps everyone’s chins up when the going gets rough. The youngest of four children, she is also a younger sister of former Moanalua all-state Fab 15 outside hitter Max Slaughter. Zoe is the slightly more outgoing one.
She also grateful for everything, including her mother. Kim Slaughter played the game, coached at the club and high school levels and was hands-on with Zoe until they moved from Pelham, Ala., to Hawaii.
“I’d say thank you to my mom for always supporting and cheering me on,” Slaughter said.
Kim Slaughter says she’ll miss her youngest child when college begins.
“What makes me most proud of Zoe is her love for life. She definitely makes the most of every day. She is a friend and cheerleader to everyone,” she said. “She is not afraid to put in the work to be her best in the classroom or on the court. She lives with a lot of passion!”
See the feature story on Zoe Slaughter in today’s edition of the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.
Zoe Slaughter’s lockdown staples
Top 3 movies
1. “The Grinch”
“It’s a kid’s favorite movie that I’ve always watched. There’s a good amount of times I’ve watched. Probably more than 20.”
2. “Haunting of Hill House”
“It’s on Netflix. I’ve watched the whole show. My older brother, Max, me and him have watched this together. It’s a series, but I think it started as a book. It became a sequel. It’s not really that scary, I would say. It’s not where a lot of people are dying.”
3. “Grey’s Anatomy”
“I always watched it with my family since middle school. My mom likes it. I binged it on Netflix one year. It took me four months, from the beginning of summer to a little bit after. I was in seventh grade. I like Derek Shepherd, but kind of died in the middle of the show. I wish that they would’ve just moved him somewhere, not kill him. He’s been in other movies and shows after. Their characters are super good.”
Top 3 foods/snacks/drinks
1. Lavender coffee (The Curb in Kaimuki)
“I think it’s a syrup they put in it, but I know they make it themselves. I don’t know anything to reference (lavender) to. It’s not like mint, but it’s close. It tastes exactly how it smells.”
2. Ahi poke (Foodland)
“I just like shoyu ahi poke with onions.”
3. Raising Cane’s (Ala Moana or Moiliili)
“I could get used to a Raising Cane’s gift cards. One a month would be good.”
Top 3 music artists
1. Post Malone – “Up There”
2. Blxst – “Overrated”
3. Luke Combs – “Moon Over Mexico”
Favorite class: Film.
Favorite teacher: Mrs. (Brandy) Chang (English).
“She’s a super real teacher with all her students. She’s always there for you and super easy to talk to. I’ve had her my sophomore year again this year so I’ve had that student-teacher relationship.”
Time machine: pre-2010.
“That was one of the first times I ever played volleyball and I’ve always wanted to go back to my first ever game and relive that. It was actually in a league at the YMCA in Pelham, Ala. I was around 5, 6 or 7. Growing up in a volleyball family, I practiced a lot. My mom played and she was also a coach in Nebraska when we lived there. A club coach and high school coach. I would say she probably enjoyed high school coaching more, spending more time getting to know the girls for the whole four years.”
GPA: 3.899.
“I know mine pretty well. By the end of this semester it will be a 4.0. I just had to retake a class. P.E. I got a B the first time. That’s the only thing holding my GPA back from a 4.0.”
New life skill: Cooking garlic shrimp.
“My mom, during the pandemic, made each one of my siblings make one dish a week. I chose garlic shrimp. Honestly, it was kind of easy. Once you have the directions, it’s pretty straightforward. Garlic, butter, some kind of herbs, seasoning. I do mine in a frying pan.”
Hidden talent: surfing.
“I’m a pretty mediocre surfer. I started about five years ago. I kind of went out by myself at first, then I found some friends I go out with as well. When waves are firing, we like to go to ‘Tracks’. It’s on the west side.”
Shout outs
“I’ll shout out my mom. I’d say thank you for always supporting and cheering me on. She never coached me in Hawaii, but she was kind of a volunteer assistant coach on my 12U team.”
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