When Moanalua and Roosevelt meet tonight at Ticky Vasconcellos Stadium in the debut of girls flag football in the OIA, Zaira Sugui will warm up, blend in with her Na Menehune teammates, and throw the ball as deep as any quarterback in the islands.
Yes, the daughter of a standout hoopster grew up in combat sports and became a two-time state wrestling champion. It surprises her mother, Tiana Sugui, in the best way. She was on the court, helping Roosevelt win OIA basketball titles. In almost the blink of an eye, Tiana Sugui became the mother of five. The speedy, shifty guard flourished under then-basketball coach Bob Keanini and staff, and the Rough Riders were a two-time OIA Division I champions.
“I’ve heard that my mom was an incredible basketball player in high school,” Zaira Sugui said. “People say she was a real baller, known for her aggressive style of play. She really stood out on the court and was considered an all-star throughout her career.”
Zaira Sugui, a Moanalua junior, is an ultimate competitor on the mat and the field, training with a tenacity and volume that still wears out her devoted dad.
Basketball? Never had a chance. Tiana Sugui doesn’t mince words about the slightest of disappointments.
“It is a little sad. I was so heartbroken,” she said. “ ‘Can you play one time?’ She played one season when she was 5. After that, it was, ‘I don’t want to.’”
Sugui is concise about her ambivalence for roundball.
“Basketball is really boring to me,” she said. “I like contact sports.”
On Sunday, a few hours after wrestling practice — training for a national competition in two weeks — Sugui finally got a breather. Juggling wrestling workouts and flag football practices while maintaining a 3.7 grade-point average goes against the grain, but she doesn’t fit any standard profile of a potential college wrestler and quarterback.
It’s no wonder she is proud of her newest life skill.
“Time management,” Sugui said.
A month ago, she surged through the 155-pound bracket and won that second wrestling state title. Wrestling, she believes, is the sport she will focus on in college. That’s why she hasn’t stopped training since the high school season ended.
“I haven’t cut out any time for wrestling. I’m getting ready for nationals. That’s every day,” she said.
Often, she zips over to flag football practice immediately.
“I work on plays for one hour. It gets a little tiring, but with the recovery, I stretch out with my dad. It helps me throughout both practices,” Sugui said.
This is where pure talent and obsessive work ethic become a rare combination. At 5 feet, 5 inches tall, she faces taller wrestlers regularly in the 155-pound weight class. As a QB, she isn’t a check-down artist. The power is real.
“Honestly, I’m pretty impressed,” Moanalua girls wrestling coach Sean Sakaida said. “I saw her play powder puff (football) last year. I teased her. ‘You’re terrible.’ Then I actually see her play flag football and she’s really good. The footwork, a super strong, accurate arm. She has really big hands, so she throws it 50 yards on the run.”
Sakaida found Sugui unique and, in her own way, endearing, from day one.
“I saw her wrestle summertime going into her freshman year. She was really raw, super aggressive. I said, we can work with that,” he recalled. “We’re playing pickup basketball before practice and she must’ve fouled me 300 times. I knew we just had to mold her and teach her technique.”
Under Sakaida, Na Menehune have won the past four girls wrestling state championships. In February, three individual state champions wore the blue and white: Kaleialohamaikalani Yasumura (145), Nahenahe Kalamau (120) and Sugui. Kalamau is also on the gridiron as a center-wide receiver. The cool factor is real for the wrestling program, where the girls and boys have combined practice at least twice a week and the ritual of bleaching hair blue or blonde before states is part of their tradition. Even with all their koa trophies, winning isn’t everything.
“My favorite memory with Zaira is probably the dodge (ball) we play for wrestling practice,” Kalamau said.
“When we have combined practice,” Sugui noted, “that’s when we would sometimes do boys versus girls dodge as a warmup.”
Sugui was a fierce competitor in kickboxing, then wrestling, during her elementary school years, but it was the blue mat in high school that was ground zero for her growth. It was choir in sixth grade that began her interest in singing.
“I joined choir and loved it. A lot of my friends don’t know I’m in that class. Here and there, I’ll sing with our friends in the wrestling room while the music is playing,” she said. “Moanalua really brought me out of my shell. I’m really shy, but Moanalua really brought that and allows you to be yourself and have fun. There’s also a time to work hard.”
It’s not just the sweat. Sakaida encourages his team to take notes. Literally.
“She has her notebook and I’ll explain moves, and she’ll write it down. I tell all our kids to bring a notepad and write down what you learn in your own words,” he said. “She takes the time to understand the details.”
Grit still matters, and so does leadership.
“She sets the pace for our team. If she’s having a down day and dragging, the whole team follows her lead. She’s the spark plug. ‘Come on, let’s go, let’s start drilling!’ So she can’t have a down day. I tell her, you’re the engine,” Sakaida said. “The most important thing that most people don’t realize, she puts in a lot of work. It’s Sunday and she’s training. The other day, it’s 6 in the morning and she’s (weight) lifting. Everything she gets, she deserves. I’ve seen people who are talented and not do the work. I’m proud of her because of the work she puts in.”
The USMC Women’s National Championships are in Spokane, Wash., April 4-6, which means she will miss Moanalua’s flag football games against Anuenue and McKinley. It adds up to a chunk. There are only five regular-season games in the OIA. The wrestling dream is alive, however. So is the hunger.
“It’s freestyle,” Sugui noted. “When you get a takedown, it’s feet to back. It’s four points. You can throw people over your head.”
Freestyle is the college norm. Folkstyle is the standard in high school.
“Freestyle would be good in a separate (high school) season,” Sugui suggested. “That would be a great opportunity for the girls who really want to wrestle in college.”
Sugui hopes to travel to Fargo, N.D. for the Junior and 16U Nationals, July 10-19. There are other tournaments like Turf Wars in Pocatello, Idaho (June 22-24), that practically guarantee more than 20 matches. At Fargo, it’s two losses and you’re out. Only the best of the best reign supreme there.
“My dream college for wrestling is Iowa. (The Hawkeyes coach is Roosevelt alum and 2012 Olympic bronze medalist Clarissa Chun.). It would take a lot of hard work and dedication, to never be satisfied,” she said. “There’s more out there that I can achieve. I’m planning on going to Fargo to get more exposure and reps.”
Girls flag football in Hawaii is nothing new. Several clubs in West and Central Oahu have been grinding away for years, anticipating the day the HHSAA would adopt the sport. Hawaii is the 13th state to officially play the sport for a state title.
Ladd Mokiao’s oldest son, Lathan, was a lineman at ‘Iolani. When his younger son, Jojo, began playing flag football, they formed a team, Rooted Hawaii. The past four years, it’s been an all-female team.
“Zaira’s been playing with me since she was 10 or 11. She was playing for an outside league team with boys. Our assistant coach has a daughter and wanted to put together an all-girls team,” Mokiao said.
At that point, Sugui was a wide receiver.
“We didn’t have a quarterback. Zaira was the most all-around player. It was rough. She always had the big arm, but the accuracy was off,” Mokiao recalled. “Then she got real good.”
Sugui, Kalamau and Kaia Borjes-Peeples traveled to Las Vegas and San Diego for two tournaments with a SoCal club team, High Intensity. Sugui quarterbacked the team to the championship game in both tourneys.
“That’s when I started learning quarterback,” she said.
“It took years before she got to where she is now,” said Mokiao, who was hired to coach Moanalua’s flag football team this year. “She can do all three things: run, throw and make her own reads on the field.”
Mokiao believes in the power of repetition and simplicity.
“It’s a little of both. Our receivers run their routes, but when there’s time in the pocket, you’re going to sit down, and if they’re playing zone, sit in the holes,” he said.
Mokiao scheduled the toughest competition he could find for preseason.
Moanalua was 6-0 in nonconference play, posting wins over Waianae, Nanakuli, Kamehameha, Punahou, ‘Iolani and Damien. Freshman receiver Jodie Keo has been a highlight maker, while freshman safety Lofa Simanu — a point guard on the basketball team — junior linebacker Jai’lyn Smith and senior cornerback Marisa Lam are key contributors to the defensive unit.
Kamehameha QB Hayden Kaahanui-Cera has been electric in ILH play. ‘Iolani is coached by defensive guru Delbert Tengan, the former Saint Louis state championship coach who has been a longtime coordinator with the Raiders boys.
“ ‘Iolani has good team speed. They can play 30 yards off the ball, but they can stop you on the 5-yard line,” Mokiao said. They’ve got (basketball player Mia) Frye, (volleyball player Callie) Pieper.”
This is not old-school flag football. There are no offensive linemen. Spin moves are allowed. Ballcarriers have funky maneuvers and body control to avoid flag pulling.
“You can drop your hand on the ground and spin,” Mokiao noted. “It’s an evolving sport. Every year it gets better.”
The NFL’s involvement has been crucial through sponsorship and outreach at the international level. The NCAA’s Committee on Women’s Athletics has recommended it to the NCAA Emerging Sports for Women program. Flag football will become an Olympic sport for the 2028 games in Los Angeles.
Like everything else she cares about, Sugui goes all in with her dad. Technically, Randall Franklin is her stepfather. In reality, she has called him ‘dad’ since she was a baby.
“A year after she started kickboxing, she went through the fire. Old school training where you’re grinding, getting hit. Crying,” Franklin said. “At that age, I knew she was special. I kept saying, you don’t have to do this,’ but she said, ‘Dad, I want to do this.’”
Her kickboxing and wrestling coaches include former state champion Ray Cooper III (Pearl City).
“I never needed to wake her up. I told her, hey, take a break, I’m tired,” Franklin said. “I’ve got to drive to work, take her to practice. I was burnt out, but she said, ‘I want this.’ Before Ray went to the PFL, he said, ‘Randall, your daughter’s going to be something.’ ”
Ultimately, Sugui’s legacy won’t always be about the wins, pins and touchdowns.
“From the very first club practice in 2021, I could tell she wasn’t just another teammate. She would always match my crazy energy,” said Borjes-Peeples, whose first sport has been soccer. “We clicked right away. It was so easy to talk to her, and before I knew it, we were laughing like we’d been friends forever.”
She is a champion of the introverts. A big sister who leads by example for her four younger siblings.
“She’s a big help. She sets the tone for her brothers,” Tiana Sugui said. “I’m proud of how far she’s come. She used to just keep to herself. Hesitant. She got to Moanalua and they unleashed that out of her. I’m proud of the role model she is for everybody. She helps out everybody and she’s a good leader on and off the mat, on and off the field.”
Zaira Sugui
Moanalua wrestling, flag football • Junior
Flag football statistics
2025
W 19-6 Waianae 12-22-1-137 3 TD Rush 7-118
W 27-12 Nanakuli n/a
W 38-0 Damien 9-19-0-127 4 TD Rush 10-72
W 18-0 Kamehameha 16-26-0-207 2 TD Rush 6-2
W 38-12 Punahou 9-17-1-198 5 TD Rush 3-20
W 27-0 ‘Iolani 15-26-1-257 4 TD Rush 5-(-15)
Total 61-110-3-926 , 18 TD Rush 31-197
The Fab Five Siblings
Zaira, junior
Zavery, sixth grade
Zavian, fifth grade
Zayge, fourth grade
Zovah, age 1
Top 3 movies/shows
1. “The Pursuit of Happyness”
2. “Tangled”
3. “All American”
Top 3 foods/drinks
1. Kalbi (Yummy’s)
2. Nutella with banana
3. Sour Patch Kids
Top 3 homemade food
1. Mom’s chicken squash soup
2. Aunty (Shanna Franklin)’s mac and cheese
3. Grandma (Teri Sugui)’s hamburger curry
Top 3 music artists/favorite song
1. Fat Joe — “What’s Luv”
2. Kirk Franklin – “I Smile”
3. Alicia Keys – “You Don’t Know My Name”
Favorite athlete/team: Kennedy Blades
“She’s this college wrestler at Iowa. She kind of has the same style as me. I look up to her because a lot of her moves are similar to what I do. She placed (silver medal) in the Olympics, too.”
Funniest teammate: Kaia Borjes-Peeples
“She just brings the mood up. She can turn anything into a joke. Sometimes I get down in a game and she knows how to bring everything up.”
Smartest teammate: Yuto Wang
“Last year and this year I kind of struggled with science and he helped me with that and a little bit of math.”
GPA: 3.7
“I like to get all my work done in class. If I can’t finish it then, I try to finish it during my breaks and if I have extra time in my other classes.”
Favorite teacher: Ms. (Ashley) Whang
“I met her my freshman year in algebra. She helped me a lot with other classes because I struggled a lot. Me and my other friend go to her class during lunch. It’s kind of full sometimes. We talk to her a lot about how our day is going, listen to music and talk a lot.”
Favorite class: Math and weight training
Favorite motto/scripture
Motto: “Do not fear failure, but rather fear not trying.”
“One day I was having a talk with (girls wrestling) Coach Sean (Sakaida) and he told me don’t fear failure, but fear not trying. Just go for it.”
Scripture: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.” Proverbs 3:5
Bucket list: Travel to Japan and make it to the Olympics.”
Time machine: When and where would you travel?
“I would go back in time, hang out, talk, and just be a kid with my cousins (Taylor and Ellena) again. They both moved to the mainland when we were little kids.”
If you could go back in time, what would you tell your younger self?
“If I could go back in time, I would tell my younger self to not worry or dwell about the things that are not in my control and to focus on the things that are in my control and to never doubt myself, instead always believe in myself with everything I do.”
Shoutouts
“I would like give a huge shoutout to my parents for everything they do for me and my siblings, like all the love and support they have shown me. I would like to thank all the coaches that have helped me to become the person I am today and for teaching me various lessons on and off the football field and wrestling mat. Lastly I would like to thank My Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, for guiding and protecting me throughout my journey and the love he continues to show me.”
