Kapaa HS alum Moniz received NWAC North third baseman Gold Glove

One of Kauai’s homegrown baseball players has been making a name for himself on the Mainland.

Kapaa High School alumnus Leighton Moniz received a Northwest Athletic Conference, North Region Gold Glove Award as a third baseman at Edmonds Community College in Lynnwood, Washington.

“It was just really cool to get one, especially at third base,” Moniz said in a phone interview. “I came here to be a middle infielder. Just adjusting, moving over to third base and winning the starting spot, it was a big thing for me. Receiving this award is just a bonus. It’s amazing, honestly. It feels good.”

Those awarded with a Gold Glove were nominated by the coaches of the league.

Edmonds baseball head coach Scott Kelly said Moniz’s fiery attitude on the field has been a real boost to his program.

“That’s been a huge difference in our program over this year. You don’t really see any freshmen come in and do what Leighton has done,” Kelly said over the phone. “He came in and won a job. Offensively, he’s a huge spark plug for us. Defensively, man, he kind of gets our whole team going when he makes a play.

“He’s got his whole attitude. He throws the ball across second base and says, “Boom. You’re out,’ before the ball leaves his hand, and the whole dugout erupts,” he continued. “That’s been the difference for us this year. We’ve had talented teams, but we haven’t really had fire over the last couple of years. I think that’s what Leighton really brings to us.”

In the NWAC regular season, Moniz played 42 games for Edmonds and posted a .252 batting average with 28 hits in 111 at bats, drove in 26 RBIs and scored 33 runs, according to NWAC.

“It was definitely memorable. A lot of memories,” Moniz said. “I wouldn’t change it for the world, definitely.”

He added of playing at the community college level as opposed to high school: “Baseball’s always going to be the same game. It speeds up a little. … Having to compete with other players is always fun. I was always a competitor. From when I first started playing, I was always competing. So, the same attitude up here.”

Moniz — a 2017 Kapaa High graduate and former Warriors shortstop — enjoyed a freshman season at Edmonds in which the Tritons have a 38-7 regular season record and clinched a berth in the NWAC baseball playoffs after winning the NWAC’s North Region with a 19-5 division record.

Kelly said though he saw Moniz’s potential, he believed there was “no chance” he would contribute this much as a freshman.

It wasn’t too long, though, he’d insert him as the starting third baseman.

“We had a returning third baseman who I didn’t think was very good. I thought that if we were going to be good, we had to find somebody who would win that job and move that guy to first base,” Kelly said. “We had four infielders coming in where I thought those four would win those three jobs — third, short and second. It was very clear within the first two or three weeks that Leighton was going to be an impact guy with his energy and his willingness.

“He’d been a shortstop out there. When he came in the door here, he knew shortstop wasn’t an option. We had a guy there. He’s pretty good. He’s going to be a draft guy down the road,” Kelly continued. “Our holes were at third and second. He realized that really quick and said, ‘Well, I’m going to win the third base job.’ And, he did.”

Moniz is one of just three players at Edmonds who is not from Washington state. The other two are from Japan.

“Just trying to have fun playing ball up here and represent Kauai as best as I can,” he said. “(I get questions about Hawaii) all the time. I have a bunch of guys that want to come back with me in the summer when I go back home. It’s amazing. A lot of the coaches have been to Hawaii for their honeymoons. They know about it. Definitely got to bring the sunscreen when they go back.”

Kelly added of how Moniz has acclimated at Edmonds: “With his mentality, he’s going to be successful in anything he does in life because of the mentality he goes about it. He’s a stud, man. I couldn’t say enough good things about the kid. He’s a good student and great worker. Never been late to anything. He takes care of his business. He’s really mature for an 18-year-old kid that’s moved away from home. The sky’s the limit for that cat.”