Oahu Interscholastic Association | Archive | November, 2007

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dkawada@digitalsports.com

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November 24, 2007

The
Mules of Leilehua have risen from the depths of the OIA to play their
best football in the last month, becoming the surprise winner of the
league.

Baldwin has dominated the MIL again, and many returnees
still have the memory of being one play away from making it to the
State Championship Game.

This Division I Semi Final had the
makings of excitement.  That it was, as Leilehua defeated Baldwin
41-34 in the First Hawaiian Bank HHSAA State Football Semi-Finals
tonight at Aloha Stadium.  The Mules (9-4) will advance to play St
Louis in the State Championship Game next Friday, November 30, at 8:00p

The
Bears have offensive firepower behind senior quarterback Jordan
Helle.  At 6-3, 200, and a strong arm, he is a jewel for college
recruiters.  His counterpart Andrew Manly also has a D-I profile
at 6-2 180.  Only a sophomore and called up from the JV 4 games
ago, Manly has played beyond his years.  Both quarterbacks lived
up to the hype of the game with exciting performances.

The Bears
struck first with a 28-yard strike from Helle to Kalei Kamahele. 
On the next Leilehua possession, the Bear defense made a play,
intercepting a Manly pass off of a deflection.  That led to
Helle’s 2nd touchdown pass, this time to his favorite target over the
past 2 seasons, Chase Nakamura.  A 52-yard bomb to Nakamura made
it 13-0 to end the 1st quarter.  It looked as if Baldwin wanted to
make a statement.
So did Leilehua.  The Mules made their
statement in the 2nd quarter with 3 touchdowns.  The first was a
1-yard run by short yardage specialist Bronson Pausa.  The extra
point was blocked.  Manly then showed his skills on the second
touchdown, a 34-yard strike to Elijah Manaea to tie the score at
13-13.  The defense then capitalized on a Baldwin fumble as
linebacker Robert Siavii recovered the loose ball and ran it in 48
yards for the touchdown, giving Leilehua their first lead at
20-13.  Receiver Edieson Dumlao, who finished with 8 catches and
123 yards, made key receptions in this quarter.

“I’ve had a
touchdown catch in every playoff game,” said Dumlao.  “Didn’t get
one tonight, be we play for each other.  And our team got the
win.  That’s what we wanted.”

The resilience of Baldwin is
what makes them a solid team.  Returning the ensuing kickoff to
their own 43, the Bear offense used only 4 plays, one being a 32-yard
completion to Kamahele, to score just before the half.  Helle
connected for his 3rd TD pass with a 19-yarder to Skyler Cabacungan to
tie the game at 20-20 at halftime.  

Turnovers would
make a presence in the 2nd half by both teams.  Baldwin
capitalized on a Leilehua fumble on the Mule 49.  The Bears then
marched on in and Helle threw another scoring pass, a 14-yarder to
Cabacungan.

Leilehua would make a significant adjustment defensively that would turn the game around. 

“Actually,
I don’t know what the adjustment was,” said Mules coach Nolan
Tokuda.  “Coach (Mark) Kurisu made the adjustments.  We’ve
relied on the defense all year”

Applying more pressure to Helle
made the Bear passing game stumble at times.  The momentum shift
started when Zaire Macapagal scored on a 21-yard run.  Then the
defense intercepted Helle on their next possession which led to a
51-yard drive culminating in another 1-yard touchdown by Pausa.

The
Leilehua 34-27 lead would be extended on the next drive.  Andrew
Manly connected with Alan Macam on the left sideline for a 30-yard
bomb. Macam had to fight off Garso Kainalu for the reception who was
with him step for step.

The Bears, as they had all night, would
answer back.  Their defense made a play when one was needed. 
With the Mules pushed back deep in their own territory, linebacker
Kahai Morton intercepted a Manly screen pass and ran it in for the
score to cut the lead to 41-34.

The defense of Leilehua would
put the icing on the cake the remainder of the game, intercepting Helle
twice in the final 3:30, the final on a hail-merry pass in the final
seconds as Baldwin tried to make a last drive to tie the game.

“Coach
said ‘prevent’, and we just stayed deep.”  said Macam, who played
2-ways and made the final interception to seal the victory.

Manly
would finish the game 19-37, 2 INT, 2 TD, and 263 yards.  Helle
also played well going 21-49, 3 INT, a remarkable 4 TD’s, and 303 yards.
Leading
receivers were Dumlao for Leilehua with 8 catches and 123 yards. 
The Bears’ Kalei Kamahele had 11 catches for 166 yards.  Chase
Nakamura had 6 catches for 105 yards to add to the Baldwin
totals.  

     If you’re handing out letter grades for
top-ranked St. Louis after the semi-final round of the HHSAA football
playoffs, give the Crusaders an “E”—as in “Efficient”.  The
Crusaders showed efficiency in every aspect of their game in whipping
Waianae, 44-6, Saturday night to advance to next week’s Division I
championship game.

     “I don’t know if we’re as talented as (some of
the previous St. Louis state champs), but these kids play well
together.  They’re a blue collar bunch and I’m proud of what
they’ve accomplished.  Now, hopefully, we can get the job done,”
said Crusader Head Coach Delbert Tengan.

     St. Louis ran its perfect record to 11-0 by
riding the efficient arm of all-state quarterback Micah Mamiya. 
The senior, who was injured in a semi-final victory over Waianae last
year, was masterful in completing 14 of 20 passes for 245 yards and
three touchdowns.  As if that wasn’t enough, Mamiya also ran for
yet another score.

     “We should be able to score on every drive,”
Mamiya said.  “We started a little slow (being forced to punt on
the first possession), but we got it going.”    

     “Micah is very efficient and because of that
we allow him a lot of freedom to make his own decisions,” Tengan said.

     He showed that on the Crusaders first drive—a
drive that started at the Waianae 35-yard line after Marcus Gonzalez
recovered a Searider fumble.  Four plays later, Mamiya found a
wide open Billy Stutzmann on an 11-yard touchdown pass. 

     A couple of minutes later, St. Louis scored
again when junior Austin Wahinekona twisted and turned for an
impressive 10-yard run and the Crusaders were up 14-nothing after just
one quarter.

     “We had a good week of practice,” said junior
slotback Lucas Gonsalves, who led all Crusader receivers with six
receptions on the night.  “We just took what they gave us.”

     “That’s our style,” said Tengan.  “If
they stack up the run, we throw.  If they play tight, we go
deep.  If they cover soft, we dump it off.”

     The Crusaders—buoyed by an offensive line that
refused to allow their starting quarterback to get touched—drove fifty
yards on their next possession and Mamiya ran in the final yard himself
to give his team a 21-0 lead.  That offensive line of junior Tytan
Timoteo, senior Tui Tuiasosopo, junior Mana Greig, sophomore Nicholas
Andres, and senior Brett Shimabukuro played just as efficiently as
their quarterback.

     The St. Louis defense also stepped up. 
Gonzalez, a senior defensive end, recovered his second fumble of the
night, to set up a Crusader field goal to up the lead to 24-0 at
intermission.

     “That was exciting.  That’s the first
time for that,” Gonzalez said.  “All that, plus a sack, too.”

     Gonzalez wasn’t the only St.Louis defensive
lineman having a big night.  Ryan Eastman, Ho’oikaika Cavaco-Amoy,
Markus Rohlfing, and highly-recruited Geordon Hanohano kept the
pressure on the three Waianae quarterbacks all night long. 
Hanohano showed why he’s being sought after by a number of big name
colleges after he swept out of nowhere to make a crushing
tackle-for-loss in the first half.

     “It’s exciting to be in the state tournament,”
Hanohano said.  “We worked hard all year to get this far.  We
had a couple of weeks to prepare and it showed.”

     The Crusaders kept up the pressure in the
second half, going to the deep ball.  Mamiya hit a streaking
Tamatoa Demello for a 29-yard score, followed by a 47-yard strike from
Mamiya to Stutzmann to run the score to 38-0 with 4:40 left in the
third quarter.

     “We just did our assignments.  I thank my
teammates for doing theirs,” said Stutzmann, who held on to the
player-of-the game trophy awarded by OC-16 after the game. 
Stutzmann is the younger brother of former UH Warrior great Craig
Stutzmann. 

     “This is for him,” he said while lifting the
trophy and flashing a smile.

     Each team added a fourth quarter touchdown to
finish the scoring.  Waianae played valiantly for Head Coach
Daniel Matsumoto, who is recovering from emergency eye surgery. 
Runningback Johnathan Abell made some big plays, and then quarterback
RJ Tacgere-Bailey hit Jahsiah Blaes for a 15-yard touchdown.

     The Seariders finished their season with a
state semi-final loss for the second consecutive season, but proved
that they are once again one of the top football programs in the state.

     St. Louis, meanwhile, just kept efficiently
moving forward.  Back-up quarterback Jeremy Higgins capped off the
scoring with a one-yard run and the Crusaders were on their way to an
impressive 38-point victory.

     Hanohano summed up his teammates’ feelings as
they look forward to Friday night’s title game at Aloha Stadium.

November 17, 2007

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The Kaimuki Bulldogs used their size, strength, and running attack to shut out  Kamehameha – Hawaii 22-0, in the first round of the First Hawaiian Bank HHSAA Division II State Football Championships.  The game was played tonight at Kaiser Stadium.

The Warriors, no stranger to the State Championships making their 3rd straight appearance, started off slow and just could not get out of the blocks.  Their first offensive possession tallied negative yards before punting.  Part of the blame could point directly to the Kaimuki defense with defensive end Desmond Tautofi and  linebacker Maua Tuitele.  The defense stuffed Warriors running game from the beginning.  Running back Kolten Wong would only have 2 yards on 8 carries.  Three of those carries resulted in negative yards and a 4th was for no gain.

Quarterback Nick Miyasato, faced without a ground game, needed to start airing it out.  But he was looking at constant pressure from the Bulldog front four of Tautofi, Jeremiah Matagi, Fono Finefeuiaki, and Taue’etia Yandall.  There were no passing yards in the 1st half.

The defense even forced a safety in the second quarter.  It would not get much better in the 2nd half.

Kaimuki won the OIA White mainly because of 2 reasons – a big and efficient run blocking offensive line; and running back Justin Paderes running behind this line.  

On their first possession, starting at the Kamehameha-Hawaii 37 yard line,  Paderes carried the ball on 8 of the 10 plays in the drive, culminating in a 1-yard quarterback sneak for the first score of the game.  He would finish with 27 carries on the night and 111 yards

In the 2nd quarter both teams exchanged punts a couple of times with Kaimuki pinning the Warriors at their own 5.  That led to a bad shotgun snap which Miyasato had to fall on in the endzone resulting in the safety.

Toward the end of the 1st half, Paderes went down with an ankle or foot injury.  He would return but it was evident that he was not running with the same strength and speed he normally has.  Backup Joshua Gacusana came in and promptly burst through the line with a 20-yard gain.

Bulldog QB Kapono Kaiwi-Barrionuebo, who scored earlier on a quarterback sneak, connected with Chezz Ramos-Dias for an 11-yard touchdown pass play.

The half ended with Kaimuki ahead 16-0.

The 2nd half proved to be no easier for the Warriors from the Big Island.  The yards were hard to come by as the offense just could not get into a rhythm.

“ I don’t know why,”  said Kamehameha-Hawaii Head Coach Ulima Afoa.

One bright spot for the Warriors was defensive lineman Kyle Lonokapu.  He had 3 tackles for loss and several hurried throws.

Paderes was more limited in the 2nd half and playing through a sprained ankle.

The final score came on a 8-yard pass from Kaiwi-Berrionuebo to Chezz Ramos-Dias

The Warriors conclude their season as the BIIF D-II Champions (8-5, 8-2 BIIF).  

Kaimuki 11-1, 11-0 OIA) now must take their turn traveling to Maui and playing        
#1 Seed Lahainaluna at War Memorial Stadium.  They  play at 7:00p

Nov. 15, 2007

At Castle High School
5:00 pm Mililani defeated Castle 5-1
7:00 pm Punahou defeated Konawaena 5-0

At Leilehua
5:00 pm Leilehua defeated Kaiser 3-2
7:00 pm Kapolei defeated Kamehameha 1-0 went to pks.

Nov. 16, 2007

At Castle High School
5:00 pm Castle vs Konawaena
7:00 pm Mililani vs Punahou

At Leilehua
5:00 pm Kaiser vs Kamehameha
7:00 pm Leilehua vs Kapolei

Nov. 17, 2007

By Bob Hogue- Senior Sports Correspondent

     The expected girls basketball battle between
Hawaii’s top two 6-footers never materialized Thursday night. 
While Radford’s 6-2 all-state sophomore TaNitra Byrd sat on the bench
with a thumb and hamstring injury, Iolani’s Jamie Smith poured in 24
points and pulled down 18 rebounds in an easy 69-30 victory for the
Raiders.

     The potential Byrd-Smith matchup had been
anticipated since the two teams agreed to schedule each other. 
“That’s what we thought, too,” said Iolani coach Glen Tokunaga. 
“That’s why we wanted to play them.”

      But Byrd sat out the contest and isn’t
expected back for two weeks.  Other injuries caused Radford to go
with just its five starters and two subs.  “We’re just 7 strong
tonight,” said Rams’ first year head coach Tani Dudoit.

    The difference in depth and practice time—the ILH
started practicing a full two weeks before the OIA this fall—was
evident from the opening minute.  A three-pointer by the Raiders’
Dayna Jandoc opened the scoring, and then Smith followed with a
three-pointer from the wing, a layup on the fastbreak, plus a rebound
and putback to jumpstart Iolani to a 12-0 lead in the first five
minutes.

     Radford didn’t get on the board until Brittini
Fuller, one of the stars of last year’s OIA title contender, hit a
floater in the lane late in the first quarter.

    Meanwhile, the defending ILH champion Raiders moved
out to an 18-5 lead after the first quarter.  Tokunaga emptied his
bench in the second quarter, but Smith still saw enough playing time to
finish with 17 points in the first half.

     Smith, who worked diligently with former UH
Wahine star Nani Cockett over the summer to take her game to an even
higher level, showed why she is one of the most highly-recruited
players in the state this year.  She has an offer from the
University of Hawaii already, but has told Wahine head coach Jim Bolla
that she will wait to make her final collegiate decision until after
she finishes her Mainland college visits.

     Smith scored the last five points of the
second quarter to help Iolani build its lead to 42-12 at
intermission.  In the second half, the Raiders substituted
liberally and ended up winning by 39 points.

     It was the second straight blow-out win for
Iolani.  On the previous night, the Raiders whipped defending OIA
champion Roosevelt, 60-32.

     “The biggest difference is preparation time.  We’ve had more time to prepare,” said Tokunaga.
That preparation will be much-needed for Iolani this season.  They
realize that the ILH will be incredibly tough this year. 
Kamehameha and Mid-Pacific are vastly improved, and Punahou, which
finished as state runner-up last year, will have twins Shawna and
Shaena Kuehu back at full strength after both missed the entire season
last year with knee injuries.

     Radford will just have to wait to get
healthy.  Their late start, plus the reduction of gym time due to
the switch in girls basketball season from the spring to the winter,
will have a major impact on the development of their squad.  

     The OIA West appears up for grabs this year.

By Alan Linsky coach-photos.com for Digital Sports Hawaii