LAHAINALUNA FOOTBALL V. KAMEHAMEHA SCHOOLS MAUI W48-18 – August 30, 2014

With returning MIL Defensive MVP Connor Mowat and all-star lineman Danny Sulunga-Kahaialii out with injuries, the Lunas went up against MIL Division II opponent Kamehameha Schools Maui.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Lunas won 48-18. Behind the legs and arm of senior quarterback Sione Filikitonga, the Lunas led 28-0 with 9:02 left in the 2^nd quarter. Ansen Cabanilla drew first blood with a 7 yard touchdown run with 6:24 left in the 1^st quarter. Filikitonga followed shortly thereafter with a 3 yard touchdown run of his own with 4:56 left. Then, in the waning seconds of the 1^st quarter, Filikitonga threw a 9 yard touchdown pass to senior wideout Scott-Isaac Medeiros-Tangatailoa . Then, with 9:02 left in the second quarter, Filikitonga connected with Medeiros-Tangatailoa, this time on a perfect 59 yard bomb for a touchdown. Scotty made a beautiful over-the-shoulder catch on that one. Too bad I was too close with my Sigma 120-300mm to get it in frame and in focus. Darn it!
 

 

The Warriors managed a scoring drive of their own. Warriors’ quarterback Chase Newton, who ran for a solid 120 yards on 23 carries, found the endzone from 2 yards out with 3:46 left in the first half. The Lunas came right back, storming down the field and scoring a touchdown with 5 seconds left on a Donovan Defang 5 yard run. Lunas up 35-6.

 

The injury bug struck the Lunas at halftime. During the first half, the team saw several major two-way players go down with injury. Jared Rocha-Islas, Ansen Cabanilla, Justin Hong and Peni Taufa all came out of the locker room in street clothes. With Mowat and Kahaialii already out, the number of battle-tested players on the field was pretty thin. Thankfully, Brandon Kaina was still out there wreaking havoc on the Warriors offense to the tune of 3 sacks and 2 fumble recoveries. Still, the Warriors managed to move the ball against the Lunas mostly second-string defense. Overall, this may bode well for the Lunas in the long run. The lack of depth and experience was a concern of Coach Tihada entering into the season. In a game like this, with a comfortable lead and major players out with injuries (none appeared too serious or season-ending), players had to step up and produce on the field. Filikitonga did not see any time in the defensive backfield. The players got tested and hopefully, will be the better for it as the season goes on.

In the second half, the Warriors struck first with a 43 yard touchdown pass from Newton to Joshua Hiwatashi to make the score 35-12. The Lunas came back, again finding a way to score in the waning seconds of the quarter when Filikitonga weaved his way through the Warrior defense en route to a 17 yard touchdown run to make it 41-12.

 The Lunas made it 48-12 with 8:59 left in the fourth quarter when back-up quarterback Enele Scanlan threw a short pass to David Kawabata , who did the rest of the work rambling and fighting his way to the end zone from 10 yards out.
 

The Warriors were able to punch it in from 1 yard out with 1:35 left in the game to make the score 48-18. While on paper, the Warriors offense did well with 278 total yards and 19 first downs, it was mostly against a Lunas’ team that were without its major starters. With Mowat out, the elusive Newton was able to avoid tackles for losses on numerous occasions. Still, a win is a win whether you win by 40 points or by 1 point. Most importantly, the experience gained by the back-ups will benefit the team in the long run.

 

The Warriors were able to punch it in from 1 yard out with 1:35 left in the game to make the score 48-18. While on paper, the Warriors offense did well with 278 total yards and 19 first downs, it was mostly against a Lunas’ team that were without its major starters. With Mowat out, the elusive Newton was able to avoid tackles for losses on numerous occasions. Still, a win is a win whether you win by 40 points or by 1 point. Most importantly, the experience gained by the back-ups will benefit the team in the long run.

 

NOTABLES: The Lunas promised to be more of a passing team and this game showed it. Lunas looked deep often to keep defenses honest.  Filikitonga connected with Medeiros-Tangatailoa on a 59 yard beauty and almost had another long one in the second half, but it Scotty was unable to hold on to the pass . . . The Lunas were incredibly efficient with they play-calling and execution on plays at the end of quarters. Lunas were able to score touchdowns with 9 seconds left in the 1^st quarter, 5 seconds left in the 1^st half and on the last play of the third quarter. This is a carry-over from last year. Who could forget Filikitonga’s perfect bomb down the middle of the field to a streaking Kaimana Ancog to score a touchdown at the end of the first half in Lahainaluna’s 48-3 win over Baldwin on OC16?

For more photos, click here.