Torres carries Trojans

The senior running back leads Mililani to a victory over Iolani

Mililani's offensive game plan was simple: Give the ball to Jordan Torres and let him run.

The senior running back didn't disappoint last night, rushing for 234 yards and two touchdowns on 34 carries to lead the Trojans past visiting Iolani 26-23 in an interleague football game.

There was a flaw in Mililani's play, however, as the Trojans coughed up the ball five times, including four fumbles, and it nearly cost them the game.

"We can't keep giving a team like Iolani the ball like that," Mililani coach James Millwood said. "They made us pay and it allowed them to make it as close as it was. We could have put the game out of reach much earlier, but we fumbled inside the (Iolani) 10 twice and that's not like us at all."

Millwood said holding onto the ball would be a major focus at practice next week.

Fortunately for the perennial Oahu Interscholastic Association-contending Trojans (2-0), all five turnovers were inside Iolani territory.

The defending Division II state champion Raiders (1-1) of the Interscholastic League of Honolulu weren't much better at maintaining their possessions, with three giveaways, including two fumbles recovered by Mililani's David Rivers.

After a close first half that ended with Mililani up 19-10, the Trojans made what turned out to be a decisive 62-yard drive to start the second half. Rustin Funakoshi's 38-yard pass to Kala Perbera set up Isaiah Lawelawe's 5-yard TD run for a commanding 26-10 lead.

Iolani fought back as Breland Almadova knocked the ball out of Torres' hands and Kela Marciel recovered, leading to Justin Yamamoto's 32-yard touchdown on a screen pass from Ryan Dung to make it 26-16 with 15 seconds left in the third quarter.

Another Trojans fumble led to an 87-yard Iolani drive, capped by Lionel Fujioka's 8-yard TD catch from Dung, as Iolani closed it to 26-23 with 3:19 left in the game.

"We made some mental mistakes and didn't make the big plays when we needed them," said Fujioka, a speedster who finished the night with 166 yards on six receptions.

On the ensuing onside kick, Mililani's Kawika Seguerre recovered and Torres ran out the clock, running behind the Trojans' big line seven times for his final 40 yards.

"I felt good coming into the game," Torres said. "And the O-line played as one. Iolani is a really good team and we should have taken them more seriously. We've got to work on our turnovers. They almost lost us the game."

In the first half, the Trojans led 6-0 early, but the Raiders went up 10-6 with two scores in a row as Kody Adams nailed a 47-yard field goal in somewhat muddy conditions.

Torres' second TD, a 4-yard run, gave Mililani the lead for good, 13-10, and the Trojans made it 19-10 when Curtis Murakami stepped in front of a Marciel pass and ran 45 yards for a score.

"We played a good team here," Iolani coach Wendell Look said. "They're scrappy and aggressive and they can obviously run the ball. But we hung in there. I saw a lot of good things. We've got guys who can make plays and we've got guys who need to learn how to make plays."

Kauai 7, Konawaena 6

The Red Raiders held the Wildcats to just 145 total yards, and Andrew Renaud's 1-yard touchdown run in the first quarter held up as Kauai held off Konawaena at Vidinha Stadium in Lihue.

Kawai Kanuha hit Kalii Kunitomo with an 11-yard touchdown pass with 8 minutes left in the game, but the extra point was blocked.

Renaud finished with 203 passing yards, but threw three interceptions. Kenneth Whiting had 10 catches for 71 yards for the Wildcats.

Radford 31, Pac-Five 23

Justin Lord completed three passes for 170 yards and three touchdowns as the host Rams defeated the Wolfpack. Radford's Epa Mika added 59 passing yards and two more touchdowns.

Pac-Five's Bryson Beirne completed 22 passes for 256 yards in a losing effort.