HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL
Crusaders cruise over Surfriders
Kailua put together the best initial and final drives of the game against Saint Louis last night.
Everything in between was all Crusaders as the top-ranked visitors put together a complete effort to snuff the Surfriders 48-7.
Senior quarterback Micah Mamiya hit four different receivers for touchdown strikes -- including a 70-yarder to Ryan Iaea -- to help Saint Louis (2-0) build a 41-0 halftime lead. Mamiya, coming off a season-ending collarbone injury his junior year, put up 234 yards on just nine completions.
He explained it was a matter of keeping everybody satisfied.
"It's the first time I ever did that, to (four) different guys," Mamiya said. "I was pretty excited. They kept telling me before the game, 'throw me the ball, throw me the ball.' So I said, 'K, I get you guys the ball.' "
Billy Stutzmann caught a 40-yarder, Lucas Gonsalves ran a reception in from 45 yards out, and Tamatoa DeMello made the catch of the game, leaping for a deep 20-yard lob to the back right corner of the end zone over two defenders.
Geordon Hanohano and Brandon McKee each forced a safety on Kailua in the first half, and the Surfriders had a snapped ball go out of the end zone for a total of three 2-point Saint Louis scores. Marcus Umu completed the Crusader defensive effort with a 52-yard interception return.
"I thought it was a great team effort," Saint Louis coach Delbert Tengan said. "I think Kailua, they'll be a team to reckon with. They just hit a point in the game where things kind of snowballed on them and they couldn't recover from it."
The Surfriders (0-2) went with a two-quarterback strategy, alternating between Kale Sumner and Kenny Ellis on every down.
Ellis showed some ability to scramble, with a team-high 45 yards on eight carries. He, like Mamiya, was coming off an injury.
Kailua withstood the Crusaders' opening drive, defending four straight Mamiya passes successfully to receive the ball on downs. The Surfriders proceeded to march down the field easily ... until a fumble at Saint Louis' 10-yard line ended the hope for a quick lead.
"We got off to a good start on both sides of the ball," Kailua coach Gary Rosolowich said. "We made some mistakes, they made some big plays, and they're at the caliber of play and speed and athleticism and size, all those things that we're simply aspiring to at this point."
Saint Louis was able to keep its reserves inserted the entire second half, which went rapidly because of the running-time rule for lopsided games. Hoku Isaia punched in a 1-yard run early in the fourth quarter to put the Crusaders up 48-0.
Then Kailua put together a successful drive which spanned the entirety of the final period. Ellis, at 6-foot-5, used long strides to propel the Surfriders into the red zone. Sumner, in on the tag team, found Dominique Romero wide open by the left pylon to prevent the shutout.