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Thursday, November 2, 2000

St. Louis,
Kamehameha fight
for second round

Crusaders can clinch a state
tournament berth, but Warriors
can force an ILH playoff

---

By Tim Crouse
Special to the Star-Bulletin

When St. Louis and Kamehameha met for the first-round championship of the Interscholastic League of Honolulu on Sept. 29, everything went wrong for the Warriors.

Five Kamehameha turnovers, a blocked punt and a punt returned by St. Louis for a touchdown led to a 31-6 Crusaders' win.

The ILH rivals meet again Saturday for the second-round title in the featured game of an ILH doubleheader at Aloha Stadium at 7:45 p.m. Damien faces Punahou in the opener at 5 p.m.

A St. Louis win gives the Crusaders the outright league title and the ILH's lone state tournament berth.

If Kamehameha wins, the teams will battle one last time next Wednesday for the overall ILH crown and the state berth.

"We must be mistake-free in all three phases of the game (to win)," Kamehameha coach Kanani Souza said. "We just can't afford to let those things happen.

"The team understands what a good football team St. Louis is and that if we're not focused we know that we have no chance," Souza said.

Both teams have cruised through the second round, winning by an average of 44 points a game.

"We've gotten better in all phases of the game (since playing St. Louis)," Souza said.

The Saints' Pesefea Fiaseu has gained 353 yards the past three games, on just 19 carries -- for an 18.5 average a rush. He has also scored six touchdowns.

Kamehameha quarterback Jon Fo has completed 55 percent of his passes in the second round, for 481 yards and six touchdowns.

The Crusaders have won 15 consecutive games -- dating back to a loss to the Warriors last season.

The Oahu Interscholastic Association Tournament continues tomorrow at Aloha Stadium with a pair of semifinal games.

Here's a look at the matchups:

Waianae vs. Castle

Castle has the daunting task tomorrow of trying to make a dent in Waianae's outstanding defense.

The Knights saw the Seariders first-hand during a summer scrimmage.

"Their defense is physical and aggressive, has size and speed, and runs to the ball well," Castle coach Nelson Maeda said. "And they are well-coached.

"We saw how good Waianae is. It set the bar for where Castle needs to go," he said.

ABOUT WAIANAE: The Seariders allowed just 42 points in nine regular and postseason games, and posted three shutouts, including a 35-0 blanking of Campbell last week in the first round of the tournament.

The defense gave up just four touchdowns all season -- and only one in the past five games.

Lono Manners and Peter Sarono have been an effective one-two punch in the backfield. They combined to average 146 yards over the past five games, and scored 11 touchdowns.

That's a fact: Waianae's defense has scored six touchdowns this season -- two more than it has given up.

ABOUT CASTLE: Junior quarterback Joel Botelho is the key to the Knights' offense.

Botelho struggled last week, and Maeda said it wasn't until after the game that he learned Botelho had suffered a mild concussion in the first series of the game.

Maeda said the doctors have cleared Botelho to play tomorrow. Castle's backup is junior Jared Prestidge -- who was a key defensive player against Kailua.

That's a fact: Kaleo Segovia has scored a touchdown in every game this season.

Kahuku vs. Kaimuki

These two Red Division teams clash for the second time this year -- and Kaimuki coach Ron Oyama doesn't dwell on the results of the first meeting.

The Red Raiders beat the Bulldogs, 60-18, in the second week of the regular season. But in the two months since, Kaimuki has won six out of seven games, pitching three shutouts in the process.

"This team is good in the sense that they don't need to be reminded (about the first game)," Oyama said. "They learned that you can't just give up. I don't feel like we've reached our peak yet."

About Kahuku: Oyama said the most impressive thing about Kahuku is its team speed.

"They recover fast, especially on defense," he said. "They've got a lot of athletes."

The Red Raiders have averaged 42 points the past four games, since losing, 12-7, to Waianae.

They pound the ball with Muliwai Pula and have developed an impressive passing game with Inoke Funaki at the controls. Funaki has thrown six scoring passes in three games.

That's a fact: Kahuku trailed 10-0 in the first meeting -- and exploded for 47 second-quarter points.

About kaimuki: Justin Faimealelei, who scored all of the team's 21 points against Farrington last week, is the big play maker on the Kaimuki offense and special teams.

Running back Chanceton Mirafuentes, quarterback Jordan Caires and wide receiver Kila Kamakawiwo'ole will need to have big games

Oyama said many of his players play both ways -- and can't worry about them wearing down.

"We're just going to put the best players on the field," he said.

That's a fact: Faimealelei also plays linebacker, and returned an interception 24 yards for a score against Farrington last week.