Kahuku, Castle
in key OIA tilt
Kahuku has something to prove.
Weekend schedule
All times 7:30 p.m. unless otherwise noted
Tomorrow
ILH
Pac-Five vs. Iolani, at Aloha Stadium, 4:45 p.m.
Saint Louis vs. Punahou, at Aloha Stadium
Damien at Kamehameha, 7 p.m.
OIA Red
Castle at Kahuku
Leilehua at Nanakuli
McKinley at Roosevelt
Mililani at Waianae
OIAWhite
Kapolei vs. Aiea, at Mililani H.S. field
Moanalua vs. Kalani, at Kaiser Stadium
Kalaheo at Radford
Kaiser at Waialua
BIIF
Hilo at Keaau
Hawaii Prep vs. Kohala, at Kamehameha Park, 7 p.m.
KIF
Kauai vs. Waimea, at Hanapepe Stadium
MIL
Maui vs. Pac-Three, at War Memorial Stadium
Saturday
OIA Red
Kailua vs. Farrington, at Roosevelt H.S. field, 6:30 p.m.
Campbell at Waipahu, 6:30 p.m.
BIIF
Honokaa at Ka'u
Konawaena at Waiakea, at Wong Stadium
MIL
Baldwin vs. Lahainaluna, at War Memorial Stadium.
The Red Raiders had a sub-par football season a year ago and want to take back what is usually theirs -- the Oahu Interscholastic Association championship.
They host Castle -- the team that emerged as OIA champion a year ago -- tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. in one of the most intriguing matchups of the season.
"Kahuku is a team that is possessed to overcome last year's performance," Castle coach Nelson Maeda said. "They are on a mission to reclaim the OIA, they're deep and athletic ... and they are definitely the team to beat in our tough division."
The Red Raiders (6-0, 5-0 OIA Red East) clinched a spot in the OIA playoffs with a 66-0 victory over Kaimuki last week, while Castle (5-1, 4-1) kept pace by beating Roosevelt 32-6.
Maeda is particularly concerned about stopping Kahuku big-play receiver Spencer Hafoka and dangerous quarterback Waika Carvalho.
There is another aspect of the Red Raiders' game that the Knights want to stop -- the ever-present front seven led by defensive end Shosei Yamauchi.
"It will be a great challenge blocking them and it's a primary concern, plus they've got four great cover people," Maeda said.
The Knights have relied heavily on some of their two-way players, including linemen Keoni Gomes, David Makua and Mana Sasaki and linebacker/running back Guy Humalon. And they've also received consistently hard-nosed play from linebackers Antone Watanabe and Blaze Soares.
Kahuku coach Siuaki Livai has many choices offensively.
"We have eight running backs and we play them all as much as possible," he said. "This is a team thing. Sure, one guy can step up, but we need everybody to step up."
Paea Vaimoui and Hyrum Moors have carried a lot of the running load for the Red Raiders.
After tomorrow night's clash, both teams have one more tough regular-season encounter. Next week, Kahuku visits Kailua (5-2, 4-2), while Castle tangles with a McKinley team (3-3, 2-3) trying to scratch its way into the playoffs.
Big D-II clash: The highly anticipated OIA White game pitting Kapolei and Aiea is tomorrow night at Mililani High School.
Both teams clinched a berth into the league playoffs last week, but the conference title is on the line.
Na Alii (5-1, 5-0) will focus on stopping the Hurricanes' big-play capability.
"They're also a good defensive team, and overall just a real good team that can hurt you in a lot of ways," Aiea coach Wendell Say said. "We've got to play better football and cut out the mistakes we've been making."
Running back John Dela Rama and quarterback Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada are two of Kapolei's offensive weapons.
"And when he's (Kaheaku-Enhada) not playing quarterback, they put him in at wide receiver and he becomes a long threat with really good speed," Say said.
Slotback Ben Ah Mook Sang carries Aiea's offensive load. He can run and throw in addition to catching passes, and he gets extra mileage from the cohesive line of Sterling Ohia, Ricardo Quinola, Kyle Mackenzie, Joe Miller and Tony Augafa.
Garden Isle struggle: Even though Kauai (3-2, 3-0) and Waimea (4-1, 2-1) have qualified for state tournament berths, the Kauai Interscholastic Federation championship race is far from over.
The Menehunes host the Red Raiders tomorrow night at Hanapepe Stadium, and the pressure is on.
Waimea has won 11 straight KIF titles, but lost the season's first matchup between the two teams 26-12.
"Our boys are pretty psyched up for this game," Menehunes coach Liko Pereira said. "They have something to prove."
Pereira thinks the play of his secondary will be one of the game's keys against potent Red Raider passer Kekoa Crowell.
Waimea's top defensive backs include Roland Rull, Bryson Allianic-Brun and Walea Arquette. Pereira is also looking for linebackers Andres Emayo and Harold Bumagat to help the line put pressure on Crowell.
Standout running back Jordon Dizon, who missed the previous game against Kauai, is back in action.
"He's not 100 percent, but he does add pep to the team when he's in there, and he's trying to give any assistance he can," Pereira said.
It's a must-win situation for the Menehunes, who would lose control of their KIF destiny with a loss.
But even if the Red Raiders win, they would still need one more victory in their final two games (against Kapaa and Waimea) to take the title.
