Nov. 17, Menehunes face either Wai’anae or Kahuku; linemen will be vital to Waimea success regardless By JASON GALLIC TGI Sports Editor It’s down to two in the Oahu Interscholastic Federation. On Friday night, No. 1 Wai’anae (10-0) rolled to
Nov. 17, Menehunes face either Wai’anae or Kahuku; linemen will be vital to
Waimea success regardless
By JASON GALLIC
TGI Sports
Editor
It’s down to two in the Oahu Interscholastic Federation.
On
Friday night, No. 1 Wai’anae (10-0) rolled to a 43-13 victory over Castle in
the first OIA semifinal behind 241 yards rushing from the running back tandem
of Lono Manners and Peter Sarono.
In the second contest, the OIA
second-seeded team, Kahuku (9-1), blanked Kaimuki 40-0 despite some lackluster
offensive play.
The two teams will face each other in the OIA final Friday;
the winner of that contest will play KIF champion Waimea in the first round of
the state football playoffs Friday, Nov. 17, at Aloha Stadium in
Honolulu.
Wai’anae, ranked second in the state behind St. Louis School, and
Kahuku, ranked fourth, played earlier this season. In a defensive battle,
Wai’anae slipped by the opponent 12-7.
Wai’anae will bring a little more
experience into the contest. The Seariders have been to the OIA championship
game 21 times, and have compiled a 15-5 record. They last won the OIA title in
1998.
Kahuku is 7-5 in OIA title games.
Either way, Waimea stands to
face stiff challenge come November 17.
Regardless of which team they play,
the Menehunes will likely be outweighed almost to the man, and the OIA school
will have had the benefit of banging against stiffer competition all
season.
“Wai’anae is very well coached,” Waimea coach Jon Kobayashi said.
“They are blessed with size and speed and two great running backs. They also
have a sound offensive scheme.
“Add to that the fact that their defense
makes a lot of things happen for them and you see a very good school.”
And
on Kahuku:
“They just have talent coming out of their ears over there,”
Kobayashi said. “They are blessed at every position. It is a coach’s dream to
be at a place like Kahuku.
“I mean, they’ve got a guy 6-foot-6, and over
300 pounds who runs the 40 [yard dash] in 4.7 [seconds].
“Their whole line
averages between 290 and 300. And defensively they can match up against
anybody.
“Either way, we’re going in as heavy underdogs.”
But such was
the case in 1999, when Kailua came to Kaua’i and was promptly handed a shocking
20-18 defeat by the host school. In that contest. Waimea faced a team much like
they will face in two Fridays: bigger, stronger and possessing more big-game
experience
But none of those advantages pushed Kailua over the top last
year. It was the Menehunes who fought back from a 18-13 deficit, scoring the
go-ahead touchdown early in the fourth quarter and then sticking it to Kailua
on defense.
What’s more, the game-winning TD was delivered by Jessie
Sablan, a returnee. In fact, the Menehunes standout senior tailback unleashed a
25-carry, 169-yard effort in the biggest game of his junior season. And now, it
is widely believed that he’s got an even more impressive offensive line
clearing paths for him.
In fact, without that line, a unit that rarely gets
mention, Waimea’s outstanding tailbacks might be just mediocre.
Comprising
the hole-creators are juniors Mark Ruiz, Abraham Apilado and Brandon Malama and
seniors Jordan Banquel, BJ Hardy, Robert Badua, Chris DelaCruz, Dustin Silva
and Michael Koerte. These Menehunes have been seen at both defensive and
offensive lines throughout the season.
Each position will be vital as
Waimea prepares for the playoffs.
To overcome the size differential the
boys will face, all of the linemen and linebackers will have to play with
unbridled ferocity. A season’s worth of KIF football has proven that won’t be a
problem.
It is difficult to understand the discipline and determination
necessary to swarm the ball on every defensive play, or move bodies out of the
way on offense.
But therein lies the Menehunes’ success, and the reason
that, no matter the outcome two Friday’s from now, Waimea will keep it
close.
“We just have to go out and play football,” Kobayashi said. “We have
to be consistent in every phase of our game and play as hard as we possibly
can.
“If we do that, and control the football, we’ll just let the football
on the field determine the outcome.”
