It was time for a little Menehune magic.
Trailing by four points to Damien with just over two minutes left in the game, the Waimea football team had one last chance.
The Menehunes were 72 yards away from taking the lead and advancing on to the 2003 First Hawaiian Bank State Football Division II championship contest.
The Monarchs needed one more defensive stand to claim the victory.
It was a battle of wills.
On this night, it was the visitors that prevailed.
The Monarchs intercepted the Menehunes’ John Palacio to seal the win and Ranson DeCosta rushed for two scores in leading Damien (5-5 overall) to a thrilling 17-13 playoff win over Waimea at Vidinha Stadium.
With the victory, the Monarchs advanced to face Aiea in Friday’s Division II title matchup at Aloha Stadium.
DeCosta’s second touchdown came at the seven minute mark of the final period just after Palacio hit Justin Estes for an 8-yard scoring strike to give the Menehunes’ their first lead at 13-10 with 9:10 left.
Things started poorly for the Menehunes (6-3 overall) on their first offensive possession of the game when Damien’s Kyle Meheula intercepted a Palacio pass and returned it to the Waimea 1-yard line.
A few plays later DeCosta rushed in for his first touchdown to help the Monarchs open a quick 7-0 edge.
Waimea looked poised to possibly tie the score early in the second period on a drive that moved to the Monarchs’ 5-yard line.
However, Damien forced and then recovered a fumble to stop the march.
From there, the Monarchs moved down the field on the strength of DeCosta’s running.
The march culminated in a 27-yard field goal from Cory Mullen with a little over three minutes left in the first half.
The Menehunes seemed to grab momentum at the close of the second quarter when Palacio found Jordan Dizon for a 27-yard touchdown pass to cut the Damien lead to 10-6 at halftime.
In the first half, DeCosta rushed for 84 yards on 12 carries but was injured late in the second period.
He returned late in the third quarter.
The Menehunes finished with 101 yards of offense in the first half and three turnovers. They finished with five turnovers in the game.
TGI Staff Writer Barry Graham can be reached at 245-3681 Ext. 251 or mailto:bgraham@pulitzer.net
