Waimea High School’s varsity football team lost to Iolani of the Interscholastic League of Honolulu, 35-3, Saturday at Iolani’s home field. “I thought we started off well. We got a 3-and-out. We were moving the ball on them. We got
Waimea High School’s varsity football team lost to Iolani of the Interscholastic League of Honolulu, 35-3, Saturday at Iolani’s home field.
“I thought we started off well. We got a 3-and-out. We were moving the ball on them. We got first downs. We were running the ball, and we got on the scoreboard first,” said Waimea head coach Jason Caldeira in a phone interview Saturday. “We made a some mental mistakes on defense. We let up on a play, and then the next time we got the ball, we had a bad snap on special teams.
“The next thing you know, it’s 14-3. The ball just kind of kept rolling in their favor,” he continued. “By the time we got smart and started to pull ourselves together, we ran out of time.”
Menehune senior Cody Taniguchi got the team’s lone score in the first quarter, converting a field goal from about 35 yards out, Caldeira said.
“They had that no-huddle going against us, and we were dying out. Once we were tired, (there were) missed assignments and missed alignments, and our center and quarterback exchanges as well.”
Despite the result, Caldeira said one of the positives was being able to run the ball against a Division I team.
“We ran the ball pretty well. We got first downs. We had good drives. We just couldn’t get in the endzone,” he said. “Every time we got close, a penalty would happen or some kind of mental mistake that would put us in long distance. … We put ourselves in situations that was hard to take ourselves out of.”
With the result, Waimea concluded its preseason at 1-1. The Menehune won 38-0 against Waiakea of the Big Island Interscholastic Federation on Aug. 13.
The Menehune will makes its 2016 Kauai Interscholastic Federation debut on Sept. 2 against Kapaa at Vidinha Stadium. The junior varsity game will begin 5 p.m. and the varsity will follow.
“I definitely know that our boys have the potential to be a good team,” Caldeira said of the upcoming KIF season. “They have the potential to not compete with Kauai High and Kapaa, but to beat Kauai High and Kapaa. We’re just to keep working hard as a staff and as a team. The players and coaches, we’re just going to keep working hard. Work on our weaknesses, and just keep getting better.”
In other action, Kauai High played at Kamehameha Schools – Hawaii of the BIIF on Saturday evening. Results for that game between the Red Raiders and Big Island’s Warriors were not available by press time.
