LIHUE — Kauai Bulldogs quarterback Boogie Yam and running back Brycenson Abigania each scored a touchdown in the first quarter to lead the Lihue team to a 54-16 win over the Westside Pride Friday night at Vidinha Stadium. The two
LIHUE — Kauai Bulldogs quarterback Boogie Yam and running back Brycenson Abigania each scored a touchdown in the first quarter to lead the Lihue team to a 54-16 win over the Westside Pride Friday night at Vidinha Stadium.
The two touchdowns kept the Bulldogs out of reach of the Westside squad despite a spirited comeback effort before a large crowd in youth football action, grades six to eight.
Yam, playing both sides of the ball for the Bulldogs, finished with a fumble recovery, a touchdown pass and carried the ball for three of his own scores.
Taking the opening series on the Bulldogs’ 17-yard line, Yam capped the 83-yard drive with a 63-yard breakout for the end zone, his first of three in the game.
The point-after kick failed for the early 6-0 margin, which was broken at the 5:45 mark when Abigania found the end zone at the end of a 28-yard run. The drive was originally set up when Keon Orlando pounced on a loose pigskin on the Westside 43-yard line, effectively snuffing the Pride drive on the kickoff series following Yam’s score.
Jordan Belmodis Drayden was called on to do the point-after honors, his kick splitting the uprights for the 14-0 lead.
The Bulldogs’ defense contained the Westside on the ensuing kickoff series, and a series of miscues by the Lihue blackshirts put Hanapepe on the scoreboard with 2:24 showing in the first quarter.
After holding the Pride for a fourth-and-long, Abigania’s effort at the punt squirted the ball free, the Bulldog finally corralling the loose ball on his own 9-yard line. On the following play, Yam, looking for the open man upfield, was pressured into grounding the ball resulting in the safety for the 14-2 read.
The Bulldogs continued to build on its lead, adding two more scores in the second quarter, and at the risk of triggering the running clock, the Westside Pride found the end zone for a 30-10 Bulldog lead at the break.
Abigania literally opened the second period with a score, taking the pigskin 49 yards for the score in the first 14 ticks of the quarter, Drayden’s PAT moving the boards to a 22-2 Bulldog lead.
On the ensuing kickoff return, the Pride lost control of the pigskin, Yam effectively grounding the ball on the Westside 30-yard line. Taking the reins on the handoff, the quarterback threaded the defense for the touchdown with 8:26 showing in the half. Drayden’s PAT gave the Bulldogs a 30-2 advantage.
With a switch in Westside quarterbacks, Aka Wisneski pushed the Pride to its most productive drive in the half. Starting from its own 46-yard line, Wisneski connected with Spanky Simao on a pass, and coupled with a penalty against the Bulldogs, the pigskin moved into Lihue territory, coming to rest on the Lihue 19-yard line.
Ransen Pasion took the ball to a first-and-goal on the Bulldog 9-yard line before Wisneski took to the air, finding Dylan Balaan on a 5-yard scoring hit with 27 seconds left in the half. Wisneski nailed the PAT boot for the 30-10 halftime deficit.
Following a 9-yard Yam touchdown in the third quarter which capped a 75-yard scoring drive for the Bulldogs, the Pride set up the final stanza, returning the ensuing kickoff to its own 44-yard stripe.
Wisneski rebounded from a sack to hit Syone Apo for a first down on the Lihue 44-yard line as the seconds ticked down. A dive by Lanakila Gushiken-Banquel saw the pigskin come to rest on the Bulldog 17-yard line and another Wisneski-Simao connection brought the ball to the 8-yard line as the clock ran out.
Gushiken-Banquel greeted the final quarter with a 5-yard charge to paydirt in the first 14 seconds of the period, Wisneski’s PAT boot leaving Westside in a 38-16 deficit.
Yam demonstrated his ability to take to the air, connecting with Noah Tangalin on a 23-yard scoring pass with 7:00 showing in the game, Drayden’s PAT boot pushing the scoreboard to a 46-16 lead.
The Bulldogs gave its secondaries an opportunity, turning to Iwi Rivera for ball-carrying duty following a fumble recovery by Tryston Refamonte on the Westside 21-yard line with 5:40 showing in the game.
Refamonte got the nod for the final two-yard push for touchdown, Drayden’s PAT boot accounting for the 54-16 final.
The Bulldogs next take the field on Mother’s Day starting at 10 a.m. when it hosts the Kapaa Warriors at Vidinha Stadium.
The Kapaa Warriors will host the Westside Pride next Sunday at Vidinha Stadium.
