Damien bowls over Kealakehe, 41-7

Damien's Shaun Apiki scored two touchdowns on the afternoon on passes of 4 and 13 yards respectively, in the Monarchs' 41-7 win over Kealakehe. Leighland Tagawa | Special to SL

Damien was firing on all cylinders in its 41-7 non-league win over visiting Kealakehe Saturday afternoon at Aiea.

The Monarchs, ranked third in the ScoringLive/Hawaiian Electric Division II Power Rankings, churned out 526 yards of total offense (283 yards rushing) against the Waveriders to improve to 2-1 on the year.

Kealakehe, who hails from the Big Island Interscholastic Federation, was playing in its only non-league game of the year before the start of the regular season.

Dual-threat quarterback Marcus Faufata-Pedrina spearheaded the Monarchs' balanced attack with 232 yards passing and three touchdowns. He also added a 60-yard TD run and finished with 114 yards on the ground on 10 carries.

Faufata-Pedrina's favorite target of the afternoon was 6-foot-3 tight end Shaun Apiki, who caught six passes for 59 yards and two scores. Apiki also had a huge catch that took the Monarchs inside the Kealakehe 1-yard line.

Shawn Borges and Matt Faufata-Pedrina led the Damien defense with eight tackles each. Pomai Kim also returned a fumble 10 yards for a touchdown to give the Monarchs a 14-0 lead early in the second quarter.

The Waveriders' lone score of the day came on a 3-yard run by Bryton Lewi.

Damien will have a week off before taking on Saint Francis in its Interscholastic League of Honolulu Division II opener while Kealakehe hosts Honokaa to begin league play.