Castle QB Makana Smith breaks for the sideline after juking out a Waipahu defender. Smith tossed two TDs against the Marauders in a controlled scrimmage. Leighland Tagawa | Special to SL

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KANEOHE — Host Castle got off to a slow start, but found some groove after the first quarter to outscore Waipahu, 21-0 in a controlled scrimmage Friday night.

Quarterback Makana Smith tossed two touchdown passes and Jaylen Lee added another passing score to lead the Knights' offense.

Waipahu was able to sustain drives throughout the first three quarters, but couldn't advance past the 21-yard line.

Here are a few notes on both teams from Friday.

• CASTLE
 -Numbers seem to be up for the Knights and Castle coach Nelson Maeda after adopting a "one bus" motto in 2015. Offensive players wear white jerseys while defensive players wore maroon. From what I could tell, nobody went both ways.
 -WR Jeremy McGoldrick still displayed playmaking abilities whenever the Knights were able to get him the ball. Castle used McGoldrick in jet sweep plays before airing it out to him. Every time McGoldrick got passed the line of scrimmage, he was able to make a defender miss at least once. The senior-to-be didn't play much after midway through the second quarter after what appeared to be a right ankle sprain.
 -Smith flashed some athleticism out of the pocket that led to the Knights' first score of the game. After juking out a Waipahu defender on a scramble towards the left sideline, he tossed a touchdown pass from roughly 35 yards to Kawai Naki off of his back foot while rolling to his right.
 -With McGoldrick sidelined for most of the game, WR Chris Sakuma stepped up and stole the show. On the Knights' opening drive of the second half, Sakuma caught two passes, one that went for a touchdown pass from about 45 yards out. He also caught a pass in the fourth quarter that helped set up Castle's final score of the game.
 -Castle's defense bended against the Waipahu offense, but did not break. Although Waipahu was able to drive the ball down the field, the Knights' defense were patient in spots and forced a fumble and had an interception. Ezekiel Rombawa was credited with the INT, which derailed the Marauders' final drive of the first half.
 -Offensive line might be an issue for the Knights against the bigger, physical teams of Division I. Waipahu was able to get into the backfield with ease and even had back-to-back on several occasions. The Knights were also flagged for holding or an illegal block on a handful of plays.

• WAIPAHU
-QB Braden Amorozo was accurate to start the game, completing his first eight passes. He excelled on passes over the middle and to the flats, but floated some balls to the outside. Amorozo took all the reps behind center and finished the first half going 18 for 27 with an interception. I stopped keeping track after halftime.
 -Slotbacks Ezekiel Reyes and Leoncio Ea showcased reliable hands for Amorozo to throw to. The pair should get a bulk of the catches early on until the wideouts can get their timing in sync with Amorozo. Castle had a hard time defending the seams with Reyes and Ea finding pockets in the Knights' defense.
 -The Marauders' defensive front four (Lafo Seiuli-Sanchez, Cameron Sua, Centennial Kulikefu and Jeminae Solomua) terrorized Castle's offensive line all night. Most of the night Castle's two QBs had to scramble to get an open throw. By my count, Waipahu got six total sacks on the Castle quarterbacks. The back seven on the other hand had difficulty tackling whenever Castle's skill players got into the second level. Waipahu was without strong safety Kobie Russell, who was on a trip, but will still need to shore up that area before heading into league play.
 -Waipahu is aiming to primarily be a spread team, but still has its old flexbone sets in its back pocket. The Marauders tried to use the triple-option's pre-snap motion to draw the opposing defense outside, but was still able shift into a shotgun play without calling timeout.
 -Whenever the Marauders mixed in run plays with passing plays, they were able to be successful moving the ball down the field. Whenever they got into 3rd-and-long situations, their drives stalled. If Waipahu can consistently carve up opposing defenses instead of having to go for the big play, it should be able to control the clock in its favor.