Mililani's Bronson Ader looks for running room after the catch against Waipahu. Sylvia Lee | SL

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Mililani's Ian Namu records a tackle against Waipahu Sylvia Lee | SL

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Mililani RB Dayton Furuta carries the ball in traffic against Waipahu. Sylvia Lee | SL

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Fri, Sep 6, 2013 @ Waipahu [ 7:30 pm ]

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Mililani

39

Waipahu

12

Final	1	2	3	4	T
Mililani (11-2-0)	7	3	22	7	39
Waipahu (2-7-0)	0	0	6	6	12

• Pass
• Rush
• Rec

Kai Mercado-Aiona 80 yd

McKenzie Milton 159 yd 2 TD

Gavin Marques 54 yd 1 TD

Pakelo Lee 50 yd 1 TD

Matthew Leilua 55 yd

Bronsen Ader 102 yd 2 TD

WAIPAHU – No Malepeai, no problem.

The Mililani Trojans, No. 4 in the ScoringLive/OC16 Division I Power Rankings, exploded for 22 points in the third quarter to break the game wide open against a spirited Waipahu team, winning 39-12 in an Oahu Interscholastic Association Red West matchup at Masa Yonamine Field Friday night. The halftime score was 10-0, in favor of Mililani.

"Hats off to Waipahu," said Mililani coach Rod York. "They played hard and they played well; they're (just) going to get better as a team."

The win gave the Trojans (4-1 overall, 3-0 Red West) three straight wins in their three game road trip. Coincidently, Waipahu (1-3, 0-2) suffered their third loss in a row.

Mililani were playing without sophomore running back Vavae Malepeai who suffered a rib contusion in the win over Waianae last week. Malepeai had already accumulated 485 yards rushing and nine touchdowns in just four games coming into this week.

Filling the void in the offensive backfield was running back Pakelo Lee and linebacker Dayton Furuta. The running tandem combined for 75 yards and two touchdowns on just 15 carries.

The Trojans also had to play without linebacker Jacob Afele for pretty much the entire game as he was ejected on the first play from scrimmage. Afele tackled Marauder quarterback Kai Mercado-Aiona in a helmet-to-helmet collision and celebrated or taunted after play prompting the referees to throw him out of the game on the basis of targeting.

Both offenses couldn't get a score until about the one minute mark of the first quarter when sophomore quarterback McKenzie Milton found slot receiver Bronson Ader on a fade route for an 8-yard touchdown. Marc Matas point after touchdown kick was good and the score was 7-0.

The Marauder defense continued to impress in the first half by only limiting the Trojans to a Matas' field goal in the rest of the half. Senior linebacker Mark Faialauga led the defensive effort for Waipahu with nine total tackles.

Mililani also had a stellar defensive effort in the game (led by Furuta's 10 tackles and a sack) by limiting Waipahu's opportunities in the red zone in the first half. The closest the Marauders got to scoring in the first half was late in the second quarter. Waipahu would drive all the way to the Mililani 5-yard line before having the clock run out on them. Mercado-Aiona's apparent touchdown pass to receiver Sword De Asis was ruled just outside the goal line as the ball didn't break the plane.

Waipahu impressed in the first half, but was severely out matched after halftime.

"It looked like Mililani put it in a second gear in the second half", said Waipahu coach Eric Keola. "They had a different attitude and a different mindset."

It was an eventful third quarter as both teams combined to score four touchdowns, with Mililani scoring three of those. Mililani added a pair of touchdown passes from quarterbacks Robert Faleafine and Milton, while getting a 12-yard touchdown run from Furuta.

The quarterback duo of Milton and Faleafine combined to throw for 266 yards and three touchdowns, while completing 21 of 36 passes.

With the help of the third quarter offensive outburst, Mililani was able to cruise to the final score of 39-12, despite the Marauders added a late touchdown run from backup quarterback Gavin Marques.

"We hanged in there in the first half," said Keola. "Boys played really well; we stuck to our game plan. We just got to put two halves together, not just one."

Mililani gets a well-deserved bye week after finishing their three game road trip with all wins.

"We're happy," said York. "Anytime you get a win, especially in the Red West, it's always good. I'm just so proud of our kids and our coaches. We're fortunate to be going 3-0 in our conference."

Waipahu will face Aiea next week in a Saturday night matchup that could determine who gets the Red West sixth seed in the 12-team playoffs.