Konawaena quarterback Austin Ewing takes off with the ball against Waipahu. CJ Caraang | SL

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Athlete of the Week: Austin Ewing, Konawaena football
The Waipahu football team's defense allowed no more than two offensive touchdowns per game prior to the state tournament.

Konawaena's Austin Ewing paid no attention to such stat.

The Wildcats' senior quarterback had one of his best performances of his career last Friday night, accounting for six total scores in a 53-50 win over the Marauders in the semifinals of the First Hawaiian Bank/HHSAA Division II Football State Championships at Julian R. Yates Field.

Ewing, the reigning All-Hawaii D2 Offensive Player of the Year, completed 30 of 53 passes for 370 yards and four TDs and rushed eight times for 35 yards and two scores to lead the Wildcats (9-2) to into their first-ever state championship game.

"He made a pretty good Waipahu defense look as if they weren't as good as they really were," Konawaena coach Brad Uemoto said of Ewing. "That was a solid defense all year, and he made it look easy."

The senior quarterback also set a new D2 state tournament record in completions, passing attempts and passing yards in the win. He also did not have a single sack or interception against him.

"I think he was really accurate that night, and his decision making was really good," said Uemoto. "He was getting rid of the ball when he should have, and he took the ball and ran it when he was supposed to. There was (little) negative plays, which kept our down and distances manageable, and he put himself in good situations during a series."

Ewing attributed his big performance against a vaunted Waipahu defense to preparation.

"I watched so much film just going into this game," he said. "I just had a feeling that they were not going to let me get anything deep, and I just had to take the underneath stuff. If the opportunity came up, just get my receivers the ball and just have fun out there."

The Marauders (10-1) limited the passing game in the first half, but it was the third quarter where the Wildcats went into warp speed.

Konawaena, who led 24-19 at the break, opened up the second half scoring with Ewing's 54-yard TD pass to Tyler Libarios after buying time in the pocket. Waipahu responded with Alfred Failauga's 22-yard TD run, but Ewing came right back with a 36-yard catch-and-run TD to running back Chauncey Mariani-Louis, who benefitted from Ewing's decision to pass the ball just before crossing the line of scrimmage. Ewing also ran in the 2-point conversion to make it a 39-25 game with 7:48 to play in the third quarter.

But the Marauders would not go down without a fight as Waipahu scored on a 80-yard bomb on its next play from scrimmage. Konawaena followed suit with Ewing's 41-yard scoring pass to Jeriah Cacal before the Marauders added a 25-yard TD pass from Braden Amorozo to Alika Ahsing with 2:58 remaining in the period.

Ewing capped the third quarter scoring with a 1-yard TD pass to Cacal to make it a 53-37 game heading into the fourth. Ewing set up his final TD pass of the night with a 25-yard run where he scrambled down the left side of the field, then crossed over to the right sideline before lateraling it to Libarios for four more yards.

"He was a headache for us (to defend)," Waipahu coach Bryson Carvalho said of Ewing. "He's probably a blessing to coach, but props to them, they put up a bunch of points."

What makes Ewing's performance even more impressive is the fact that he did it with no starting receivers from a year ago as the lone starter that returned, Kaanoi Rivera-Kelekolio, is nursing a fractured leg. Libarios (seven catches, 135 yards, TD) was a defensive end last season and Cacal (five receptions, 77 yards, 2 TDs) is primarily a defensive back. Junior varsity call-up Marc Basa also was key in his first-ever varsity game, hauling in a game-high eight receptions for 36 yards, most of which came on third down.

"They come to practice every day and they work with me every day on catching," Ewing said of his receivers. "We've been working on it a lot and they stepped up a lot."

Ewing and the Wildcats will take on defending state champion Lahainaluna at Hawaiian Tel FCU Field at Aloha Stadium on Nov. 18. Kickoff is slated for 2 p.m.

FOOTBALL
Miki Ah You, Kahuku — Made 15 tackles, including three for losses, in a win over Mililani

Jake Angelo, Iolani — Made nine tackles, including one for a loss, in a loss to Lahainaluna

Seau Amor, Konawaena — Made 9 1/2 tackles, including 1 1/2 for losses, in a win over Waipahu

Braden Amorozo, Waipahu — Threw for 337 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions on 22-of-40 passing in a loss to Konawaena

Tarynce Antolin, Waipahu — Made 6 1/2 tackles and recovered a fumble in a loss to Konawaena

Kaleo Apao, Hilo — Rushed 18 times for 128 yards in a win over Maui

Zefften Avilla-Thompson, Waianae — Made six tackles, including 3 1/2 for losses, and one sack in a win over Campbell

Braiden Ayala, Waianae — Intercepted two passes, broke up two others, and had a tackle in a win over Campbell

Michael Banagan-Brock, Konawaena — Made seven tackles and forced a fumble in a win over Waipahu

Adonis Belletier, Kauai — Made 10 tackles, including three for losses, and forced a fumble in a loss to Damien

Micah Bello, Hilo — Intercepted two passes and made two tackles in a win over Maui

Zeondre Benjamin, Waipahu — Caught two passes for 94 yards with a touchdown and made 6 1/2 tackles, including one for a loss, and broke up a pass in a loss to Konawaena

Kyle Bissara, Kauai — Made 10 tackles and intercepted a pass in a loss to Damien

Jeriah Cacal, Konawaena — Caught five passes for 77 yards with two touchdowns and intercepted a pass in a win over Waipahu

Paka Cacoulidis, Konawaena — Made seven tackles, including two sacks, and forced a fumble in a win over Waipahu

Dylon Duque, Campbell — Made three tackles, including a sack, intercepted a pass and forced a fumble in a loss to Waianae

Dane Esprecion, Campbell — Made 13 tackles, including 1 1/2 for losses, in a loss to Waianae

Alfred Failauga, Waipahu — Rushed for 283 yards and four touchdowns on 42 carries in a loss to Konawaena

Atu Falekaono, Maui — Made eight tackles in a loss to Hilo

Matthew Fiesta, Waipahu — Caught seven passes for 152 yards and two touchdowns in a loss to Konawaena

Alex Fonoimoana-Vaonu, Kahuku — Made 11 tackles broke up a pass and forced a fumble, which he returned 44 yards for a touchdown in a win over Mililani

Dillon Gabriel, Mililani — Threw for 300 yards with three touchdowns and one interception on 27-of-46 passing and rushed eight times for 31 yards in a loss to Kahuku

Brock Hedani, Iolani — Made 10 tackles in a loss to Lahainaluna

Harry Hill, Konawaena — Made a 35-yard field goal and was a perfect 6 for 6 on extra point attempts in a win over Waipahu

Noah Hoopii, Kauai — Made three tackles, intercepted a pass and recovered a fumble in a loss to Damien

Kaonohi Kaniho, Kahuku — Made four tackles, intercepted a pass and caught a touchdown pass in a win over Mililani

Toalei Lefau, Kahuku — Rushed for a touchdown and caught a touchdown pass in a win over Mililani

Tyler Libarios, Konawaena — Caught seven passes for 135 yards and a touchdown in a win over Waipahu

Sol-Jay Maiava, Kahuku — Threw for 242 yards and two touchdowns without an interception on 18-of-26 passing and rushed 10 times for 47 yards and another score in a win over Mililani

Chauncey Mariani-Louis, Konawaena — Caught five passes for 85 yards with a touchdown, rushed 23 times for 62 yards and returned five kickoffs for 87 yards in a win over Waipahu

Kyler Mento, Iolani — Made 13 tackles in a loss to Lahainaluna

Jonah Miyazawa, Iolani — Caught 13 passes for 193 yards and a touchdown in a loss to Lahainaluna

Tai-John Mizutani, Iolani — Threw for 290 yards on 26-of-47 passing with one touchdown and two interceptions and rushed 19 times for 130 yards and two other scores in a loss to Lahainaluna

Darius Muasau, Mililani — Made five tackles and recovered three fumbles in a loss to Kahuku

Naia Nakamoto, Maui — Rushed for 126 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries in a loss to Hilo

Lanakila Pei, Iolani — Made 11 tackles, including two for losses, and blocked a field goal in a loss to Lahainaluna

Elijah Ragudo, Lahainaluna — Rushed for 139 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries in a win over Iolani

Samson Reed, Kahuku — Made five tackles, including a sack, and recovered a fumble in a win over Mililani

Rico Rosario, Waianae — Rushed 12 times for 69 yards and two touchdowns in a win over Campbell

Orion Smith, Konawaena — Made four tackles and scored on a 34-yard fumble return in a win over Waipahu

Etuati Storer, Lahainaluna — Made nine tackles, including one for loss, intercepted a pass and broke up another in a win over Iolani

Storm Sua, Mililani — Made 10 tackles, including one for a loss, forced a fumble and recovered a fumble in a loss to Kahuku

Kaimana Swann-Merritt, Waianae — Made three tackles, forced a fumble, broke up a pass and scored on a 45-yard interception return in a win over Campbell

Tyrese Tafai, Campbell — Made 11 tackles and caught a touchdown pass in a loss to Waianae

Cassius Taualo, Campbell — Made five tackles, including a sack, forced a fumble and recovered a fumble in a loss to Waianae

Joshua Tihada, Lahainaluna — Rushed for 167 yards and three touchdowns on 29 carries in a win over Iolani