Max Nichols and the Leilehua Mules travel to Waipahu Friday night to take on Branson Jay Reyes and the Marauders. ScoringLive photo illustration

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Playoff positioning is on the line when No. 12 Leilehua travels to face No. 13 Waipahu Friday night.

The Mules (5-2 overall, 4-1 OIA Division I) won four straight games after dropping their non-league opener against Farrington, but dropped a 23-10 contest to Moanalua before bouncing back with a 40-21 win over Aiea last week.

Quarterback Max Nichols completed 23 of 35 passes for 245 yards and four scores - which all went to different receivers - in Leilehua's win over Na Alii. Running back James McGary was held to just 58 yards on the ground, but he was able to make contributions elsewhere with a 15-yard touchdown reception and a 90-yard kickoff return for a score.

Senior safety Warren Lagaaia was also key with three interceptions and a pass breakup.

The Marauders (5-2, 4-0) are unbeaten against league opponents, but did drop two games against ILH opponents Iolani and Damien. Waipahu lost to the Raiders in week two, 55-14, and gave up the go-ahead score to the Monarchs with under three seconds to play in a 13-10 loss on Sept. 7.

Since then the Marauders have won two straight games, which included a 36-0 shutout against Nanakuli last week. Safety Deacon Kapea, who also plays running back due to injuries to Alfred Failauga and Jayven Reyes, returned an interception for a 17-yard pick-six and ran in two scores in the victory over the Golden Hawks.

Both teams have the inside track to be one of the four teams to reach the league playoffs as they each own head-to-head wins over Castle (3-3 league) and Aiea (2-3 league). They could also play again each other in three weeks if Na Menehune (4-0 OIA D1) clinches the league's top seed. Moanalua owns the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Mules, but has yet to play the Marauders.

Waipahu is celebrating homecoming this weekend, but recent history favors Leilehua against the Marauders as the Mules won their 2014 and 2015 meetings by shutout.

We caught up with Mules coach Mark Kurisu and Marauders coach Bryson Carvalho before they take to the field.

ScoringLive: Describe your team's current situation with one word and explain.

Mark Kurisu, Leilehua coach: "Growth. Growth because we're a young team. There's a lot of inexperience, we've been able to win games, but we've been close, we've been fortunate enough to still win. Kids are learning how to win, we're also learning how to lose and use that failure as an opportunity to grow. Right now every game actually makes a world of difference for our team because they have to be put in that setting to get better."

Bryson Carvalho, Waipahu coach: "Focused. Coming in to the season, we knew we had great players - but lacked focus. We had maturity issues early on that we had to deal with and needed to suspend or discipline numerous players due to poor decision making and lack of focus. Sometimes it serves as a wake-up call for the whole team, and now we are starting to see the guys really take form and mature as a whole. It's really nice to see how good this team can be when they are all focused."

SL: What did your most recent loss teach your team?

Kurisu: "Humility because you cannot just show up and think people are going to lay down for you because you won a couple of games. It gave them perspective in terms of looking at each opponent as they're the team to beat. It keeps us grounded, allows us to keep focus. Those are the things that cost us against Moanalua."

Carvalho: "You learn a lot from losing. I think it's important for our players to understand that all the small details are so important. The way we've prepared since our last loss has been night and day, and most of the difference has to do with their attitudes and mindset. A lot of young people think they can rely on talent alone. Not true at all. I think we learned the hard way with those losses. The coaching staff definitely sees the difference in the team's mindset."

SL: In what areas has your team made its greatest strides this season?

Kurisu: "Just probably being disciplined. Being a young group, (they) typically don't know what to do, a lot of times you have to tell them, but it's getting to the point where we can say less and they're doing more, which is what we want of our players. Taking more responsibility. running drills, addressing their peers, keeping them in line, helping them stay focused. They're seeing the value of the players leading the team and the impact it has. The best teams always have the best student athletes as leaders."

Carvalho: "Our defense has been playing extremely well all season. Props to DC Ron Johnson. He's doing a great job of getting the players to understand his style of defense and the kids are doing a great job buying in the philosophy and executing it."

SL: Has there been any pleasant surprises?

Kurisu: "I think defensively, it's been a real surprise. We returned one starter on the line and one starter as a DB. Everyone else has been brand new. Being able to see them step into a starting role, learn how to control the defense, how to run the defense at a high level, has really helped our program and our football team this year. We've actually been able to slow teams down, get more possessions for our offense. Our offense kind of does their thing and puts up the points, but we've leaned heavily on our defensive unit this year."

Carvalho: "Deacon Kapaa. Not really a surprise, because we always knew what he could do for us, but for him to step in at running back and carry the load for us on the offensive side all while playing great defense has been pleasant to see. He's humble, and he's hard worker so it's great to see his work ethic and attitude benefit the team."

SL: How has the new three-tier, interleague format improved your team?

Kurisu: "I think it's been great, being able to play every week against different opponents and the private schools now. Seeing a lot of teams that dropped down from the Open to Division I, there's a lot of parity with teams beating teams. To me, it seems like there's a lot more closer games. I think it just really brought a lot of the community out, even when we go to a visiting site. We were just at Aiea and that stadium was almost packed. Now we're heading to Waipahu and that's going to be packed. It's just great to see the community come out to these games. Even at an opponent's site, it's great to have fans out there."

Carvalho: "Competition makes anyone better. I think having Iolani and Damien in the mix will force any team to play more disciplined football. It forces coaches to think on the fly and constantly make adjustments during games and players to perform at a higher level."

SL: What are your thoughts on this week's opponent?

Kurisu: "They're a big team, well-coached. Coach Bryson and their staff, they do a great job out there. I think these are the types of things that you can consider them to be one of those Open Division guys, just in terms of size and what they're capable of putting out there with their X's and O's. They're the team to beat. We're looking up towards them. That's what we're trying to get to. Just got to go out there and play."

Carvalho: "Leilehua is another well-coached, disciplined football team that does a lot of things on both sides of the ball that's got our attention. They play fast on offense, has a guy that can sling the football all over the field. They like to spread defenses out all while being able to run the football extremely well. They also play great defense, mix up their fronts, stunts and coverages often which gives any offense a headache. Four days of practice goes by real quick when you have all that to prepare for."

SL: What will be a key matchup within the game Friday night?

Kurisu: "Every things always at the line. Front five for the (offense), front four for the (defense). We're not going to win the size battle, but as long as we can execute our game plan, our scheme, our technique, I think that's what is going to give us the edge if we can do it."

Carvalho: "I'll be paying very close attention to how we do up front. You win or lose games in the trenches so we need to be able to control the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball to be successful."

Kickoff is slated for approximately 7:30 p.m. at the Masa Yonamine Athletic Complex.