Wide receivers Roman Wilson (left) and Matt Sykes (right) had a combined 254 yards on 12 receptions to lead the way for the Crusaders' receiving corps. ScoringLive photo illustration

Purchase image 1 of 1

Although the Saint Louis receivers did not see the end zone, their contributions allowed the Crusaders to extend drives in a 21-14 win over Punahou to capture their fifth-straight Interscholastic League of Honolulu title.

The triple threat of Roman Wilson (seven catches, 145 yards), Matt Sykes (five catches, 109 yards), and Koali Nishigaya (six catches for 62 yards) moved the chains for the Crusaders. The trio had a hand, or in this case two hands, in converting 11 of the team's 14 passing first downs.

Matt Sykes, a 6-foot-4 UCLA commit with 37 receptions for 683 yards on the season, made a diving catch for 14 yards on a third-and-8 to the Saint Louis 46. Four plays later, Wilson's 15-yard reception set up de Laura's rushing touchdown for a 7-0 lead.

"All across the board, the offense was firing tonight. I expect nothing less from the other receivers, we push each other in practice," Sykes said.

The Crusaders faced a third-and-10 on their own 21, but Nishigaya caught a 24-yard pass and a play later, Wilson ran a fade route to reel in a 45-yard pass from de Laura down to the Punahou 10. The drive would end in a missed field goal, but Saint Louis led 14-0.

"It starts at practice, we go against the best defense in the state so that helps too making plays. It worked out for us tonight," Nishigaya said.

Sykes caught a 31-yard pass, his longest catch of the night, to the Punahou 12 that led to de Laura's go-ahead touchdown. His sophomore and junior seasons were derailed by injuries, but it motivated him to come back stronger in his final season wearing red and blue.

"It feels great, especially since it's my senior year. I've been injured the past two years and to help my team to beat a great Punahou team. I'm real happy. Everyone did well tonight—offense, defense, and special teams," Sykes said.

Saint Louis clung onto a 7-point lead on their final offensive drive. Wilson, who is the second leading receiver behind Nishigaya in receiving yards (780), caught two passes for 21 and 12 yards—both on third downs.

Following a 1-yard gain by Nishigaya, Saint Louis called two consecutive timeouts to decide what to do with 2:12 to go and facing a fourth-and-5 on the Punahou 41. After the timeout, the Crusaders lined up as if they were going to run, but instead de Laura found Sykes on a slant for a 27-yard gain to the Punahou 14.

"We had elephant package and we looked like we were going to run it. We had the two wide outs running the slant, Jayden got the ball out quick," Sykes explained of the play and formation.

Saint Louis was 6 for 15 on third down conversions and Sykes' catch turned out to be the team's one and only fourth down conversion of the night as the Crusaders were 1 for 3.

"I'm blessed. Coach Cal and the rest of the coaches put the trust in me to get the grab to get the first down. If I drop it, who knows what happens. They put the trust in me and I have to get that ball," Sykes said.

The Crusaders ended up turn it over on downs, but it left Punahou with only 8 seconds left on the clock and backed up on their own 17.

"When we called it, we're just so happy and knew what was going to happen. I looked at him and he gave me that ‘okay' look and I knew he had it," Saint Louis coach Cal Lee said during the timeout.

"That was huge," Nishigaya said of Sykes' grab. "Matt's a big time player and big time players make big plays in big moments and he stepped up."

After losing four of their five fumbles to an aggressive Buffanblu defense in the first contest, the Crusaders emphasized ball security during their bye weeks. That emphasis paid off as Saint Louis was turnover-free in the ILH title game.

"These last two or three weeks we were stressing ball security. We stressed squeezing the ball hard because Punahou has a great defense and they're looking to punch the ball out and make turnovers. That was the main thing, taking care of the ball and keep the possessions going," Sykes said.

"That was a lesson we told them again and again to hold the ball. It was something you experience, you work at it and worked hard holding onto that ball. In the end, we never had a turnover," Lee said as his team went back to the basics during the bye.

The Crusaders have a three-week break before playing in the HHSAA Open Division semifinals starting on Nov. 22 and will face OIA runner up Mililani that will follow the Campbell/Kahuku game.