Hawaiian Electric Game of the Week
Crawford's 5 TD passes in relief lead Red Raiders in convincing win over Trojans


  



Sat, Nov 13, 2021 @ Mililani [ 6:30 pm ]


Final 1 2 3 4 T
Kahuku (10-0-0) 6 21 7 2155
Mililani (5-3-0) 3 10 7 020
Emana Tarape 183 yd 2 TD
Waika Crawford 174 yd 5 TD
Lando Werner-Celes 69 yd 2 TD
Kainoa Carvalho 194 yd 2 TD

MILILANI — Sterling Carvalho wanted his team to a make a statement Saturday and it did just that. 

Backup quarterback Waika Crawford passed for 174 yards and five touchdowns in relief duty to lead No. 2 Kahuku to a convincing 55-20 win over previously-unbeaten and fourth-ranked Mililani.

The Red Raiders passed their toughest test to date with flying colors before a crowd of about 2,800 fans at John Kauinana Stadium to remain undefeated at 5-0 atop the Oahu Interscholastic Association Open Division standings. 

The Trojans had their homecoming night spoiled with their first loss of the season and fell to 3-1. 

"We executed the things that we needed to do," said Kahuku coach Sterling Carvalho, whose team essentially matched its per-game scoring average of 55.3 points entering the contest. 

As it has done in each game this season, Kahuku got big-time contributions from its defense and special teams units. Big Red recorded three interceptions — two of them by safety Brock Fonoimoana — and held Mililani to 255 yards of total offense, well below its average of 359 net yards per game. 

In the third phase of the game, the Red Raiders recovered a muffed Trojans' punt return — which led to seven of their 21 points off turnovers — and got another stellar effort from junior Kainoa "Kaikai" Carvalho, who finished with 307 all-purpose yards, including 90 on four kickoff returns and another 16 on a punt return. 

"We played very well all three phases of the ball," Kainoa Carvalho said. "Defense played well and the offense stepped up, so we executed pretty well."

CJ Caraang | SL    Purchase image

Carvalho also hauled in 10 receptions for 194 yards — both season-high marks — and a pair of touchdowns. 

The teams exchanged field goals on each of their first two possessions. The score was tied at 6 until the 4:38 mark of the second quarter, when — on his very first play of the game in relief of starting quarterback Jason Mariteragi — Crawford found a wide-open Liona Lefau for a 13-yard touchdown pass. 

The touchdown came just one play after the drive was extended due to a crucial penalty against Mililani for roughing the passer on fourth-and-11. Mariteragi was hurt on the play and forced to exit the contest. He did not return to the game. 

Sterling Carvalho was unable to offer much of an assessment of Mariteragi's health post-game. 

"We gotta see. We gotta evaluate him," said Carvalho, whose team will enjoy a well-timed bye next week before closing the regular season out against another unbeaten in fifth-ranked Campbell two days after Thanksgiving.

Carvalho said he wasn't sure of the extent of the injury to Mariteragi, just that he "landed on some stuff, so we'll see. 

"We don't know really yet, but the bye comes at a great time," he offered. 

Crawford's first touchdown pass gave his team the lead for good. After a three-and-out by Mililani, Crawford connected with Kainoa Carvalho on a deep ball down the right sideline. Carvalho located the Crawford pass, then fought off a pair of defensive backs before he tight-roped the sideline en route to a 70-yard scoring strike. 

"We practice this a lot in practice: the go route," said Carvalho, a 5-foot-7, 160-pound speedster. "With my speed he just throws it up — he trusts me, I trust him — and we just executed."

Crawford affirmed that the duo was on the same page pre-snap. 

"I kind of knew I had him off the get — because I know nobody can guard Kaikai — so all I had to do was stare off the safety to the left. I looked him off to the left and I just delivered," said Crawford, a 6-foot-1, 175-pound junior. 

Mililani answered with a 69-yard return by Makanalea Meyer on the ensuing kickoff and two plays after that, Emana Tarape hit slotback Lando Werner-Celes for a 5-yard TD pass. The extra point by Makel Paiva made it a one-score game at 20-13 with 1:54 left in the half. However, Kahuku added some breathing room with Crawford's 7-yard pass to Kruze Keanu in the back right corner of the end zone with just 17 seconds before the break. 

The drive was extended by a pair of pass-interference penalties against the Trojans, including one that wiped away a Kahuku incomplete pass on third-and-14. 

CJ Caraang | SL    Purchase image

Kahuku built upon its 27-13 halftime lead with Clyde Taulapapa's 6-yard TD run on a direct snap to cap a eight-play drive that started at the Trojans' 32-yard line after Leonard Ah You recovered a muffed punt return by Meyer. 

"We're a very opportunistic kind of team and that's what we want to do: make sure we score in all three phases and do the best that we can," Sterling Carvalho said. 

Mililani returned fire with a 57-yard TD pass from Tarape to Werner-Celes just three plays later to pull to within 34-20 late in the third quarter, but was unable to cut any further into the Kahuku lead. 

Early in the final stanza, on a third-and-7 play, Crawford stepped up in the pocket and scrambled to his left, which drew a defender in the area with him. Consequently, that left Carvalho wide open and Crawford threw back to the right side of the field, where he found him for a 16-yard touchdown. 

Crawford said that after he climbed the pocket, he was looking for Kealoha Kaio on the left side of the field. 

"But I caught Kaikai in the corner of my eye, so I just flipped my hips and threw it to him," Crawford said. 

Carvalho said Crawford made his own comparison to Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. 

"That was a great play from him. He was joking that he looked like Patty Mahomes and I agree," Carvalho said. "That was a good throw, good scramble and he made me in that position to score that touchdown."

Carvalho then tacked on the extra point to make it a 41-20 Kahuku lead with 8:21 left to play. 

One play after an interception by Keanu, Taulapapa punched in his second rushing touchdown — this one from seven yards out — to stretch it to a 47-20 advantage. 

Kahuku added an insurance score in the closing minutes with Crawford's 20-yard TD pass to Jamerus Tai Hook. 

"There were missed things here and there, but we just wanted to make sure we made a statement: our guys are here, they want to play, they want to play four quarters and that's what we did," Carvalho stated. "We played four quarters."

The Red Raiders' 395 yards of total offense was their most in a game this season. 

"It was big just being able to get that momentum to carry it out throughout the game and it was just a big win for us tonight," said Crawford, who completed 11 of his 16 pass attempts without an interception. 

Mariteragi threw for 123 yards on 9-of-14 passing and no picks before he left the game. 

Tarape finished 14 of 29 for 183 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions. Nehemiah Timoteo ran for a game-high 70 yards on nine carries and John Herold-Namu caught six passes for 87 yards. 

Meyer recorded 11 total tackles, including nine solo stops in the loss. Kamaehu Roman had two of his team's three sacks. 

Ah You notched both of Kahuku's sacks and finished with five tackles and a pass break-up. Lefau had seven total tackles, including five solo stops, in the win. 

Each team was penalized 16 times. Kahuku amassed 149 yards in penalty yardage, while the Trojans racked up 169 negative yards, including nine penalties of the personal-foul variety. 

Mililani had two players ejected from the game in defensive lineman Semeri Ulufale Jr., who was alleged to have thrown a punch early in the fourth quarter, and two-way standout lineman Mikey Agasiva, who was assessed two unsportsmanlike conduct fouls and was subsequently disqualified.

Both players, subject to appeal, will also be out for next Saturday's game against Campbell. 



Reach Kalani Takase at [email protected].




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