Having continued its mastery in the series with Pac-Five, Damien can turn its full focus to a showdown for early control of the ILH Division II race.
Damien senior Marcus Faufata-Pedrina threw four touchdown passes and the Monarchs defense accounted for two scores in a 39-18 win on Saturday at Aloha Stadium, extending their winning streak against to Wolfpack to nine.
Up next for Damien (4-1, 2-0 ILH) is a meeting with co-leader Saint Francis (4-1, 2-0) on Friday at Aloha Stadium. Saint Francis will enter the week riding the momentum of Friday’s 43-26 win over ‘Iolani.
“That’s going to be the toughest team we’ve played and we have a lot of work to do to get better,” Damien coach Eddie Klaneski said. “(Saint Francis coach Kip Akana’s) going to have his boys ready, and we’ll have our boys ready too, so it’s going to be a battle.”
Saturday’s game got off to a ragged start before Akila Arecchi sparked the Monarchs with a 48-yard interception return for a touchdown. The 5-foot-6, 145-pound senior also contributed on offense with an 11-yard touchdown reception from Faufata-Pedrina in the third quarter.
“That guy is just an all-around guy, he’s just a beast out there,” Klaneski said. “He’s small in stature, but the way he plays football is unbelievable. He’s just a gamer offensively and defensively.”
Damien’s offense was on the field for just 16 plays in the first half but generated 152 yards, the bulk coming on two Faufata-Pedrina touchdown passes.
Faufata-Pedrina opened the second quarter by connecting with Lindon Sevilleja on a deep post for a 40-yard touchdown pass. His next throw went to Logan Lauti for a 55-yard score.
Although Faufata-Pedrina’s nine completions in 14 attempts for 177 yards indicated an efficient passing day, Klaneski also saw areas for improvement in game management.
“We’ll just continue to work with him, but he’s continued to get better,” Klaneski said. “But there’s times we expect more of him.”
The Monarchs stretched the lead to 25-0 when defensive back Kellen Robins-Beers scooped up a mishandled pitch and raced 70 yards for Damien’s second defensive touchdown of the half.
“We just have to clean up all that. And this isn’t the first game (we did that),” Pac-Five coach Kip Botelho said of the turnovers. “We keep putting the ball on the ground. We gotta fix that if we want a chance.”
Pac-Five broke up the shutout late in the first half when AJ Ulufale scored on a 4-yard run on fourth-and-goal to cap a 12-play, 65-yard march and added another touchdown run in the third quarter.
More photos of the game between Damien and Pac-Five.
