The senior rushes for 169 yards on 27 carries as the Buffanblu hand ‘Iolani a 38-18 defeat in their ILH opener
Punahou seized momentum early, and by the time ‘Iolani got untracked, it was too late.
The Raiders’ Reece Foy passed for 391 yards, but the Buffanblu never lost control en route to a 38-18 win Friday at Eddie Hamada Field.
It was the Interscholastic League of Honolulu opener for both teams on a hot afternoon. The visiting Buffanblu (4-1 overall) were perhaps too hot under the collar, flagged for 128 yards on 15 penalties — in the first half. If not for the whistles, Punahou might have put the game away early. ‘Iolani fell to 3-2 overall. Steven Lakalaka led the way for Punahou, which returned from California after a 19-7 win over Vista last weekend, with 169 rushing yards on 27 carries. The UCLA-bound senior put the game out of reach with a 40yard jaunt to the end zone late in the contest.
But Lakalaka had several runs called back, including another touchdown run earlier, because of the penalties — mostly for holding.
“It seems like everybody in the state goes against us, but that’s how it is. We just have to pick it up and move forward with the next play,” said Lakalaka, who credited his offensive line and fullback Jacob Ioane for opening holes.
Sophomore Larry Tuileta started slowly but hit seven of eight pass attempts midway through the first half. At one point, he threw three touchdowns in three attempts: a 2-yard play-action toss to K.J. Sekona, a 10yard alley-oop to 6-foot-5 Malik Johnson and a 10-yard strike to Kale Dyas.
After the pass to Dyas, which was set up by Zachary Hernandez’s 36yard interception return, the Buffanblu were in firm control with a 24-0 lead less than 2 minutes into the second quarter.
The Raiders finally got on the board with an 80-yard drive, capped by Foy’s 34yard touchdown pass to Tanner Nishioka. The PAT kick was short, and the Raiders didn’t try another extra-point kick the rest of the afternoon.
The Raiders stalled after driving to the Punahou 11yard line before the half, a result that repeated during a key stretch in the second half.
Punahou jumped to a 31-6 lead on Lakalaka’s first touchdown, a 2-yard burst up the gut, with 10:02 left in the third quarter.
The Raiders, sticking with their no-huddle attack, got touchdowns on back-toback drives. Foy found Nishioka for a 5-yard touchdown pass, and after Christian Donahue’s leaping interception at midfield, ‘Iolani scored again. Foy hit Nishioka in the left corner of the end zone for a 10-yard touchdown pass, and the Raiders were within 31-18 with 4:09 to go in the third.
From there, ‘Iolani racked up yardage but failed to score on its last four possessions. Coach Wendell Look pulled a few surprises, including a nifty fake doublereverse screen that had Punahou leaning the other way.
All in all, Punahou coach Kale Ane was satisfied with the win. His defense came up with five turnovers.
“ ‘Iolani’s a very good team. Our defense played well, but there’s lots of room for improvement,” he said.
Defensive end DeForest Buckner appreciated a win, period, especially with teammate Luke Kaumatule out for the season with a knee injury.
“I remember we came here two years ago and they gave us a beatdown,” the 6-7 senior said. “I missed playing with Luke.”
Buckner faced double and triple teams all game long, but the Buffanblu swarmed and contained ‘Iolani’s ground game. The Raiders averaged 2.1 yards per rushing attempt (54 yards on 26 carries) and picked off Foy four times.
Foy finished 27-for-54 in a gritty effort, often scrambling in figure-eight loops to avoid the pass rush. He was sacked just twice.
Tuileta, an all-state volleyball player as a freshman last spring, finished 12-for27 for 113 yards. The firstyear starter also rushed for 47 yards on seven carries.
