Eberhardt, defense provide spark for Mules

Turns out, all Mack Eberhardt needed was a little time.

Eberhardt, who struggled last week against Kapolei, shrugged off a slow start against Aiea to help Leilehua slam Na Alii 40-10 on Friday night in Aiea.

Eberhardt was 15-for-19 for 238 yards and two touchdowns, which is easy to do when you have all of the time in the world. The quarterback was never sacked and rarely threatened despite Leilehua starting three new guys in front of him.

"We’ve got three good quarterbacks, how fortunate are we?" Leilehua coach Nolan Tokuda asked. "The last two games when we lost them and he struggled, that’s on the coaches. When you have a guy who can make the throws like he can, and run like he can it is up to the coaches to help him succeed."

Aiea threw a scare into the Mules initially, stoning Leilehua on downs on Eberhardt’s first drive and forcing them to punt after three plays on their second.

Na Alii, who didn’t do anything the first time they got the ball, drove 80 yards and took the lead when Elijah Tausaga hit Shaenan Hernandez-Fonoti on a simple slant that the dynamic receiver took 40 yards for a touchdown. Jae Wan Huh’s kick gave Na Alii a 7-0 lead.

Leilehua brought in Kalanimoku Pauole to run the offense, but he wasn’t much better, earning one first down on his first two series.

Leilehua’s defense gave their quarterbacks time to find their feet, as defensive back Will Pule picked off a pass from Tausaga and returned it to the end zone for a touchdown. John Enos missed the extra point, but the Mules were on the board.

After that, it was all Leilehua. Eberhardt led the Mules to touchdowns on their next three drives, hitting Ikaika Piceno for 19 yards before handing it to Austinn Nagao for a 38-yard touchdown run to take the lead. A 25-yard pass to Tristin Kamaka followed by a 60-yard bomb to Kamaka made it all Mules. Kamaka caught five passes for 127 yards and Dustin Ancheta-Maeda added four for 70.

The loss ends Aiea’s bid for the playoffs for the second straight year. Na Alii have a bye and visit Mililani on Oct. 4, but they have already clinched their fourth straight losing season.

Leilehua avoided its first three-game losing streak since 2005 and put itself back in the playoff race. The Mules visit rival Mililani next week and close at Waipahu in their third straight road game.

Aiea was once again without quarterback Jordan Liilii, who was cleared to practice and play in the final game of the season at Mililani. Liilii, a junior, is recovering from a broken ankle suffered over the summer.