Kini McMillan threw for 304 yards and four touchdowns and Mililani’s defense recorded 11 of its 13 sacks in the first half for a 28-7 win over visiting Saint Louis on Friday night.
A crowd of roughly 3,000 at John Kauinana Stadium saw a Trojans team that looked, in many ways, to be in midseason form. McMillian suffered a torn ACL during preseason last year, as a freshman, but showed no signs of it against the defending ILH champion Crusaders.
“Shout out to my teammates, my coaches, my family and the Lord above,” he said. “We did a lot of film study.”
Mililani’s season-opening win in an exhibition game came in decisive fashion, but longtime coach Rod York remained low key.
“For us, it’s about executing our game plan, our reads and keys, blocking and tackling. But keep in mind, this is preseason. That’s all it is,” York said. “Make no mistake about it — Kahuku, Saint Louis, they’re postseason teams. That’s why we scrimmage and play those caliber teams. That’s going to improve us.”
Saint Louis coach Ron Lee sees plenty of potential in his team, especially with a relatively inexperienced offensive unit.
“We’re where we felt we we’d be. We’ve got a lot of young guys on offense. We had five opportunities (close to the end zone) and we had three turnovers. Mistakes with young guys, quarterbacks right on down the line. Mililani is solid. I like the way they played. (Limited) turnovers. We’ve got a lot of work to do,” Lee said.
The first quarter ended 7-0 with Mililani ahead, but felt like total Trojans domination — even with a dropped pass that would have been a touchdown for the visiting Crusaders. McMillan connected with Roller for a 70-yard bomb on Mililani’s third play from scrimmage, and four Trojans sacks gave the home team control and momentum for most of the opening stanza.
On the first play of the second quarter, McMillan connected with Gavin Hunter down the right sideline for a 21-yard TD and a 14-0 lead.
Saint Louis rotated starter Kekai Graham and backup ‘Oa Kamakawiwo‘ole with limited success. The two were sacked seven times before the midway point of the second quarter.
Still, a 13-yard sack by defensive end Julian Savaiinaea pinned Mililani back to its 9-yard line. After a punt, the Crusaders had the ball at the Mililani 37-yard line. Kamakawiwo‘ole marched his team downfield and connected with Titan Lacaden on a crossing route for a 3-yard TD.
An interception and 28-yard return by Ana Monteilh set up Saint Louis at the Trojans’ 37-yard line, again. Saint Louis drove to the Mililani 19-yard line, but this time, the Trojans brought the heat and sacked Kamakawiwo‘ole on the final three plays of the half.
After Saint Louis sacked McMillan twice on the first series of the second half, the Crusaders drove to the Mililani 29-yard line. However, Yosei Takahashi fumbled the ball after a short pass and Elijah Nua recovered for the Trojans at the 25-yard line. Two plays later, McMillan’s deep spiral landed in the hands of Ian Seale, who split two defenders en route to a 76-yard TD. The Trojans led 21-7 with 4:54 to go in the third quarter.
Saint Louis had a clear shot at a touchdown with the ball at the Mililani 4, but Kamakawiwo‘ole fumbled on an option keeper and the Trojans recovered in the end zone for a touchback.
After a 31-yard strike by McMillan to Lehiwa Kahana-Travis, the QB found Andrew Manivong Jr. for a 29-yard TD with 9:30 remaining.
—
MILILANI 28, SAINT LOUIS 7
at John Kauinana Stadium
Saint Louis 0 7 0 0 — 7
Mililani 7 7 7 7 — 28
Mil—Raymond Roller 70 pass from Kini McMillan (Makel Paiva kick)
Mil—Gavin Hunter 21 pass from McMillan (Paiva kick)
Stl—Anelu Lafaele 3 pass from ‘Oa Kamakawiwo‘ole (Makena Kauai kick)
Mil—Ian Seale 76 pass from McMillan (Paiva kick)
Mil—Andrew Manivong Jr. 29 pass from McMillan (Paiva kick)
Thursday
Farrington 42, Waialua 7
Friday
‘Iolani 62, Kaiser 27
Leilehua 27, Kailua 27
Mililani 28, Saint Louis 7
Today
Pahoa vs. Pac-Five at Farrington, 3 p.m.
Kealakehe at Kapolei, 3 p.m.
McKinley at Roosevelt, 5:30 p.m.
Kalaheo vs. Damien at Farrington, 6 p.m.
Waianae at Castle, 6:30 p.m.
Kapaa vs. Aiea at Radford, 6:30 p.m.
Kamehameha at Kahuku, 7 p.m.
Kaimuki vs. Waimea at Hanapepe Stadium, 7 p.m.
