Mike Tresler still has that speed, but even he probably wouldn’t keep up with his running back, Nainoa Simmons.
Simmons rushed for 261 yards and three touchdowns on 33 carries as Kapaa pulled away in the second half for a 55-33 win over ninth-ranked Damien in the Division II semifinal round of the First Hawaiian Bank/HHSAA Football State Championships at Skippa Diaz Stadium.
The second the game ended, Kapaa players tried in vain to douse their head coach, Tresler, with a cooler full of Gatorade, but the former Hawaii defensive back sprinted for a good 25 yards — untouched, much like Simmons. Versatile two-way player and special teams contributor Nash Burkhart, who returned a kick for a TD and hustled for a huge forced fumble on a potential Damien touchdown pass, noted that they occasionally make friendly bets with Tresler with gassers as the prize, or punishment.
“They got me a little bit. I try to run a little to manage stress,” Tresler said. “I didn’t know it was coming. I felt something. It got quiet, but normally a coach holds me and that happens, but nobody did and I got to move.”
A balanced performance is not easy to come by against an ILH champion like Damien.
“We did well in all three phases. I’m a little disappointed in our extra point (snapping). We work on it all the time,” Tresler said. “We’ve got to get that fixed before next week for sure. But we felt like we could have an advantage with special teams and it showed tonight. We’re humble and happy, our guys just played amazing. It’s not surprising.”
Simmons and his massive, mobile offensive line faced a scrappy Damien defense, gradually wearing down the smaller Monarchs. Kapaa finished with 327 rushing yards on 43 attempts. Simmons was at Saint Louis as a freshman, came back to Kapaa as a sophomore, then went to Kamehameha.
“They didn’t use me as much as I would’ve wanted, but I love those coaches, I love those boys. Shout out to them,” Simmons said.
He praised his relentless blockers.
“Amaziah (Siale) played a little bit. He’s still banged up, so Julius (Iglesia) was there. Then we’ve got Kanoa, then our center Noah Navalta. Right guard we’ve got Mana (Takayama) and then our big boy, King Pitts. He’s a dog, freshman,” Simmons said. “We have a great quarterback (Evan Daligdig). He can throw the ball, and a great receiver, Mana Chong, he didn’t get utilized as much, but he’s a baller.”
Kapaa entered the semifinal round after a 38-12 rout of Kailua last week at Bryan J. Baptiste Complex. The unbeaten Warriors (8-0) will meet Konawaena in the final on Nov. 30 at Mililani. Damien ended the season 8-2, getting a gritty effort from senior Sylas Alaimalo, who finished with 77 rushing yards and 12 receptions for 127 yards with two combined TDs.
Quarterback AJ Tuifua passed for 412 yards (28-for-44) with four TDs and four interceptions.
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Damien gambled on its opening series, going for it on fourth-and-6 from its 48-yard line. Tuifua’s pass over the middle was intercepted by linebacker Sami Kauvaka, who returned the ball 21 yards to the Damien 32-yard line.
Kapaa immediately went into smashmouth mode out of its trips formation, giving the ball to Simmons six times in a row. On the 11th play of the drive, Daligdig faked the jet-sweep handoff and knifed through the middle for a 3-yard touchdown. After Simmons scored easily on a 2-point conversion run, the Warriors led 8-0 with 5:45 left in the opening quarter.
The Monarchs got on track moments later on Tuifua’s 32-yard touchdown pass to Wyatt Ho-Williams on a deep post pattern. Samuel Kawakami’s PAT kick brought Damien within 8-7 with 2:40 to go in the first quarter.
Daligdig mixed in quick passes to Chong for effective gains. The Warriors’ offensive line practically swept away Damien’s black jerseys from the line of scrimmage, setting up a 12-yard TD run by Simmons. Kapaa led 15-7 with 28 seconds remaining in the first quarter.
After just two series, Simmons had 56 yards on nine carries.
Damien’s ensuing drive came to a crossroads with fourth-and-4 at its 44-yard line. Alaimalo gathered a short pass, then carried three tacklers for a 5-yard gain and a crucial first down. The senior hauled in four passes in the flat, then picked up another key first down on a 4-yard run up the middle, dragging a horde of tacklers.
On fourth-and-1 at the Kapaa 4-yard line, the Warriors were whistled for encroachment. On the next play, Tuifua tossed a pass to Dayton Savea, who scored on a 2-yard TD. Damien trailed 15-14 with 6:43 to go in the first half.
On the ensuing kickoff, Burkhart got a head start on a short kick and returned the ball untouched 80 yards down the right sideline to pay dirt. Kapaa had a bad snap on the PAT and did not score, but the lead was 21-14 with 6:34 left in the first half.
Damien was resilient, spreading the field and keeping Alaimalo busy. His 27-yard gain around the right side, plus a horse collar penalty on Kapaa, advanced the ball to the Warriors’ 13-yard line.
Facing a three-man rush, Tuifua waited and found Savea alone in the back of the end zone for a 13-yard TD. The game was tied at 21 with 3:21 left before halftime.
Damien’s lengthy, time-consuming drives seemed to freeze Kapaa’s offense, which went three and out. However, Kapaa’s Takazee Thomas recovered a live ball on the ensuing punt after it was touched by Damien.
Again, Damien’s defense stopped the Warriors cold. On fourth-and-8, Damien was flagged for encroachment. Kapaa tried to lure Damien into another offsides violation, then called time out with 1:09 to go in the first half. Kapaa then sent its version of an elephant offense onto the field, and Simmons ran 3 yards for a first down.
On the next snap, Daligdig found Kamalei Gonsalves wide open down the hash mark, and the speedster beat a defender to the end zone for a 42-yard TD. Kapaa led 28-21 with 57 seconds left before intermission.
Gonsalves came up with an interception near the Kapaa 20-yard line to end Damien’s last drive for the first half.
Kapaa opened the second half with a smashmouth drive, covering 58 yards in eight plays, including a 15-yard late hit penalty on Damien. Daligdig scored on a keeper around the right side for a 10-yard TD, opening Kapaa’s lead to 35-21 with 8:14 left in the third quarter.
Damien’s offense went empty backfield on its first series of the second half. Alaimalo hauled in a 24-yard pass despite two solid hits in mid-air before he landed.
Alaimalo shed a tackler en route to an 18-yard TD to bring the Monarchs within 35-27 with 5:37 to go in the third stanza. A bad snap on the PAT lead to an incomplete pass by the holder, Alaimalo.
After an onside kick recovery by Damien was nullified by an encroachment penalty, Simmons scored on a 47-yard jaunt. The nifty fake handoff by Daligdig to his jet-sweep motion man set up the score, opening Kapaa’s lead to 42-27 with 4:47 to go in the third quarter.
Alaimalo left the game with 3:01 to go in the third quarter after getting tackled on a run. He returned to the game two plays later. Tuifua scrambled and found Champ Buffett open for a long gain, but Burkhart hustled to force a fumble, and teammate Kaliko Wilson recovered at the Warriors’ 3-yard line.
“I messed up on the play, so I had to make it up for my team. I hit it over the top and punched it out,” Burkhart said.
Three plays later, Kapaa defensive back Ryan Peters picked off a pass by Tuifua and raced across the field to the left pylon for a 29-yard pick-6. Kapaa led 49-27 with 10:10 left.
Damien drove into Kapaa territory, but a deep pass by Tuifua on fourth-and-4 was intercepted by Wilson at the Warriors’ 1-yard line.
Kapaa added some final insurance points when Simmons followed his left tackle to the second level and raced 73 yards for his third TD. Kapaa led 55-27 with 4:36 to go.
The Monarchs tacked on a 24-yard TD pass from Tuifua to Alaimalo with 3:27 to play.
“It’s really our pride. We’re representing Kapaa and our island. We’re Kauai boys. Without our coaches, we wouldn’t be here right now,” Burkhart said.
The schools met on the gridiron just twice coming into Friday’s battle. In 2016, after beating St. Francis for the ILH D-II title, fifth-seeded Damien blanked Waialua 40-0 in the opening round of the D-II state tournament. A week later in Lihue, on Nov. 12, fourth-seeded Kapaa eliminated Damien 21-14.
Kapaa then lost to Lahainaluna for the state championship, 21-14.
On Sept. 1, 1967, Damien blanked Kapaa 36-0 at Isenberg Field in Lihue. The Monarchs then lost their remaining games, finishing the year 1-10.
