The greatest of scriptwriters couldn’t have dreamed up the ending to the heated rivalry game between Kaiser and Kalani on Saturday night at Kaiser Stadium. The heated rivalry matchup was ultimately decided by 1 yard, as the Kaiser Cougars held on to beat the Falcons 16-12 on the game’s final play.
Trailing 12-10 with less than two minutes left to play, Kaiser quarterback Sean Connell led the Cougars on a nine-play, 73-yard drive that culminated in Connell’s 2-yard game-winning touchdown run with 13.5 seconds left on the clock.
The Cougars went for 2 but failed, leaving the tiniest of doors open for a miracle Kalani comeback. The Falcons needed two miracles, but only got one. Carson Lam picked up a short Kaiser squib kick, then returned the ball 60 yards to the Cougars 4-yard line. With five seconds left and no timeouts, the Falcons had their chance. Kalani quarterback Kynan McCartney tried to run up the middle after his first read was taken away, but his effort fell heartbreakingly short as he was tackled by Kaiser’s Kapono Kaaihue on the 1-yard line.
“The kick didn’t go the way we designed it to go,” Kaiser coach Tim Seaman said. “But credit to the defense for stepping up in a tight situation. We were fortunate to pull it out.”
This win is Kaiser’s first of the year after back-to-back one-possession losses to start the year.
“It’s always good to win. The coach in me is looking at all the things we need to correct, but I think from a confidence standpoint, the team really needed this win tonight,” Seaman said.
Connell completed 17 of 26 passes for 198 yards and a touchdown, but he also threw two interceptions. He was also effective on the ground, tallying 45 yards on 12 carries and the game-winning touchdown run. Keagan Lime led all pass-catchers with 100 yards on six grabs and a touchdown.
McCartney struggled to complete passes against a tough Kaiser defense. He completed just two of 16 passes for 16 yards but had one passing touchdown. McCartney still found a way to make an impact, running for a game-high 77 yards on 19 carries.
“I’m really proud of our defense,” Seaman said. “McCartney is an outstanding quarterback. He keeps plays alive with his legs.”
The Cougars started the game the same way they ended it, scoring the first points of the game on Lime’s 31-yard field goal after a 12-play opening drive. They fumbled the ball on the next drive, but the Cougars defense kept Kalani off the scoreboard.
On their first drive of the second quarter, Kaiser scored the game’s first touchdown. Connell completed five passes for 70 yards on the 10-play drive, capped off by Connell’s 32-yard touchdown toss to Lime.
Connell wasn’t quite as successful on the next drive, as he threw an interception to Kalani’s Jordan Amalato, who returned it 30 yards for the Falcons’ first touchdown of the game.
Momentum changed hands with Amalato’s pick-6. With just under three minutes left in the half, Kaiser went conservative with three short runs. A high snap on the ensuing punt rolled to the goal line, where Dillon Reis picked up the ball and ran it 20 yards to prevent a safety.
Nonetheless, the Falcons had a prime opportunity to take their first lead of the game.
Kaiser’s offense woke up just in time. Connell completed five passes for 62 yards on the Cougars’ game-winning drive. Lime caught three of those passes for 53 yards, including the 31-yard reception down to the 3-yard line that set up Connell’s game-winner two plays later.
“It was a hard-fought game. To be honest, we expected it to be that way,” Seaman said.
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Kaiser 16, Kalani 12
Kaiser (1-2, 1-1) 3 7 0 6 — 16
Kalani (3-1, 2-1) 0 12 0 0 — 12
Kais—FG Keagan Lime 31
Kais—Lime 32 pass from Sean Connell (Lime kick)
Kaln—Jordan Amalato 30 interception return (kick failed)
Kaln—Jonah Viernes 8 pass from Kynan McCartney (kick failed)
Kais—Connell 2 run (pass failed)
RUSHING—Kaiser: Dillon Reis 21-57, Connell 12-45, TEAM 1-(minus 6). Kalani—McCartney 19-77, Sonny Iaea 16-57.
PASSING—Kaiser: Connell 17-26-2-198. Kalani: McCartney 2-16-0-16.
RECEIVING—Kaiser: Lime 6-100, Jesse Shinagawa 6-44, Brennan Seto 2-11, Aiden Leong, A 1-20, Jayvien Smith 1-16, Reis 1-7. Kalani: Viernes 2-16.
Non-League
Nanakuli 48, Roosevelt 30
at Ticky Vasconcellos Stadium
Roosevelt (1-2) 7 3 7 13 — 30
Nanakuli (2-2) 14 6 20 8 — 48
Roos—Nainoa Aguiar 81 kickoff return
Nana—Richard Federico 7 pass from Kanoa Torres
Nana—Christian Asinsin 2 run
Nana—Federico 5 pass from Torres
Nana—Asinsin 3 run
Roos—Taimane Souza-Fautanu 14 pass from Ioane Kamanao
Roos—Izaiah Nakamura 2 pass from Kamanao
Nana—Lyric Anuenue 50 pass from Torres
Roos—Kainoa Mattson 55 pass from Kamanao
Roos—FG DePeralta
Nana—Talitonu Keohuhu 19 run
Also:
Damien (Calif.) 59, Damien 29
