Kapolei wrapped up the regular season with a win over Nanakuli and set sights on a deep postseason run.
The fourth-ranked Hurricanes defeated the visiting Golden Hawks 50-12 in an OIA Red game on Friday. Kapolei (7-1, 6-1) clinched the OIA Red title last week, along with a berth in the state tournament and a bye in the first round of the OIA playoffs entering Friday’s game.
“It’s a blessing playing with great guys and being coached by great people,” said Kapolei quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa. “We can only move upward and forward from here. We just got to up our game. We know playoffs are no joke — everyone is different, everyone makes adjustments. We just got to continue to work harder and keep pushing.”
Kapolei scored five touchdowns in the second quarter to put the game out of reach against Nanakuli (0-8, 0-7). Tagovailoa, who couldn’t connect with his receivers early in the game, looked sharp in the second. He connected on a 46-yard touchdown throw to Leighton Rosa and a 34-yard touchdown to Jaymin Sarono.
“It was kind of a mind-set thing,” Tagovailoa said. “After that first drive we just had to regroup and adjust for the second drive. That’s when everything started clicking.”
Rosa, who rushed for 81 yards, added a 44-yard scoring run in the second. Antoneo Filipo-Brown and Dreyden-Steele Kawewehi added scoring runs late in the second to give Kapolei a 47-0 halftime lead.
Tagovailoa completed 15 of 26 passes for 235 yards and four touchdowns. He didn’t play in the second half as Kapolei played its reserves.
“We just wanted to get all our players to play,” Tagovailoa said. “After halftime, we wanted to get all our seniors who didn’t play (in the first half) and our younger guys a taste of what it’s like to play at the varsity level.”
As the Hurricanes enter the postseason, they’re looking to capture the program’s first OIA championship.
“We really want to get that OIA championship,” Tagovailoa said. “We’re looking forward to getting there, but we just got to take it day by day, practice by practice, game by game and see where it takes us.”
Nanakuli quarterback Nainoa Banks connected twice with Chyson Morgan for touchdowns in the third quarter. The Golden Hawks wrapped up their first year in Division I.
