No. 3 Punahou found itself in a tight football game through one half, but exploded on offense after the break for a 43-14 victory over No. 5 Campbell in Ewa Beach on Saturday night.
The Sabers (4-2, 1-1 OIA Open) were down just 9-0 and very much in striking distance until the Buffanblu (4-2, 4-2 ILH Open) took the second-half kickoff and marched 80 yards for a touchdown and started to put things in gear.
“We were very worried,” Punahou coach Kale Ane said about the slim halftime lead. “Then we had a couple of big plays and some big stops. Our receivers and (quarterback) Hugh (Brady) were in sync and the running game got going a little bit. And the defense played well throughout. I’m very proud of the effort on both sides of the ball.”
Ane was also worried about a possible letdown after a tough 35-28 loss to No. 1 Saint Louis last week.
“But the kids were resilient and came out ready to play,” Ane added. “Only 9-0 at half, it could have gone either way. Campbell, they’re a very good team, very explosive, and they came out with a great game plan and we made some adjustments.”
Brady had one of his most accurate outings. He went 18-for-27 for 236 yards and three touchdowns. Nine Punahou receivers caught passes, and that group was led by Koa Eldredge (four catches, 83 yards and a TD) and Les Falatea (five catches, 62 yards).
Outside linebacker Marist Liufau got things rolling for the Buffanblu late in the first quarter after a punt pinned Campbell on its 1. On a third-down play, Sabers quarterback Kaniala Kalaola faked a handoff and faded back, but was met by Liufau, who immediately put him on the ground in the end zone for a safety and a 2-0 lead.
Punahou struck again right away. Falatea returned the ensuing kickoff 39 yards and then beat double coverage to the end zone to corral Brady’s 37-yard touchdown pass to make it 9-0.
In the third quarter, Punahou went up 15-0 with that 80-yard drive capped by Brady’s 17-yard TD pass to Kanoa Kalahiki. Later, Eldredge’s 38-yard TD catch and Kainalu Puu-Robinson’s pick-6 put the Buffanblu ahead 29-0 and the rout was on.
“The team effort was all there,” Eldredge said. “I want to give a shout-out to the offensive line because they did an amazing job as they always do. Every game, it’s about just getting better. We’re striving to put up more points, make less mistakes and get ready for the ILH tournament and hopefully get into the state tournament. That’s our goal.”
Campbell’s Sky Lactaoen scored his team’s two touchdowns on short runs in the fourth quarter.
“We had some breakdowns and young mistakes,” Sabers coach Darren Johnson said. “But I’m excited about what’s ahead of us. I saw some good things … we played a good football team. They (the Buffanblu) made adjustments in the second half and we fell apart a little bit. We’ll keep working and we’ll keep getting better. We needed to score more (in the second half) and make more defensive stops. If we’re not scoring, we can’t expect the defense to be on the field the majority of the game.”
GAME SUMMARY
No. 3 Punahou 43, No. 5 Campbell 14
At Campbell
>> No. 5 Campbell (4-2, 1-1 OIA Open)) 0 0 0 14 — 14
>> No. 3 Punahou (4-2, 4-2 ILH Open) 9 0 20 14 — 43
Punahou — Safety: Marist Liufau sacks Campbell’s Kaniala Kalaola in end zone.
Punahou — Les Falatea 37 pass from Hugh Brady (Tim Horn kick)
Punahou — Kanoa Kalahiki 17 pass from Brady (kick failed)
Punahou — Koa Eldredge 38 pass from Brady (Horn kick)
Punahou — Kainalu Puu-Robinson 22 interception return (Horn kick)
Punahou — Sky Lactaoen 1 run (Jadon Arola kick)
Punahou — Sitiveni Kaufusi 1 run (Quinn Maretzki kick)
Campbell — Lactaoen 2 run (Arola kick)
Punahou — Trent Shiraki 51 pass from Kobe Muasau (Maretzki kick)
RUSHING — Punahou: Sitiveni Kaufusi 13-66, Vincent Terrell 5-24, Kobe Muasau 2-14, Blake Furuta 1-7, (#26) Theo Chun 2-4, Brady 1-(minus-5). Campbell: Lactaoen 27-147, Kaniala Kalaola 10-(minus-9), TEAM (1-minus-29).
PASSING — Punahou: Brady 18-27-0-236, Muasau 5-10-0-126. Campbell: Kalaola 14-37-2-202.
RECEIVING — Punahou: Falatea 5-62, Eldredge 4-83, Moku Dancil-Evans 4-48, Terrell 3-11, Kalahiki 2-32, Shiraki 1-51, Noa Takeyama 1-38, Kaufusi 1-18, Alex Thompson 1-13, Noah Kameehonua 1-6. Campbell: Titus Mokiao-Atimalala 6-89, Pokii Adkins-Kupukaa 5-55, Tamatoa Mokiao-Atimalala 1-43, Zavier Ceruti 1-9, Christian Quiambao 1-6.
