LAHAINA >> Three-time defending Division II champion Lahainaluna gave Roosevelt a stern lesson in holding on to what it has.
Ball control loomed large at Sue Cooley Stadium as the Lunas won the turnover battle decisively, then Saturday night’s semifinal itself, 35-0, to advance to a fourth straight HHSAA title game at Aloha Stadium. The MIL champs will face Kapaa of the KIF on Friday.
The Lunas recovered five Rough Riders fumbles in the first half and parlayed three of them into touchdowns.
Two came in the final minute of the half, as Esekielu Storer connected with Kai Bookland for touchdowns of 52 and 28 yards just 13 seconds apart, both set up by recoveries of Rough Riders fumbles. Just like that, the game turned for good.
“That was really special. Our defense and our special teams came through tonight for (our) offense,” said Storer, a 6-foot junior who went 9-for-13 for 202 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions.
Bookland hauled in five passes for 105 yards.
Senior all-purpose back Joshua Tihada extended his state tournament record for all-purpose touchdowns to 16 with a 1-yarder in the first quarter, capping a 65-yard drive set up by — yes — a Roosevelt fumble. Tihada had 27 carries for 162 yards.
“It means everything, just to people I’ve played with since my freshman year, and to people in the community in general,” Tihada said of making his fourth final. “Not only in Lahaina, but the seniors graduating, going to the mainland for college. It’s a stamp for us. I think it’s a great blessing.”
Lahainaluna (10-1), which lost only to Division I Damien in its season opener, shook off nearly a month of inactivity after running the table in the MIL.
“We’ve been working hard these past four weeks. We haven’t taken this team for granted,” Tihada said of Roosevelt. “They’re a great team. They work very hard. They practice, play just like the film shows.”
Lahainaluna showed the prowess of a champion in all facets, but especially in gang-tackling and stripping the ball free.
Matthew Rabinno, Nainoa Kulukulualani-Sales, Tysyn Estrella, Matai Mataafa and Bookland recovered Roosevelt fumbles for the Lunas. Kulukulualani-Sales added a late interception of Roosevelt quarterback Sky Ogata, who was harangued into a 4-for-17 night for 47 yards.
Lahainaluna kept it going in the third with a Storer 18-yard pass to kicker-receiver Brian Sandoval. Sandoval was defended well, but he made an acrobatic grab in double coverage.
After a Roosevelt punt, Storer then went deep to a wide-open Devon Sa-Chisolm for 59 yards to get the game into running clock territory.
Roosevelt (10-3), a 31-7 winner last week in the first round at Kamehameha-Hawaii, showed little of the same road execution at “The Imu,” as the Lunas’ stadium is nicknamed. The Rough Riders saw their season end there for the second straight year.
The Riders were in for a rough night once they lost fumbles on their first two drives. Another turnover came on a line-drive Lunas punt that deflected off the Roosevelt return man’s leg. Still, it was only 7-0 until the disastrous sequence just before halftime.
“The game was close. We were right in there. Turnovers not gonna win games, bottom line,” Roosevelt coach Kui Kahooilihala said. “Especially a team like Lahainaluna. They’re very disciplined. You gotta kinda bring your ‘A’ game when you plays these guys up here.”
The game was stopped early in the third quarter when a referee collapsed near the 25-yard line. Paramedics, who were standing by at the game per MIL policy, came onto the field after a few minutes and loaded the official into an ambulance after a few minutes. The hushed stadium applauded as he was driven off the field and play resumed after about 10 minutes.
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LAHAINALUNA 35, ROOSEVELT 0
At Lahainaluna
>> Roosevelt (10-3) 0 0 0 0 — 0
>> Lahainaluna (10-1) 7 14 14 0 — 35
Lahainaluna — Joshua Tihada 1 run (Brian Sandoval kick)
Lahainaluna — Kai Bookland 52 pass from Esekielu Storer (Sandoval kick)
Lahainaluna — Bookland 28 pass from Storer (Sandoval kick)
Lahainaluna — Sandoval 18 pass from Storer (Sandoval kick)
Lahainaluna — Devon Sa-Chisholm 59 pass from Storer (Kaihulali Casco kick)
RUSHING — Roosevelt: Mitchell Camacho 9-83, Myka Kukahiwa 7-51, Sky Ogata 11- 11, Shepherd Kekahuna 2-(minus 4). Lahainaluna: Tihada 27-162, Nainoa Kulukulualani-Sales 7-53, Derek Perez 4-15, Blare Sylva-Viela 5-12, Sky Smith 1-6, Shaun Kana 1-0, Christian Clarion 1-0, Team 3-(minus 4).
PASSING — Roosevelt: Ogata 4-17-1-47. Lahainaluna: Storer 9-13-0-202, Nainoa Irish 0-1-0-0.
RECEIVING — Roosevelt: Scott Chung 1-25, Camacho 1-16, Devin Naihe 1-10, Kekahuna 1-(minus 4). Lahainaluna: Bookland 5-105, Sandoval 3-38, Sa-Chisolm 1-59.
