Saint Louis head coach Darnell Arceneaux took control of his team and the Crusaders reclaimed a place atop the Interscholastic League of Honolulu.

Crusaders quarterback Marcus Mariota passed for 390 yards and two touchdowns and ran for two scores to lead the second-ranked Crusaders to a 42-7 victory over Punahou last night at Aloha Stadium to clinch the ILH Division I football title.

"It means a lot, not only for myself but for all the men of Kalaepohaku," Arceneaux said after the Crusaders earned a return to the Division I state tournament after a two-year absence.

"It’s about tradition. … We’re getting back to our roots. We have a very strong foundation in our tradition and now these young men are the branches."

The Saint Louis offense dialed up big plays throughout the evening, including an 80-yard touchdown pass from Mariota to Duke Bukoski to open the scoring.

But after the Crusaders committed six penalties in the game’s first 4 minutes, Arceneaux gathered his team on the sideline and hopped up on a bench to address them during the extra-point attempt.

"It was just about being disciplined and doing our job," Arceneaux said. "When you play a Punahou, you have to play your A game. So I tried to rally the guys up and make them understand the little things are going to matter in this game. They showed great character and composure when we hit adversity, and that’s all you can ask from a football team."

The little things certainly added up in a big way for the Crusaders.

The Saint Louis defense came up with interceptions on Punahou’s first three possessions, and Mariota and a deep group of receivers converted all three into touchdowns.

"We wanted to come out with authority. We wanted to make sure we left no doubt on the field," said Mariota, who completed 14 of 20 passes.

"It’s a credit to the receivers and the offensive line. They blocked so well for me today and the receivers made plays, they made big plays."

After Leland Gomez’s pick on the fourth play of the game, Saint Louis’ start-and-stop drive culminated with Mariota finding Bukoski running alone downfield for the game’s first score.

Bukoski caught his breath in time to turn in another long run, this time on defense. After Punahou drove to the Saint Louis 16, Bukoski intercepted a pass at the 3 and bolted down the sideline for a 65-yard return. The Crusaders needed just three plays to reach the end zone, with Mariota scoring on an 11-yard keeper around the right side.

"They had some athletes and we had to put our best athletes on the field," Arceneaux said.

Bronson Yim came up with the Crusaders’ third pick and Keanu Mook-Garcia’s 10-yard touchdown run gave Saint Louis a 21-0 lead.

"They played great. We made a lot of mistakes, but they’re very deserving," Punahou coach Kale Ane said. "They came out to play and we made a lot of mistakes and they took advantage of them."

At Aloha Stadium