Victory over a tough Kailua squad came at a price for the Mililani Trojans.
Coach Rod York confirmed after the game that quarterback McKenzie Milton is likely out for the season after suffering a severe shoulder injury in the opening series. Milton completed a 29-yard pass on the play, but took a big hit.
"The bone was basically almost touching to here," York said, pointing to his right ear. "He definitely will be out, probably done for the season. It was a blitz and we didn’t pick it up. A clean, legal hit. Our hearts go out to McKenzie and his family."
No. 3 Mililani struggled in the first half but scored 23 unanswered points in the third quarter en route to a 45-21 win over No. 8 Kailua, somewhat spoiling senior night for the home crowd at Alex Kane Stadium.
"Turnovers hurt us, in the red zone, at the 5-yard line. You can always correct fumbling, protecting the football," Kailua coach Joe Wong say. "It’s never OK to lose, but our guys played tough. We just need to stay away from those three turnovers."
Kaysen Higa, who was thrust into the spotlight after Milton’s injury, was off target in the first half. He missed his first 10 pass attempts, but hit three of his last five to close the first half. It was 7-all at intermission.
"It was my fault," said York, who handles the offensive play-calling. "I was calling plays that are for McKenzie, so we changed it up for Kaysen. We knew that we were facing a tough team having a dream season. We knew we were in for a battle. We didn’t know we’d lose our starting quarterback. But life goes on."
The result was four touchdown passes for the sophomore, all in the second half. He was 6-for-6 after the break. He got big help from his offensive line, which went to work in the trenches to spring Vavae Malepeai.
The senior running back and Oregon commit finished with 167 rushing yards on 21 carries. Malepeai also re-entered the game in the late going to help Higa out, hauling in a screen pass on third-and-10 and turning it into a 31-yard touchdown play, icing the win.
Mililani’s defense was, perhaps, at its best. The Trojans limited Kailua’s normally proficient ground attack to just 61 rushing yards on 38 attempts. Kailua’s Noah Auld was sacked four times and hounded much of the night. He was 7-for-10 in the first half, but 5-for-15 in the second half. He finished with 154 passing yards and two TDs.
