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No. 10 ‘Iolani had the look of a team marching toward the Division I state tournament.
After giving up the opening score of the game to host Castle, the Raiders dumped 41 straight points over the Knights in a 41-14 win on Friday night, a key step toward qualification for states.
Senior running back Kaua Nishigaya had 164 yards and four touchdowns on 28 carries to anchor the Raiders’ offense, and the ‘Iolani defense intercepted Knights quarterbacks three times and added a strip and recovered fumble.
“My teammates did well today, offense and defense,” the 5-foot-5 Nishigaya said of the most prolific scoring game of his career. “The O-line blocked well, the receivers blocked well and opened up holes for me so we could get the yards and touchdowns today. So I thank them and all the coaches.”
‘Iolani (7-2, 6-1 ILH D-I) is measuring itself against only Damien (4-2 ILH D-I) for a state berth. If the Monarchs lose at Leilehua today, ‘Iolani is in. Otherwise, the Raiders look to clinch next week against Aiea.
Castle got on the board first with Jonah Figueroa’s 40-yard catch-and-run touchdown from Senituli Punivai.
“Normally, the kids get off to a very slow start. We’re fortunate that the kids have grown up over the season and they learned to just play, regardless of what happens, good or bad,” ‘Iolani coach Wendell Look said. “They’re learning what they need to do to perform and execute.”
Then ‘Iolani, after turning it over on downs on its first possession, didn’t punt until late in the third quarter. Huge lanes opened up for Nishigaya, who handled all but six of his team’s handoffs.
Kyler Mento added a 65-yard interception return for a touchdown in a 24-point second quarter for ‘Iolani, which led 31-7 at halftime. Quarterback Jonah Chong finished an efficient 13-for-19 for 105 yards and no picks.
Punivai led Castle (4-5, 4-3 OIA D-I) to a four-game winning streak and clinching of an OIA playoff berth last week with a comeback at Aiea. But Punivai was bottled up most of Friday. He led a scoring drive late in the fourth to put him over 100 yards passing (133) and rushing (103).
Coach John Hao said he’d like to see better effort in the Knights’ regular-season finale vs. Damien.
“The passing lanes were open all night,” Hao said. “As a quarterback, you’ve got to be able to read defenders. Make the right read in a timely manner. The difficult thing is, ‘Iolani’s a great run defense (team), and they showed that tonight. I think I gotta do a better job helping the kids do the adjustments.”
GAME SUMMARY
No. 10 ‘Iolani 41, Castle 14
At Castle
>> ‘Iolani (7-2, 6-1) 7 24 7 3 — 41
>> Castle (4-5, 4-3) 7 0 0 7 — 14
Castle — Jonah Figueroa 40 pass from Senituli Punivai (Makana Kiakona kick)
‘Iolani — Kaua Nishigaya 31 run (Wailoa Manuel kick)
‘Iolani — Nishigaya 2 run (Manuel kick)
‘Iolani — FG Manuel 32
‘Iolani — Nishigaya 1 run (Mika Makekau kick)
‘Iolani — Kyler Mento 65 interception return (Makekau kick)
‘Iolani — Nishigaya 1 run (Makekau kick)
‘Iolani — FG Makekau 23
Castle — Punivai 1 run (Cheyden Costa kick)
RUSHING — ‘Iolani: Nishigaya 28-164, Jake Lee 5-25, Cole Ichikawa 1-(minus 6), Jonah Chong 4-(minus 6), Tate Shimao 1-(minus 10). Castle: Punivai 29-103, Keanu Tilton 4-30, Figueroa 1-3, Samuel Judd 1-(minus 2), Team 1-(minus 33).
PASSING — ‘Iolani: Chong 13-19-0-105. Castle: Punivai 7-10-1-133, Judd 4-9-2-65.
RECEIVING — ‘Iolani: Carter Kamana 6-41, Jonah Miyazawa 3-29, Nishigaya 2-14, Rayden Kaneshiro 1-12, Manuel 1-9. Castle: Paul Omengebar 6-71, Figueroa 3-91, Justice Ching 1-28, Bruce Pakele 1-8.
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