Saint Louis linebacker Jordan Botelho set the tone and the top-ranked Crusaders finished off what he missed.
The 6-foot-2 junior drilled Punahou quarterback Hugh Brady for a sack, forced fumble, fumble recovery and touchdown return on the Buffanblu’s first offensive snap from scrimmage, and the Crusaders fed off that opening play all night in a 45-21 win over No. 2 Punahou in the ILH Open Division title game Saturday at Aloha Stadium.
The Crusaders (9-0) stretched their winning streak to 24 games and their fourth consecutive ILH title sets up a return trip to the state tournament beginning Nov. 16, where they will attempt to three-peat.
“It’s been a long season, a tough season,” Saint Louis coach Cal Lee said. “To play a team like Punahou, forget the score, we were very fortunate. The ball kind of bounced our way.”
Botelho’s hit knocked Brady out of the game, but Botelho was ejected in the second quarter for his second unsportsmanlike penalty when he was flagged for taunting after one of six Saint Louis takeaways.
“I let myself get into it too much,” said Botelho, the highest ranked junior recruit in the country. “It’s a learning experience. I let my team down and I’m truly sorry for that.”
His defense had his back, led by senior safety Kamo‘i Latu, who had two interceptions and a fumble recovery.
Brady was taken to the hospital at halftime and sophomore Kobe Muasau played every other snap at QB for Punahou (7-3).
Muasau threw for 308 yards on 63 pass attempts and senior receiver Tamatoa Falatea had 143 yards on 13 catches with two touchdowns.
The turnovers, however, were too much to overcome, and the season is over for the ILH runner-up Buffanblu (7-3) despite their No. 2 ranking in the state.
“Well, we know the guidelines, so we’re disappointed,” Punahou coach Kale Ane said. “We knew going in that this was our opportunity to go to the state tournament. We just didn’t do our job. Kobe came in in a tough situation and played really well.”
Saint Louis junior quarterback Jayden de Laura hurt the Buffanblu with his arms and his legs, tallying 242 passing yards and two touchdowns while rushing for two more scores before taking a seat next to Botelho midway through the fourth quarter.
Backup quarterback Connor Apo added a 67-yard rushing TD as Saint Louis finished with 252 yards on the ground.
“We had the game plan and we got done what needed to be done,” de Laura said. “I just had to take care of the ball. I came into the game thinking I have to make more plays with my feet.”
When Botelho ran back the fumble on Punahou’s first play, he celebrated with a leap into the end zone that was flagged for an unsportsmanlike penalty.
De Laura added a 4-yard scoring run in the first quarter and threw a 50-yard pass to Makoa Close in the second quarter to give the Crusaders a 21-0 lead.
Punahou, which had scored at least 28 points in all nine games this season, got on the board when Muasau’s pass went off the hands of two Saint Louis defenders into the arms of Falatea for a 36-yard TD.
Falatea opened the second half with a 5-yard touchdown catch to cut the deficit to 28-14.
Punahou twice had opportunities to make it a one-possession game after that, but Latu had his second pick of the game to end one drive and Lawai’alani Brown recovered a Muasau fumble on the next one, setting up Garyn Napuunoa’s 26-yard field goal.
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GAME SUMMARY
ILH OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP
No. 1 Saint Louis 45, No. 2 Punahou 21
At Aloha Stadium
>> Punahou (7-3) 0 7 7 7 — 21
>> Saint Louis (9-0) 14 14 3 14 — 45
Saint Louis — Jordan Botelho 5 fumble return (Garyn Napuunoa kick)
Saint Louis — Jayden de Laura 4 run (Napuunoa kick)
Saint Louis — Makoa Close 50 pass from de Laura (Napuunoa kick)
Punahou — Tamatoa Falatea 36 pass from Kobe Muasau (Tim Horn kick)
Saint Louis — de Laura 25 run (Napuunoa kick)
Punahou — Falatea 5 pass from Muasau (Horn kick)
Saint Louis — FG Napuunoa 26
Saint Louis — Chance Beyer 19 pass from de Laura (Napuunoa kick)
Saint Louis — —Connor Apo 67 run (Napuunoa kick)
Punahou — Alex Thompson 5 pass from Muasau (Horn kick)
RUSHING — Punahou: Muasau 8-24, Sitiveni Kaufusi 3-6, team 1-(minus 1), Hugh Brady 1-(minus 13). Saint Louis: Robbie Paikai 9-104, Apo 1-67, de Laura 18-51, Dayton Sam 11-36, Chandan Sappal 1-(minus 1), team 1-(minus 1), Logan Kalawaia 2-(minus 4).
PASSING — Punahou: Muasau 35-63–3-308, Koa Eldredge 0-1-0-0. Saint Louis: de Laura 14-24–1-242.
RECEIVING — Punahou: Falatea 13-143, Moku Dancil-Evans 9-58, Raydan Kiaaina-Caires 4-37, Eldredge 4-19, Kanoa Kalahiki 3-27, Matagi Thompson 1-19, A. Thompson 1-5. Saint Louis: Beyer 5-66, Close 3-113, Roman Wilson 3-41, Paikai 1-10, Matt Sykes 1-7, Koali Nishigaya 1-5
