There is a will, and the Lahainaluna Lunas are finding a way.
After all the tragedy, crisis and adversity, the Lunas will be on the football field at War Memorial Stadium on Saturday night. When Lahainaluna and Baldwin square off, it will the first football game of the season for the Lunas.
“It’s definitely going to be very loud,” senior running back Kaulana Tihada said. “I think the Lahaina fans, the west side fans, will bring the intensity, 100 percent. When we go we’ll definitely be playing for our community and for the people who were affected by the fire.”
The last time they played an opponent, it was a tri-scrimmage with Maui and Baldwin on Aug. 5, just days before the wildfire disaster. In many ways, the Lunas deal with the trauma simply by staying close, leaning on each other.
“This team is already much closer than any team we’ve had. Doing this together is the only way we’re going to get through this,” co-head football coach Dean Rickard said.
Nine assistant coaches lost their homes to the disaster. Out of 83 varsity and junior varsity players, Rickard estimates 45 to 50 lost their homes as well. His daughter lost her family home. His brother, Todd Rickard, the longtime Lahainaluna coach, also lost his home.
“Completely burnt to the ground,” he said.
While Lahainaluna gets back into academics and athletics, the rest of the Maui Interscholastic League has been on schedule, leaving the Lunas four games behind on the gridiron. The perennial champions will have plenty of aloha and hospitality from rival teams and communities, but on the gridiron, it will be all business. Baldwin, in particular, will be as hungry as any foe.
“We have to play our game. We can’t get caught up in everything. We’re resilient as a community, but we have to be focused,” Rickard said. “We can’t be making errors and the kids understand that.”
If there ever were a football program with the discipline and grit to overcome the worst U.S. wildfire in a century, this would be the one. This would also be the precise coaching staff, with co-head coaches Bobby Watson and Rickard, a staff with more than a century of experience, to remind their young men that nothing is a given.
“Baldwin isn’t the powerhouse they used to be, but that won’t stop them from playing the best game they can against us,” Rickard said. “From the first tick of the clock to the end of the game, we have to keep improving. We’re short four games. There’s a big difference being game ready and going into your first game.”
The Lunas are fortified by an experienced group in the trenches. Left tackle Tovia Galloia and right tackle Kalae Tancayo are seniors. Guard Guards Kawika Kaili and Simone Ofakauatu are juniors. Kaili is moving to center with returnee Bula Montgomery out with an injury.
The offensive backfield is deep, talented and savvy. Running back Kaulana Tihada returns for senior year, as do quarterbacks Noa Gordon and Lyrik Kahula.
Defensively, nose guard Hanale Kauhaahaa (5 feet 10, 225 pounds) is the lone returning starter up front. Linebackers Kahi Magno and Tewa Loft are returning starters, as are defensive backs Kuola Watson and Avery Babayan.
MIL schedule adjusted
The MIL modified Lahainaluna’s schedule. The Lunas will play their Division I opponents, Baldwin and Maui, twice each, and have one game with defending MIL D-II champion Kamehameha-Maui. There will be no game with King Kekaulike.
“We will have five games instead of the usual eight,” Rickard said. “There’s no open dates on the calendar for King Kekaulike.”
For a time, in the midst of chaos, there was no certainty. For the senior class, the possibility of losing football season was too hard to fathom. This group had already lost its freshman football season in 2020 due to the pandemic and the state’s cancellation of fall high school sports.
Rickard, two years into retirement from the Maui Police Department, wasn’t sure what would happen until a few days after the disaster.
“Regardless of the season, we’re winning by being back on the field. The kids are the ones who wanted to get back on the field. These kids wanted to push forward,” he said. “The Friday after the fire, I was at Wal-Mart, where everybody was. I see three of our kids. ‘Hey, coach. We’re buying fishing gear, get our minds off things. Coach, are we going to play? Let’s get back our season.’”
Rickard had already wondered about his players and their dreams. Their idle time with no school, no football.
“The next day, Saturday, I started getting texts and calls from parents and players. That’s when I contacted our athletic director. It would be a good thing to get football back. To lose two seasons (2020 and 2023)? That would be emotionally hard for any athlete,” Rickard said.
It has been a little over two weeks since the Lunas football team reassembled for practice. Until then, there were questions, hopes and prayers. Seniors like Kuola Watson, grandson of co-head coach Bobby Watson, were exploring the possibilities if there was no team.
“I kept in touch with the boys. If we were going to transfer schools, we were all going together. We knew we wanted to wait it out because the coaches were coming together for us,” he said.
Total support
A park and recreation park in South Kihei became the destination point for a team that had yet to return to its school campus.
“The field is great. There’s no complaints. It’s just the logistics of getting all the kids from all over the island to there,” Rickard said. “Shout out to Polynesian Adventure Tours for their buses and their drivers, bringing the kids and taking them home. We’re fortunate that Polynesian stepped up and fully supported everything that we needed.”
A team scattered to the winds by extreme disaster and consequent displacement needed a huge hand to get the most basic task done. Polynesian Tours provided buses and drivers to get the Lunas to South Kihei for practice. There are players from hometown Lahaina, Wailuku, Kahului, Kula, Makawao, Pukalani.
“Some Lahaina kids are staying with family in Paia. Some are in condominiums in Kihei. West Maui people staying with family or in hotels,” Rickard said.
In Kihei, families in the area have brought post-practice food and even UH-Maui has provided fresh kaukau.
“We’re not even from this community, but the families here feed our kids. Stacks and stacks of Costco pizza. The UH-Maui culinary program prepares bentos for our kids,” Rickard said. “A lot of people understanding our situation and showing their support. These kids are very appreciative of that.”
The spacious tour buses brought players to practice and took them home. In the past week-plus, Lahainaluna students have been in class on the campus of Maui’s newest public high school, Kulanihako‘i, also in Kihei. Lahainaluna teachers have also moved to the school temporarily.
“They couldn’t grab all their teaching supplies,” Kuola Watson noted. “So they’re going with what they’ve been given.”
Since returning to classes on Sept. 21, Lahainaluna students have caught regular school buses to Kulanihako‘i.
“The school is really nice,” Watson said.
The football players are bussed to South Kihei park and back to their temporary homes by Polynesian Tour Adventures.
“The kids come in the school bus, have a long day, and go home on the air-conditioned private bus,” Rickard said.
“The park is nice, but I don’t think it can handle what we do at Lahainaluna. We try to dodge the dry spots and dirt spots,” Watson added. “Our coaches are still the same, strict on us and hard on us, just preparing us for this game and for life in general.”
Getting gear to the South Kihei site has been a challenge that the coaching staff has handled to the fullest.
“One of our coaches, Lawrence Kauhaahaa, he has a huge storage trailer. He tows it every day. It’s like a temporary lockerroom. Helmets and pads. We even brought our sled over. One of our coaches brought it on a flat-bed (truck). We brought our bags, blocking dummies using all our trucks,” Rickard said.
The campus has remained off limits to this point. After fall break, students will return to Lahainaluna campus on Oct. 16. The Lunas can’t wait to get back home.
“Nothing beats going back to our campus where our lockerrooms and showers are available,” Rickard said.
All the suffering, the silence, the questions, the anguish — won’t go away with one football game. Rickard hopes a sense of normalcy may lead to more communication and transparency — something coaches teach student-athletes every day.
“What you’re going through now is only going to make you better, and you’ll see what role you played in this process of healing,” he said. “These kids come from legacy families. You’re special because we’re a small community and we try to be as competitive as we can be. As a staff, we’ve been together so long, we’re on the same page.”
There will be home games for Lahainaluna once campus reopens. The Lunas will host Maui on Oct. 21 and Baldwin on Oct. 28.
Saturday will be like no other day in Lahainaluna football lore. It will be time for the squad to be Luna Strong in War Memorial.
“It’s been hard for us as a team. We’re all in a new place, but we’re managing,” Kuola Watson said. “We have a bigger purpose than all of us, so that’s what’s pushing us through whatever time this is now. Football’s been a big part of our healing process, the whole mindset part of it. Just lets your anger out, focus your mind.”
For decades, Lahainaluna football and athletics has been about teamwork and excellence. The message today hasn’t changed. What led the Lunas to titles in the past will forge a new future.
“Lahaina’s doing OK. We’re moving forward,” Watson said. “Thank you to everybody who helped us out, sent money, just volunteered to help us out. It meant a lot to our whole community.”
No. 7 Kamehameha at Mission Viejo (Calif.)
Friday, 4 p.m. (Hawaii time)
The Warriors (4-0, 0-1 ILH) are on the road to play the Diablos (4-2, 0-0). Kamehameha is coming off a loss to Punahou, while Mission Viejo fell to St. John’s (Washington D.C.).
Moe Passi leads the Warriors with 332 rushing yards and five TDs.
Mission Viejo RB Hinesward Lilomaiava leads Mission Viejo with 81 rushing yards per game. WR Vance Spafford has 35 receptions for 529 yards and three TDs.
This is Kamehameha’s second mainland trip in as many seasons. The Warriors lost at Liberty (Nev.), 25-18, last year.
No. 4 Punahou vs. No. 6 Saint Louis
At Farrington, Saturday, 6 p.m.
Another sterling performance by wide receiver Astin Hange has him among the state’s top playmakers. He has 25 receptions for 465 yards and one touchdown. He has also returned two kicks to the house for Punahou (4-2, 1-0 ILH), which was tenacious defensively in a 31-3 win over Kamehameha last weekend.
Saint Louis (2-3, 0-0 ILH) had a bye last week after losing to Mililani. Kauna‘oa Kamakawiwoole has thrown seven of his 10 touchdown passes to wide receiver Titan Lacaden (49 receptions, 736 yards).
Offensive lineman Rustin Young was honored on Thursday with a roster spot in the Under Armour All-American game. He was presented a jersey during a ceremony at Sant Louis. Young, who has 10 D-I scholarship offers, committed to Oregon State in July.
No. 1 Kahuku at Moanalua
Saturday, 6:30 p.m.
After a historic win over national powerhouse St. John Bosco (Calif.), Kahuku (6-1, 3-0 OIA) steamrolled Nanakuli, 56-7, last weekend. Another road trip looms this weekend.
With starters in limited playing time, wide receiver Diezel Kamoku ignited Big Red with two TD catches.
Moanalua (1-4, 1-2 OIA) is coming off a its first win under coach Andrew Manley. Since struggling against Open Division mainstays Kamehameha, Leilehua and Punahou, Na Menehune offense has averaged 27 points per game (against Farrington and Aiea.
No. 2 Mililani at Waianae
Saturday, 6:30 p.m.
Mililani at Waianae
Coach Thom Kaumeyer’s squad has begun to ignite offensively. A 29-0 win over Radford was Waianae’s first of the season.
Quarterback Maximum Kahalawai-Sapigao has racked up 589 yards and three touchdowns from scrimmage.
Mililani has not been tested severely since losing to Punahou on Aug. 12. the Trojan offense has scored 261 points, or 52.2 per game, during this five-game win streak. RB Nakoa Kahana-Travis is averaging 61 rushing yards per game.
The Trojans (5-1, 3-0 OIA) have won five games in a row over Waianae (1-5, 1-2 OIA), which last beat Mililani in 2016.
OPEN DIVISION STATISTICS
PASSING
Player, team C A I Yd TD
Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, Camp. 155 230 5 2,148 19
Tama Amisone, Kapolei 95 154 1 1,447 25
Kaunaoa Kamakawiwoole, St.L 107 178 11 1,411 10
Ty McCutcheon, Punahou 89 132 4 1,282 9
Kini McMillan, Mililani 85 117 0 1,047 15
RUSHING
Player, team Att. Yds TD YPC YPG
Tama Amisone, Kapolei 52 603 8 11.6 100.5
Vaaimalae Fonoti, Kahuku 56 419 5 7.5 83.8
Reeno Teo, Kapolei 28 335 1 12.0 111.7
Moe Passi, Kamehameha 60 332 5 5.5 66.4
Chase Camarillo, Kapolei 42 327 5 7.8 65.4
RECEIVING
Player, team Rec. Yds TD YPC YPG
Kaina Kamohalii, Kapolei 44 765 12 17.4 127.5
Titan Lacaden, Saint Louis 49 736 7 15.0 147.2
Rusten Abang, Campbell 31 476 1 15.4 68.0
Astin Hange, Punahou 25 465 1 18.6 93.0
Tana Togafau-Tavui, Campbell 26 373 5 14.3 74.6
DIVISION I STATISTICS
PASSING
Player, team C A I Yd TD
AJ Tuifua, Damien 72 118 7 1,227 16
CJ Villanueva, ‘Iolani 89 113 1 1,156 17
Romeo Ortiz, Kailua 67 132 7 857 5
Joshua Manu, Waipahu 41 67 1 650 5
Kanoa Torres, Nanakuli 70 135 6 636 5
RUSHING
Player, team Att. Yds TD YPC YPG
Sitani Mikaele, Farrington 89 565 8 6.3 113.0
Cole Northington, Leilehua 116 562 7 4.8 93.7
Sylas Alaimalo, Daien 47 438 2 9.3 146.0
Christian Asinsin, Nanakuli 69 278 3 4.0 55.6
Ikaika Quidashay, Kailua 44 233 1 5.3 46.6
RECEIVING
Player, team Rec. Yds TD YPC YPG
Eric Stephens, Waipahu 29 505 6 17.4 101.0
Dayton Savea, Damien 29 494 8 17.0 123.5
Kekame Kane, ‘Iolani 30 486 7 16.2 121.5
Timothy Arnold, Leilehua 30 429 3 14.3 71.5
Jayden Chanel, Waipahu 28 370 5 13.2 74.0
DIVISION II STATISTICS
PASSING
Player, team C A I Yd TD
Trey Dacoscos, Pearl City 110 192 6 1,365 16
Iosefa Letuli, Kaimuki 87 148 3 1,115 10
Sean Connell, Kaiser 75 137 8 882 9
Ioane Kamanao, Roosevelt 52 107 3 678 8
Kynan McCartney, Kalani 46 108 8 587 6
RUSHING
Player, team Att. Yds TD YPC YPG
Dillon Reis, Kaiser 89 540 6 6.1 108.0
Seth Miller, Pac-Five 78 367 1 4.7 122.3
Zechariah Kuratsu-Cook, Kaim. 89 326 4 3.7 54.3
Iosefa Letuli, Kaimuki 72 321 5 4.5 53.5
Sonny Iaea, Kalani 69 277 3 4.0 55.4
RECEIVING
Player, team Rec. Yds TD YPC YPG
Keagan Lime, Kaiser 32 404 6 12.6 80.8
Keaton Tomas, Pearl City 27 403 4 14.9 80.6
Jeremiah White, Kaimuki 32 385 5 12.0 64.2
Jesse Shinagawa, Kaiser 29 354 1 12.2 70.8
Kamalu Jordan, Kalaheo 15 338 3 22.5 84.5
STANDINGS
ILH
Team Conf. Pct. PF PA Overall Pct. PF PA
Open
Punahou 1-0 1.000 31 3 4-2 .667 214 112
Saint Louis 0-0 .000 0 0 2-3 .400 127 185
Kamehameha 0-1 .000 3 31 4-1 .800 161 75
Division I
‘Iolani 3-0 1.000 144 84 4-1 .800 203 117
Damien 2-1 .667 139 93 4-3 .571 279 245
Division II
Pac-Five 1-1 .500 16 41 1-1 .500 16 41
———
Saint Louis I-AA 2-1 .667 102 65 3-2 .600 136 148
Kamehameha I-AA 1-2 .333 36 57 1-2 .333 36 57
Punahou I-AA 0-3 .000 40 112 0-3 .000 40 118
OIA/D1 A Standings
Team Conf. Pct. PF PA Overall Pct. PF PA
Campbell 4-0 1.000 193 20 6-1 .857 307 97
Kahuku 3-0 1.000 111 27 6-1 .857 250 122
Leilehua 2-1 .667 62 62 3-3 .500 107 139
Farrington 2-2 .500 110 117 3-2 .600 154 131
Moanalua 1-2 .333 61 75 1-4 .200 68 171
Nanakuli 0-3 .000 7 138 1-4 .200 87 205
Aiea 0-4 .000 24 129 1-5 .167 57 204
OIA/D1 B Standings
Team Conf. Pct. PF PA Overall Pct. PF PA
Kapolei 4-0 1.000 231 52 6-1 .857 314 124
Mililani 3-0 1.000 183 14 5-1 .833 275 41
Waipahu 2-1 .667 147 90 2-3 .400 196 190
Kailua 2-2 .500 65 145 3-3 .500 110 176
Waianae 1-2 .333 69 64 1-5 .167 84 181
Castle 0-3 .000 18 150 1-3 .250 35 163
Radford 0-4 .000 28 226 0-5 .000 42 170
OIA Division II standings
Team Conf. Pct. PF PA Overall Pct. PF PA
Pearl City 4-0 1.000 116 57 5-0 1.000 158 69
Kaiser 3-1 .750 100 64 3-2 .600 113 81
Kalani 2-2 .500 64 38 3-2 .600 92 44
Roosevelt 2-2 .500 83 75 3-3 .500 147 123
Kalaheo 2-2 .500 119 95 2-2 .500 119 95
Kaimuki 2-2 .500 105 120 2-4 .333 143 217
Waialua 1-3 .250 70 98 2-4 .333 101 152
McKinley 0-4 .000 13 123 0-5 .000 13 157
THIS WEEK’S GAMES
Friday
Kaimuki at Kaiser, 7 p.m.
Aiea vs. Farrington at Radford, 7 p.m.
Nanakuli at Leilehua, 7:30 p.m.
McKinley at Waialua, 7 p.m.
Kalaheo at Pearl City, 7 p.m.
Castle at Waipahu, 7:30 p.m.
Kalani at Roosevelt, 7:30 p.m.
Kamehameha at Mission Viejo (Calif.),
4 p.m. Hawaii time
Saturday
Punahou vs. Saint Louis at Farrington,
6 p.m.
Mililani at Waianae, 6:30 p.m.
Kailua at Radford, 5 p.m.
Kahuku at Moanalua, 6:30 p.m.
Kamehameha I-AA at Punahou I-AA,
3 p.m.
Compiled by Billy Hull, Star-Advertiser; see full statistics at hawaiiprepworld.com
