Blue 0, White 0 Green 12, White 0 HANAPEPE/KAPA‘A — Both Waimea High School Menehune football defenses kept the game tied at 0-0 at Hanapepe Stadium and Kapa‘a High School brought back the Warriors’ Green and White game last night
Blue 0, White 0
Green 12, White 0
HANAPEPE/KAPA‘A — Both Waimea High School Menehune football defenses kept the game tied at 0-0 at Hanapepe Stadium and Kapa‘a High School brought back the Warriors’ Green and White game last night at the New Kapa‘a Ball Park.
Both schools hosted spring football fundraising games with proceeds going toward their respective programs.
Over in Hanapepe, the Menehune played a full-on game with punts, kick returns and officials.
But it was the defense that kept the fans entertained by shutting down play after play.
Waimea also debuted a new offense.
“We tried out shotgun spread offense,” said Waimea head football coach Kyle Linoz. “We’re experimenting with the different spread offenses because Kaua‘i and Kapa‘a seem to keep shutting down our inside.”
Waimea tested out three quarterbacks: Cody Owen, Jenzen Cacal and Kaulana Arroyo, whom Linoz said picked up the spread offense well.
Linoz said the play of the game came from Bryson Takato, who, at 4 feet, 10 inches and 100 pounds, just might be the smallest player on the team. Takato caught and returned a punt for 35 yards.
In Kapa‘a, with the green team up 6-0 from the beginning of the second half and scored another touchdown when they intercepted a pass and returned it all the way to the goal line. But the white team was able to come up with two TD’s in the final quarter, one of them a 45-yard run from Caleb Sarsona, to end the game in a tie.
Unlike Waimea, Kapa‘a’s version was a much lighter game, not playing special teams, no punting and no kicking of field goals.
The green team started with quarterback Luther Yam, who began the game with a fumble which was recovered by Ricah Nuesca of the white team. Green still held possession of the ball because, in this fundraising game, the teams played 20 downs each.
Yam nearly completed a long pass to Max Goode was in the end zone, but Goode was being defended well by Reid Hoomanawanui. Both teams would go scoreless until after the break.
Yam completed passes to Davin Chong and Ikaika Fuerte, but kept it on the third play. On the fourth, Yam broke a tackle by William Blake and ran for the first TD of the game.
After last night’s performance, Kapa‘a head coach Keli‘i Morgado said he was pleased with his players, but they still have a lot to learn.
“They’ve learned a lot in a three month period,” he said. “They were really focused, but unfortunately we still have a lot of work to do.”
Kapa‘a had been more of a running team in the past and under the new coaching of Morgado, the Warriors have had to learn a more aggressive, passing offense.
“We had to start in kindergarten in February and we’ve got to get to high school by September,” he said. “We’re in middle school right now.”
But Morgado said last night was more about the program.
“It felt great. This was more about raising money for this year’s travel expenses than assessing the players and we were really successful,” he said.
Kapa‘a sold 1,500 tickets for last night’s game.
• Lanaly Cabalo, sports editor, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 237) or lcabalo@kauaipubco.com.
