KEALAKEKUA — Konawaena is not resistant to a little change.
KEALAKEKUA — Konawaena is not resistant to a little change.
A week after rushing for nearly 400 yards in a win against Keaau, the Wildcats (2-1 BIIF Division II, 3-1) looked to the pass in a 44-3 win over Waiakea in a Big Island Interscholastic Federation matchup Saturday night at Julian R. Yates Field.
A few balls floated on Konawaena quarterback Shelton Grace, but he had a solid outing, going 12 for 25 for 190 yards with three touchdowns and an interception in the rain.
“It is about time we started going to work on our pass,” Konawaena head coach Cliff Walters said. “We forced it a little, but we wanted to see if we could get it going. We are not pleased yet, but it is coming along.”
Being able to work on the offense was a perk of being up 24-0 before the end of the first quarter against a run-heavy Waiakea opponent.
Grace played every snap at quarterback, despite the return of Cameron Howes to the lineup. Howes had seen the majority of snaps before sitting out last week because of a suspension.
Howes’ new role is as the Wildcats’ wild card. Against the Warriors, Howes racked up 222 total yards — 27 rushing, 81 receiving and 114 on kick returns — and two touchdowns.
“Cameron will make things happen all over the field and in every facet of the game,” Walters said. “He is a playmaker and one of those guys you have to find ways to get the ball to.”
Howes also booted a 34-yard field goal and went 5 for 6 on extra points. The Wildcats had not scored any points on kicks before Saturday.
“Finally, we got a few through the uprights,” Walters said with a laugh.
Howes made his presence known early, returning the opening kickoff 70 yards. With a facemask penalty tacked on, Konawaena started its first drive inside Waiakea’s 10-yard line. Algene Kelekolio — coming off a breakout 181-yard performance against Keaau — scored on Konawaena’s first play from scrimmage, going up the gut of the defense 7 yards for the touchdown just 15 seconds into the game.
Kelekolio did not have the workload as he did against Keaau, but still ran 10 times for 70 yards and a touchdown. The Wildcats rushed for 126 yards.
“Algene proved some stuff to us last week, so we wanted to see if he could do it again,” Walters said. “He did it and we are very pleased with what he bring to the table for us.”
With the emergence of Kelekolio as a go-to back, the Wildcats moved returning two-way All-BIIF player Bubba Ellis-Noa to wide receiver. Ellis-Noa had three catches for 76 yards and two touchdowns, including a 45-yard catch and run in the third quarter.
“Bubba probably has the best hands of anyone on the team,” Walters said. “We are happy with the run, but have to tweak the pass. We have got to make a few more changes and get some more speed out wide.”
What has remained consistent for Konawaena has been a suffocating defense. Knowing Waiakea’s run-heavy strategy, the Wildcats stacked the box with nine defenders — a benefit of having two shutdown corners in Luca Vartic and Kaneala Kaaihue.
“One on one, those guys are hard to beat,” Walters said. “If you have two good tackles and two good corners, you have got yourself a defense. That is what we have, and having an outstanding group of linebackers doesn’t hurt either.”
Waiakea (1-2 Division I, 1-4) passed just eight times, despite being down big early. Warriors QB Gehrig Octavio did not complete a pass, and Mahina Ellis-Noa picked him off once.
Waiakea could not find any room against the stingy Konawaena defense, mustering less than 100 yards of total offense. Joseph Alvarez and Joseph Ongais each had 30 yards on the ground.
Kevin Medeiros led the Konawaena defense with six tackles and a sack. Tate “Baba” Hing had five tackles, and also returned a partially blocked punt 22 yards for a touchdown. Koa Basque recorded three tackles, and forced a fumble on a kickoff with a crushing hit.
The Warriors’ most successful drive came at the end of the first half, which ate up nearly six minutes. It resulted in the only score of the game for Waiakea — a 32-yard Tyler Kerr field goal.
“I was surprised they forced that run as much as they did,” Walters said. “I thought they might go with the pass a little sooner, but everyone has their own style.”
The lone highlight for Waiakea was a fumble recovery and return by Ryder Oshiro on a stray pitch in the third quarter. Oshiro was tackled in Konawaena territory, but the Warriors did not turn the opportunity into points.
Next week, Konawaena takes on Hawaii Preparatory Academy in a rematch of the BIIF D-II championship game. Waiakea travels to Kamehameha.