It should be a fun weekend of football as the OIA Division I playoffs begin while the ILH regular season ends and the OIA D-II playoff race gets sorted out.
A berth in the state tournament is on the line with Castle (4-4, 3-4 OIA Red) traveling to play Moanalua (4-4, 3-4) in the first round of the OIA playoffs. The Knights are coming off an impressive 24-21 win over Kailua to earn the fifth seed out of the Red. Moanalua has won three of its last five and played No. 8 Campbell tough in a 12-6 overtime loss a few weeks ago.
HISTORY: Castle leads the all-time series 9-5-1 but has lost the last four.
Nick Abramo’s game preview
UNSUNG SCRAPPER: Castle’s Isley Busch-Matu’u
UNSUNG SCRAPPER: Moanalua’s Huaka’i Self
Live updates of the 7:30 p.m. kickoff will follow below.
10:35: Game is over.
10:26: Moanalua’s Nainoa Chun hits Uyemura-Lee and forces him to fumble. Teammate Damien Agao-Casabar recovers and returns it to the Castle 2. On the next play, Bender goes up the middle for a 2-yard touchdown. Yuen kicks the extra point.
>> MOANALUA 49, CASTLE 7. 4:57 left in game.
10:22: Castle loses the ball on downs. Moanalua drives and scores on Louis-Merry’s 32-yard run. Yuen kicks the extra point.
>> MOANALUA 42, CASTLE 0. 6:37 left in the game.
10:15: Moanalua recovers the onside kick, but the Knights get the ball when Lopaka Akamine recovers a fumble.
10:12: The Knights get on the board with a long drive capped by Uyemura-Lee’s 4-yard TD pass to Keola Lewis.
>> MOANALUA 35, CASTLE 7. 9:56 left in the game.
10:06: END THIRD QUARTER.
10:02: Jacob Ramelb intercepts an Uyemura-Lee pass and returns it 81 yards for a touchdown. Yuen kicks the extra point.
>> MOANALUA 35, CASTLE 0. 27 seconds left in the third quarter.
9:51: A facemask penalty helps Moanalua get to the Castle 13. After a bunch of penalties on Castle, Bender runs in from 1 yard out for a touchdown. Yuen kicks the extra point.
>> MOANALUA 28, CASTLE 0. 1:48 to go in the third quarter.
9:49: Later on, Castle goes into punt formation again, but a bad snap results in a 23-yard loss. Moanalua ball at the Knights’ 27.
9:43: The Knights go three and out, due in part to a sack by Nehemiah Sauvao. But Castle retains possession after a roughing the kicker penalty.
9:38: Yuen scrambles to buy time and bullets a ball to Ramones at the 10 and he sprints into the end zone for a 24-yard touchdown. Yuen adds the extra point.
>> MOANALUA 21, CASTLE 0. 7:30 left in the third quarter.
9:36: Louis-Merry makes a first-down reception on a 10-yard fourth-down pass from Yuen.
9:34: After Bender gains 27 yards on a run, Yuen’s pass to a wide-open Ramones in the end zone is just out of his reach.
9:32: On fourth down, a Uyemura-Lee pass is just out of the reach of McGoldrick, who is now playing wide receiver. Moanalua ball.
9:29: Second half underway. Castle is driving. Jaylen Uyemura-Lee is in at quarterback. He completes passes of 17 yards to Lewis and 11 yards to Smith.
9:09: HALFTIME.
9:08: The Knights get a 12-yard McGoldrick completion to Smith and two completions for a total of 25 yards to Elijah Catrett, but time runs out in the half.
9:04: Moanalua punts. Castle has 34 seconds to work with from its own 36.
9:02: McGoldrick’s pass into the end zone for Smith is incomplete. Moanalua ball.
9:00: Knights face a fourth down and 2 at the Moanalua 26.
8:58: Castle’s Israel Pakele rips off runs of 7, 8 and 12 yards.
8:55: Three plays later, Bronson Louis-Merry scores on a 2-yard run. Yuen kicks the extra point.
>> MOANALUA 14, CASTLE 0. 3:43 left before halftime.
8:48: Moanalua is marching. Two 16-yard connections — from Yuen to Reed and from Yuen to Miguel — and a 13-yard Rodrigues run advances the ball to the 29. Yuen then hits Ramones on an 18-yard slant pass.
8:46: On the next play, McGoldrick throws a pass that is intercepted by Moanalua’s Isaiah Jackson.
8:45: McGoldrick connects with Cade Smith for a 24-yard completion to move the ball to the Moanalua 26. Yuen passes to Reed and Miguel for 16 yards each and runs of 11 yards and 8 yards by Rodrigues and Yuen bring the ball to the Castle 29.
8:42: Moanalua can’t move on three downs and punts. Castle ball on its own 45.
8:40: The Knights’ drive stalls and they punt into the end zone. Moanalua ball at the 20.
8:37: Castle quarterback Jeremy McGoldrick weaves his way for a 21-yard gain into Na Menehune territory.
8:34: Yuen’s 21-yard pass to Ramones gets the ball to the Castle 22 and four plays later, Yuen runs up the middle for a 7-yard touchdown. Yuen adds the extra point.
>> MOANALUA 7, CASTLE 0. 6 seconds left in first quarter.
8:33: Castle can’t get out of bad field position on three downs and punts.
8:28: Brandon Bender catches a fourth-down pass from Yuen at the 2 and appears to dive into the end zone and fumble after crossing the plane. But it is ruled an incomplete pass. Castle ball.
8:22: Na Menehune have first and goal at the 6. Yuen throws three straight incompletions, including the third one while being chased by Isley Busch-Matu‘u.
8:18: Passes of 11 and 13 yards from Yuen to Rylan Miguel pick up two first downs, and then Rodrigues runs for 18 yards for another first down at the Castle 16.
8:15: The Knights go three and out and punt.
8:12: Castle’s Kawelo Kalauokalani sacks Yuen for a 9-yard loss and then Yuen throws a pass that is intercepted by Keola Chun.
8:09: Na Menehune pick up two more first downs, one on a pass from Yuen to Ryan Ramones, the other on Kea Rodrigues’ 10-yard run.
8:07: On third down, Moanalua’s Charles Reed catches a 6-yard pass from Alaka‘i Yuen for a first down.
8:02: Castle won the toss and deferred. Moanalua elects to receive. Castle will defend the Makai end zone.
8:00: We are a few minutes away from kickoff. Coin toss coming.
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