GAME NIGHT 10/21: Leilehua/Mililani

While ILH titles are decided in Division I and Division II and the semifinals of the OIA Division II playoffs happen Friday night, there’s the matter of this one OIA consolation game in Division I.

Moanalua forfeited its game against Campbell due to injuries and illness, leaving Mililani to play Leilehua in the only OIA consolation playoff game this weekend at John Kauinana Stadium.

The reason for the games was to determine seeding in the Division I state tournament this year that will have four OIA teams (Campbell, Leilehua, Moanalua, Mililani), ‘Iolani, two BIIF teams (Hilo, Waiakea) and an MIL team (either Baldwin or Maui). No OIA consolation games will be played next week. Instead, the OIA will use regular season records to determine the final seedings.

Yes, even we’re confused.

Regardless, it’s a chance to see the Trojans play the Mules in a rematch of a 52-35 win by Mililani three weeks ago.

HISTORY: Leilehua leads the all-time series 21-16-1.

Live updates of the 7:30 p.m. kickoff will follow below:

FOURTH QUARTER
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Trojans recover the on-side kick — Valladares is almost always the guy who the grab — and drive for their ninth TD. Olomua scores on a 10-yard run up the middle. MIL 63, LEI 35, 2:55.

Mules get completions of 41 and 32 yards by Andres, and he scores on a 1-yard keeper. MIL 56, LEI 35, 5:05.

Gabriel begins the fourth quarter 14-for-28, 268 yards, four TDs, no picks. The Trojans get a 29-yard catch and run by Valladares, and Park scores on a 27-yard blast up the middle. It’s just wide open back there, a canyon. MIL 56, LEI 28, 11:38.

THIRD QUARTER
The third quarter ends with Mililani ahead 49-28 and in firm control. They’ve sacked Leilehua QBs just twice, but there’s enough pressure and enough deep coverage for their defense to play basic and get stops.
Lee with a nice 32-yard kick return, and on the next play Muasau blasts up the middle untouched for a 54-yard TD run. Untouched. That puts him over the 100-yard mark. He’s got 110 yards on 11 carries, and he’s playing LB. MIL 49, LEI 28, 1:20.

Mules drive 67 yards in eight plays, aided by a spearing penalty by Olomua on a short run. Andres lofts a nice pass down the right sideline for Kawai Phifer, 20-yard TD. MIL 42, LEI 28, 1:41.

Bad break for Leilehua. I believe the punter was called down when he kneeled to get the snap. Not sure, but it’s Mililani ball at the Mules’ 23. Fourth and 6, Mules jump offside. Fourth and 1, Jalen Olomua gets the handoff and gains 4 yards. He sat the first half. Two plays later, Gabriel to Chang for a 10-yard TD pass. MIL 42, LEI 21, 4:16.
Mililani gets the ball at the Leilehua 48-yard line after the punt. First play, Gabriel with a bomb to Valladares, right in stride for a 48-yard TD. MIL 35, LEI 21, 7:31.

Mules take over at their 1. Three and out, punt.

Trojans drive to the 1-yard line and stall on three incomplete passes in a row. Pretty sure Muasau would’ve scored even against eight in the box. Leilehua with a crucial stop.

HALFTIME
Boxscore
At John Kauinana Stadium
Leilehua 7 14 x x — xx
Mililani 14 14 x x — xx
LEI—Jerome Holiday 11 pass from Kaleo Aloha Piceno (Akoni Tom Makue kick)
MIL—Cy Kuboyama-Hayashi 29 pass from Dillon Gabriel (Damien Santiago kick)
MIL—Ryan Chang 13 pass from Gabriel (Santiago kick)
LEI—Holiday 34 pass from Kona Andres (Makue kick)
MIL—Darius Muasau 34 run (kick failed)
LEI—Piceno 2 run (Makue kick)
MIL—Stanton Lee 53 pass from Gabriel (Muasau pass from Gabriel)

RUSHING—
Leilehua:
Kaleo Aloha Piceno 9-27,
Andres 1-5

Mililani:
Fabian Johnson-Slay 1-1,
Gabriel 5-(-10),
Muasau 8-34,
Kaine Park 2-21.

PASSING—
Leilehua:
Piceno 2-6-0-18,
Andres 8-12-0-99.

Mililani:
Gabriel 12-21-0-210.

RECEIVING—
Leilehua:
Piceno 4-25,
Kendrick Beitzel 1-16,
Kawai Phiper 3-31,
Holiday 2-45.

Mililani:
Andrew Valladares 2-12,
Muasau 2-29,
Chang 3-55,
Kuboyama-Hayashi 2-31,
Lee 2-81,
Johnson-Slay 1-2.

SECOND QUARTER
Leilehua gets three plays off before intermission. Andres heaved a long pass that was a jump ball for five or six players from both teams at around the 15-yard line, no completion.

The Trojans go on the most patient 2-minute drill ever, running up the gut over and over with Muasau and Kaine Park. Then Gabriel finds senior slotback Stanton Lee WIDE OPEN on the left sideline and he trucks it to paydirt for a 53-yard TD. Major breakdown in the secondary by the Mules. Mililani goes for 2, Gabriel to Muasau for the conversion. MIL 28, LEI 21, :23.

Mules snag the squib kick at their 40. Andres is in a rhythm now, rolling right down the field with completions of 16, 12, 11, 12 yards. Piceno takes over and scores on a 2-yard keeper. Very sharp. Makue’s PAT gives the Mules the lead. LEI 21, MIL 20, 2:51.

Trojans drive stalls after a sack, but Leilehua is flagged for roughing the punter. Huge call. Mules coach Nolan Tokuda talking to the lead official. May have been partial blocked; the punter had a bad snap. But the white hat says no, 15-yard penalty. Very next play, Mules blitz off the edge with a safety and get burned. Muasau up the middle for a 34-yard TD. PAT misses. MIL 20, LEI 14, 5:29.

Leilehua getting stagnant on offense, three and out. Punt returner muffs it but recovers for a 4-yard loss. MIL ball at the LEI 49.

Mililani starts at its 35 after a 26-yard KR. Gabriel 31 yards down the sideline to Chang, then 13 more on a screen to Muasau. He’s doing whatever he wants, reading blitzes and single-safety coverage. MIL in shotgun trips and he just throws to the single-coverage side. It’s working. Fourth and 5 at the Leilehua 13, time out called by York. 7:32 left in the first half. Gabriel tries to thread the needle on a seam route by Valladares, but Holiday breaks the pass up. Holiday having a great game.

Holiday strikes again. Third and 10, Kona Andres fires a perfect spiral deep to Holiday for a 34-yard TD. No help coverage there. Holiday’s second TD. He is a major factor tonight. LEI 14, MIL 14, 10:07.

FIRST QUARTER
Leilehua scoops up the squib kick and returns it to its 35. Kona Andres is in at QB, runs for a 5-yard gain as the quarter ends.

After a 37-yard punt by Leilehua, Mililani has the ball at the Mules’ 44. Muasau runs for 7 yards and Rod York calls time out. That’s the second time out of the half for Mililani. All kinds of problems for the Trojans on this drive — two penalties — but Gabriel works in the pocket, slides left and fires a 13-yard strike to Ryan Chang in the middle of the end zone for a TD. MIL 14, LEI 7, :09.

Mililani ball at its 45, drives to the 33, then Gabriel is sacked for a 15-yard loss by Braxton Miller. Punt to the 4-yard line. Leilehua stacked its deep coverage and Gabriel didn’t have anyone open on that drive, or maybe he did. But the heat was on.

This could be a fun and long game. The last time these teams played, they scored 87 points. Or maybe not. Darius Muasau sacks Piceno and it’s three and out for the Mules. Nice punt by Akoni Tom Makue, 46 yards, downed.

No wasted time by the Trojans. They drive 73 yards in four plays with QB Dillon Gabriel pumping the gas pedal to the floor. Completions of 28 and 16 yards, then a 29-yard bomb to Cy Kuboyama-Hayashi. Bombs away. MIL 7, LEI 7, 8:04.

The Mules go no-huddle, moderately quick hurry up and Kaleo Aloha Piceno fires an 11-yard TD pass to Jerome Holiday. LEI 7, MIL 0, 9:03.

Trojans get a 22-yard kickoff return to their 30, but it’s three and out, and a shanked 5-yard punt. Leilehua ball at the Mililani 27.

PRE-GAME
Interesting note before the game. I asked Leilehua head coach Nolan Tokuda before pre-game whether it was true that both coaches had agreed to treat this game as something for the younger/JV players of both teams. He said he hadn’t heard anything like that. It didn’t make sense anyway. Mililani played Waianae in the JV game prior to this one.

Another note: HHSAA executive director Chris Chun said the winner of the Leilehua-Mililani game will do a coin flip with Campbell, which is the winner of its game with Moanalua (by forfeit) today. The coin-flip winner will host a first-round game in the Division I state tournament. The loser will “probably” travel off-island in the first round.

So, no, this game is not without meaning after all.