KEAAU – For nearly two quarters, it seemed like more of the same for Keaau.
KEAAU – For nearly two quarters, it seemed like more of the same for Keaau.
One step forward, two steps back.
Too many turnovers.
Try again next time.
With Iokepa Laa playing quarterback for the first time, the next time was now.
The junior provided just the spark his team needed Friday night, accounting for three scores, and Junior Santiago set the tone with a long touchdown run up the middle at the start of the second half as Keaau surprised Honokaa 30-15 to claim its first victory of the season.
“Relieved, that’s the word,” Keaau coach Leo Abellera said, “but happy for them.”
The Cougars (1-3, 1-3 BIIF Division) entered the game with just two touchdowns on the season, but they came alive late in the second quarter, shrugging off four turnovers and reeling off three touchdowns in a four-minute stretch spanning both halves.
Outscored 158-12 in BIIF games up to that point, Keaau began to find its way late in the second quarter when Laa hit Caine Lunsford for a touchdown just seconds before the half.
“That was the turning point,” Lunsford said. “There was a connection I guess.
“Finally getting a victory and feeling like a team.”
Yes, there is an “I” in Caine, but you’d never know it. The senior was yanked as starting quarterback in favor of Laa, then came back in when Laa was briefly sidelined only to be picked off by Trey Gomes, leading to a Honokaa’s first touchdown. In the end, Lunsford was happy to play second fiddle, heaping praise upon his counterpart.
“I saw good leadership, better decision-making on his part and composure. Composure no matter what,” Lunsford said. “Even when he got hurt, he got right back up. He’s really a quiet leader. He doesn’t lead by voice He does.”
Laa got dinged on a first-quarter run that was meant to be called for Santiago at quarterback.
Keaau got the personnel package right on the first play from scrimmage in the third quarter, and Santiago gave the Cougars their first lead of the season, lining up in the shotgun and parting the field untouched on a 75-yard run for his third long score of the season. The senior amassed 122 rushing yards as Keaau churned out 213 on the ground.
The Dragons (2-3, 1-3 BIIF Division II) lost their third in a row and were hampered by myriad penalties. Ocean Guerpo-Beamer tossed touchdown passes to Kolten Caravalho to start the scoring and Kamuela Spencer-Herring to cap it off, finishing 14 of 28 for 126 yards.
Honokaa managed just 92 yards on the ground, and two fumbles in its territory helped Keaau pad its lead in the third quarter on touchdown runs by Laa.
Abellera said the Cougars sold out to stop the run “after getting worked last week” by Kealakehe.
“If we lost by the pass, I would be OK with it,” he said.
Laa’s stats may look modest, 7 of 11 for 78 yards passing and 42 more rushing (not including sacks), but he made key plays.
“The team gave (Laa) a little bit more support,” Abellera said.
Ahead 22-8 and looking for more after recovering a fumble at Honokaa’s 28, an errant snap got behind Laa for a 14-yard loss. Undeterred, Laa found John Walker for a 16-yard gain to set up a manageable fourth-and-4 at the 12, where Laa did the honors himself, scrambling into the end zone.
“When I was being QB, I felt I was keeping the team down a little,” Lunsford said. “They basically have more faith in Kepa, I feel.”
Through two quarters, Honokaa dominated time of possession, running 30 plays, and was positive four in the turnover battle, but the Dragons nursed just a one-point lead.
Keaau had run just 12 plays from scrimmage when it took over at Honokaa’s 40 late in the first half after a nice punt return. Laa used six plays to find the end zone, completing three passes, the last from 4 yards out to Lunsford for a touchdown that cut the score to 9-8 when Brontson Castro rumbled in for the first of his three two-point conversion runs.
“When they started to move the chains a little, they started believing,” Abellera said.
Honokaa 0 9 0 6–15
Keaau 0 8 22 0–30
Second quarter
Honokaa – Kolten Caravalho 7 pass from Ocean Guerpo-Beamer (Isaac Aguilar kick), 5:50
Honokaa — Safety, 3:42
Keaau — Caine Lunsford 4 pass from Iokepa Laa (Bronston Castro run), :07
Third quarter
Keaau — Junior Santiago 75 run (Castro run), 11:40
Keaau — Laa 6 run (pass failed), 8:27
Keaau — Laa 12 run (Castro run), 1:02
Fourth quarter
Honokaa — Kamuela Spencer-Herring 14 pass from Guerpo-Beamer (run failed), 9:23