Windward Teams Meet Challenging Foes In Weekend Play
As prep football’s season reaches the midway point this weekend, every game from here on out is critical to the playoff picture.
A look at this week’s Windward games is below.
Farrington at Kailua, 7:30 p.m. Friday
Throughout a brutal stretch on their schedule, the Surfriders have managed to defend the run-game well enough to stay in the mix, relinquishing 122 yards on the ground per game.
But this might be the biggest challenge to date for the Kailua defense, as Farrington is averaging 7.4 yards per carry and 220 yards per game.
Ranan Mamiya and Challen Faamatau have done much of the damage so far with nearly 600 yards on the ground between them, including 10 rushing touchdowns.
The Governors also have a veteran quarterback in three-year starter Montana Liana.
Controlling the ball will be a huge priority for a Kailua team struggling to move the chains.
That could mean a busy night for running back Paepaeiva Silifaiva-Kaeha, who is averaging 4.2 yards per attempt, three weeks into the season.
The Surfriders have improved each week despite finding points hard to come by, and were a few plays away from a better fate in their recent 25-14 loss to Aiea.
Defensively, Kailua is also coming off of its best effort of the season when it held Aiea to 1.1 rushing yards per carry (and 31 yards).
Kahuku at Castle, 7:30 p.m. Friday
Not all long-standing rivalries were wiped out by the OIA’s division restructuring in the off-season.
This Castle-Kahuku matchup survived. For the Knights to have a chance to pull the upset here, they will need a big effort in all three phases.
Castle has been opportunistic on offense to date, averaging 28.3 points per game despite averaging only 215 yards of total offense per outing.
Kahuku is looking to stay ahead of the OIA Red pack with key games coming up against Leilehua and Waianae.
Kahuku also travels to Kaiser next week. A month into the season, the Red Raider defense has been stellar, yielding only 43 rushing yards and 12 points per game.
Offensively, it’s averaging 300 yards per game, including an impressive 193 on the ground.
If all goes according to script, the matchup between the Kahuku offensive line and Castle’s front seven could go a long way in determining the outcome.
Kalaheo v. Anuenue, 4 p.m. Saturday at Kailua
The Mustangs’ bye week couldn’t have come at a better time after a roller-coaster ride the previous two weeks: a 6-3 win over Kalani, an upset loss to Waialua (10-7) Aug. 29.
Kalaheo is looking to fine-tune its offensive execution after mustering only seven points against Waialua, despite dominating time of possession and rolling up 190 yards on the ground.
Kalaheo running back Kawika Cavanh is currently averaging 5.3 yards per carry to pace the offense.
Anuenue has been limited by low numbers to date and had to forfeit its opener with Radford. Na Koa’s two other games were losses to Kaimuki (26-6) and Kalani (54-6).
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