BY MICAH LEWTER
BY MICAH LEWTER
Stephens Media
KAPAAU — For the second straight week, Konawaena faced a severely out-manned foe.
A week earlier, the score got out of hand so quickly, the Wildcats were unable to work on the passing game. So, Konawaena made sure to pass early and often on Saturday.
The defending Big Island Interscholastic Federation Division II champions gave junior quarterback Lii Karratti a chance to pass against Kohala, and he did not disappoint, completing 11 of 13 passes for 301 yards and six touchdowns in the first half to lead Konawaena to a 76-0 victory over Kohala.
“We live by the deep pass,” Konawaena coach Cliff Walters said. “We wanted to change that up and spread the ball around.
“The quarterback did a good job of seeing the field.”
Karratti only played the first half, but it was a pass-happy half. Of Konawaena’s 16 offensive plays, 13 were passes. The three runs were two Karratti scrambles and a mishandled snap that John Kamoku turned into a 1-yard gain.
Karratti threw short, and he threw long. He tossed scoring strikes of 7, 55, 24, 43, 37 and 7 yards. Domonic Morris benefited the most from the air attack. He caught three passes for 99 yards and three touchdowns. The senior also opened the second half with a 78-yard kickoff for a touchdown.
“I threw for 300 yards, that was our goal,” Karratti said.
He also admitted that the second half was “kind of boring,” but he enjoyed seeing the younger guys play.
Konawaena (3-0 BIIF Division II, 5-1 overall) started replacing players in the second quarter, and the Wildcats emptied the bench in the second half. Konawaena did not attempt a pass in the second half, but Kamoku added touchdown runs of 24 and 15 yards in the third quarter. He finished with a game-high 56 yards on four carries.
Despite the lopsided score, Kohala (0-3, 0-3) made some positive plays. Freshman quarterback Kainalu Emeliano-Solomon made some nice passes, including a 26-yard completion on a fade route to Ricky Ching in the first quarter.
“We had the fade working, and we had some runs outside that worked,” Kohala coach Reggie Tolentino said. “Our line gave Kainalu more time back there.
“Kona’s just tough. I’m not going to take anything away from them.”
Emeliano-Solomon finished the day 6-for-19 for 85 yards with four interceptions. Konawaena’s defense intercepted five passes in all and recovered a fumble.
Two of Emeliano-Solomon’s interceptions went to Konawaena safety Ryan Torres-Torioka. He intercepted three passes in all, the final one on a halfback pass. He returned the first two 25 and 28 yards for touchdowns.
“I enjoyed it,” Torres-Torioka said. “I’ve never scored touchdowns before.”
He actually crossed the goal line three times, but a block in the back nullified a touchdown.
Dishon Cho also had a good day. He intercepted a pass to set up the game’s first touchdown, and he caught a 7-yard touchdown pass as part of his 60-yard receiving day. Kenan Gaspar had 77 yards on two catches with a score, and Chase Takaki followed with 65 yards on two catches and a touchdown.
Dakota Tolentino led the Cowboys in rushing with 28 yards on 10 tough carries.
Kohala 0 0 0 0 — 0
Konawaena 28 28 20 0 — 76
First quarter
Kon — Domonic Morris 7 pass from Lii Karratti (John Replogle kick), 10:52
Kon — Morris 55 pass from Karratti (Replogle kick), 8:45
Kon — Kenan Gaspar 24 pass from Karratti (Replogle kick), 1:27
Kon — Ryan Torres-Torioka 25 interception return (Replogle kick), 0:27
Second quarter
Kon — Chase Takaki 43 pass from Karratti (Replogle kick), 9:32
Kon — Torres-Torioka 28 interception return (Replogle kick), 8:08
Kon — Morris 37 pass from Karratti (Replogle kick), 3:55
Kon — Dishon Cho 7 pass from Karratti (Replogle kick), 39
Third quarter
Kon — Morris 78 kickoff return (Replogle kick), 11:46
Kon — John Kamoku 24 run (kick failed), 8:30
Kon — Kamoku 15 run (Kamoku kick), 0:59