Let The Rivalry Begin, For 2007
By Jack Danilewicz
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With so little margin for error in a prototypical Castle-Kailua game, it should come as no surprise that both schools have been emphasizing their special teams play as they prepare for Friday night’s encounter.
“The first rule (in special teams play) is not to hurt yourself,” Kailua coach Gary Rosolowich said. “The second rule is never to violate the first rule. You have to play sound there. You can’t win games on special teams, but you can certainly lose them.”
Said Castle coach Nelson Maeda, whose Knights have won five straight in the series and seven of their last nine: “It could come down to that. Their defense has been very solid, so special teams will have to play a big factor for us.”
The Knights have been known to excel in this phase of the game, the most glaring example of special teams dominance in the series having come in the 2002 Oahu Interscholastic Association championship game when the opportunistic Knights parlayed a blocked field-goal attempt into a touchdown run in addition to taking a punt back for the distance. Either team would welcome that kind of production on special teams in this year’s game. More importantly, their yearly meeting comes at a time when both teams are playing their best football of the season. After a sluggish start, offensively, the Surfriders got everyone’s attention when they exploded for 48 points in their Sept. 7 win over McKinley. Castle also experienced its share of early-season struggles, losing 43-6 at Mililani in the pre-season. The Knights have since regrouped and beaten both McKinley and Moanalua in OIA Red East play.
“I guess if you have to lose, you’d rather it come in pre-season,” Maeda said.
Even if Friday’s 7 p.m. game at Castle had no bearing on the league race, it would still figure big on both teams’ schedules given the tradition of it. Maeda has always played the game up in the Knights’ locker room, separating Castle’s season into two parts. “There’s the Kailua game and the rest of our schedule,” Maeda likes to say.
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For his part, Rosolowich prefers to take a low-key approach to the matchup.“We’re really not playing up the rivalry part - we have to prepare to play our best,” said Rosolowich, whose team was to play another Windward rival, Kahuku, over the weekend. “The bottom line is that every game is important. We talk about top, middle and bottom (teams in the East Red) and to be in the top, we have to displace somebody.”
Another stout defensive effort could go a long way to help the Surfriders in that regard. Except for Week Two, when Kailua was overwhelmed by Saint Louis 48-7 in its interleague game, teams have been hard-pressed to move the ball on the Surfriders, who held Leilehua to six points earlier in the season.
“Our defense has played really well all year. We knew going in that it was pretty good, but we still don’t know how good.”
This week, the Surfriders will face a Castle offense led by blossoming quarterback Blake Rapozo and a talented receiving corps that includes Breydan Torres, Kawehi Sablan, Bronson Kekahuna and Thomas Ilae. In its win over Moanalua recently, Rapozo was right on target, connecting on 23 of 27 passes for 215 yards and a pair of touch-downs.
“Castle is primarily a passing team - that’s how they beat Moanalua,” Rosolowich said. “Traditionally, they always have good quarterbacks, and they get better and better. We have to stop their passing game.”
Like the Surfriders, the Knights have also relied on their defense to set the tone this season.
“Our defense has been pretty solid,” Maeda said. “They bend, but for the most part, they don’t break, and we’ve been able to create some turnovers that we’ve capitalized on.”
Castle defensive tackle Alika Kekoanui had a monster game against Moanalua, causing two fumbles, recovering two, and contributing seven tackles.
“He’s very active, a force,” Maeda said of Kekoanui. “It was nice to see him have such an impact on a game.”
Maeda, who also praised the play of defensive end K.J. Aipia, linebacker Kaua Olds and line-men Chris and Cody Daniel, anticipates getting Kailua’s best offensive effort of the season.
“Kailua has improved week to week,” he said. “For them to put up 48 points against McKinley is something in and of itself. We have quite a job ahead of us.”
Rosolowich called his team’s offensive resurgence “a total package type of thing,” meanwhile. “The offensive line has done a good job - they seem to work really well together - and we hope that will continue.”
The Surfriders have been rotating a pair of quarterbacks in Kale Sumner and Kenny Ellis. Both are play-makers with Ellis logging time at wide receiver.
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