Alaimalo carries Damien to wild win over ‘Iolani

Sylas Alaimalo rushed for 213 yards and six touchdowns as Damien kept its ILH Division II hopes alive with a 69-35 rout of ‘Iolani on Saturday night at Skippa Diaz Stadium.

Alaimalo also had a 12-yard TD catch to finish the game with seven scores.

“That kid is special,” Damien coach Anthony “Bonez” Tuitele said. “I learned my lesson from the last game. I should’ve gave him the rock more. I love that kid, man. He comes from a great family. He was looking forward to this game. He put the team on his back.”

In their previous matchup at Eddie Hamada Field, ‘Iolani rallied from a 21-0 deficit for a 63-56 win.

“Well, we’ll see if we make through tonight,” ‘Iolani coach Wendell Look said. “We’ll see how we lick our wounds and regroup, you know? We haven’t had our okoles whupped like that in a while, so maybe it’s a good thing. They did a hell of a job. Damien did a heck of a job. We had no answers tonight. No answers.”

Alaimalo, who carried 30 times, was elusive and powerful on everything from straight dives to toss sweeps.

“I give all my credit to my O-line. They let me do my thing,” he said. “ ‘Iolani brings it every time.”

Alaimalo also credited his coaches, who “prepared me for everything coming my way.”

The win improves Damien to 4-1 in ILH D-I play, now in a tie with ‘Iolani. The two teams could meet for the title in a tiebreaker game soon.

The first half was a festival of offensive explosions. Damien led 41-21 at intermission behind 140 rushing yards and three touchdowns from Alaimalo. Damien amassed 249 yards of total offense.

When ‘Iolani cut the lead to 27-14 in the second quarter, the Monarchs kept their poise.

“I was able to talk to my coaches, just tell them keep the boys calm and doing their job,” Tuitele said. “The boys did it. They stayed focused. They didn’t get too high. They didn’t get too low. The goal was to continue to fight, stick together and finish strong.”

‘Iolani fell behind 19-0 and went to the air almost exclusively. CJ Villanueva passed for 333 yards and five TDs in defeat.

The Monarchs scored on their opening drive, covering 65 yards in nine plays. Nalu Chinen-Zablan made a leaping grab on AJ Tuifua’s throw for a 14-yard TD.

Moments later, Wyatt Ho-Williams forced a fumble by ‘Iolani wide receiver Keon Preusser. AJ Kanae Jr. returned the ball 39 yards down the left sideline to the ‘Iolani 4-yard line.

The game was halted at that point due to an injury to a field official. His replacement took the field a few minutes later.

On the next snap, Alaimalo cut back to the left for a 4-yard TD run, and it was 13-0 with 7:30 to go in the opening quarter.

‘Iolani drove into Damien territory when Kanae was involved in another takeaway. His hit on Preusser after a completion led to another fumble, recovered by Micah Neizmen at the Raiders’ 5-yard line.

The Monarchs marched 95 yards to pay dirt, scoring on Alaimalo’s 55-yard run around left tackle for a 19-0 lead.

‘Iolani turned the ball over on downs and Damien needed just four plays to score. Alaimalo scored on an 8-yard toss sweep for a 27-0 Monarchs lead with 10:42 left in the first half.

The Raiders went to five-wide, empty-backfield sets and drove 60 yards to the end zone. Villanueva’s 8-yard TD toss to Jones Vierra got the visitors on the scoreboard.

An interception by Brody Segawa set up ‘Iolani’s next score. Villanueva launched a 46-yard bomb to Kekama Kane to bring the Raiders within 27-14 with 6:03 to go in the first half.

Damien then drove 80 yards in nine plays. Alaimalo picked up a fumble by Tuifua on his QB sneak try, and scored from 1 yard out. The Monarchs led 34-14 with 2:52 before intermission.

After ‘Iolani turned the ball over on downs at its 39-yard line, Damien needed just two plays to score. Tuifua lofted a 35-yard bomb to Ian Sera as the Monarchs opened the lead to 41-14 with 40 seconds left in the first half.

The Raiders drove 62 yards and scored again on a 5-yard TD strike from Villanueva to Kane with nine seconds left before the break.

Alaimalo added his fifth TD on a 12-yard toss from Tuifua to open Damien’s lead to 48-21 with 6:20 left in the third quarter.

‘Iolani cut the lead back to 20 points on a 3-yard pass from Villanueva to Preusser.

Damien responded with a 3-yard run by Tuifua on a speed option keeper for a 55-28 lead with 1:57 remaining in the third.

‘Iolani turned the ball over on downs on its 21-yard line as the third quarter expired.

Alaimalo’s sixth TD came on a pitch from Tuifua from 3 yards out for a 62-28 lead early in the fourth quarter.

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at Skippa Diaz Stadium

‘Iolani (5-2, 4-1) 0 21 7 7 — 35

Damien (6-3, 4-1) 19 22 14 14 — 69

DMS—Nalu Chinen-Zablan 14 pass from AJ Tuifua (kick blocked)

DMS—Sylas Alaimalo 4 run (Samuel Kawakami kick)

DMS—Alaimalo 55 run (kick blocked)

DMS—Alaimalo 8 run (Alaimalo run)

IOL—Jones Vierra 8 pass from CJ Villanueva (Marcos King kick)

IOL—Kekama Kane 46 pass from Villanueva (King kick)

DMS—Alaimalo 1 run (Kawakami kick)

DMS—Ian Sera 35 pass from Tuifua (Kawakami kick)

IOL—Kane 5 pass from Villanueva (King kick)

DMS—Alaimalo 12 pass from Tuifua (Kawakami kick)

IOL—Keon Preusser 3 pass from Villanueva (King kick)

DMS—Tuifua 3 run (Kawakami kick)

DMS—Alaimalo 3 run (Kawakami kick)

IOL—Kane 12 pass from Villanueva (King kick)

RUSHING—‘Iolani: Vierra 9-45, Ronin Fanelli 4-25, Villanueva 2-(minus 4). Damien: Alaimalo 30-213, Dayton Savea 3-25, Tuifua 2-7, Tryten Vicari 1-4, Team 2-(minus 9).

PASSING—‘Iolani: Villanueva 33-44-0-343. Damien: Tuifua 15-17-1-258.

RECEIVING—‘Iolani: Preusser 10-127, Kane 8-117, Hyrum Horita 4-48, Vierra 5-17, Fanelli 1-15, Luke Hendricks 2-12, Kahi Apao 2-8, Jaeden Park 1-(minus 1). Damien: Sera 4-89, Chinen-Zablan 4-86, Jordan DeCenzo 2-26, Kawakami 2-26, Savea 2-19, Alaimalo 1-12.