By: Wes Nakama
WAI’ANAE — After a late (8:35 p.m.) kickoff and sluggish start, defending California state champion Lincoln (San Diego) pulled away from Wai’anae, 41-0, Thursday night at scenic Raymond Torii Field.
The Hornets finished 13-1 last season and defeated legendary powerhouse De La Salle (Concord, Calif.) for the California Interscholastic Federation top division title. Lincoln is the alma mater of NFL Hall of Fame running backs Marcus Allen and Terrell Davis, as well as former NFL quarterback Akili Smith, whose son, Akili, Jr. is the Hornets’ starting quarterback.
Wai’anae lost to Kahuku, 49-0, in its opener last Saturday and had a short week to prepare for Lincoln. But the Seariders showed a stalwart defense in the first half, limiting the Hornets to 87 total yards in the first two quarters and a slim 7-0 halftime lead after Aden Jackson’s 2-yard touchdown run followed by Aladar Herrera’s extra point 18 seconds before intermission.
Lincoln then struck quickly after the break, with Isaiah Grant finding a seam up the middle after receiving the second-half kickoff on his own 20-yard-line, swerving to the left sideline and then dashing untouched to the end zone. Herrera’s PAT made it 14-0.
On the ensuing possession, Wai’anae advanced to the Hornets’ 11-yard line, but went backwards on two running plays and then a sack, followed by a personal foul that put the Seariders at the 31, out of field goal range.
That would be their best scoring opportunity of the night, as they finished with only 50 total yards (25 rushing, 25 passing).
“I thought defensively, we made some strides, but offensively, we’re trying to get our (quarterback) and line together and get more energized,” said Thom Kaumeyer, Wai’anae’s second-year head coach who played for Encinitas High School in San Diego. “I think facing two good defenses (Kahuku and Lincoln), that’s what we’re going to learn from and improve on. It’s a challenge. But we just gotta accept it and get better and go. We gotta help each other.”
Later in the third quarter, Isaiah Bartolome intercepted a pass and returned it 37 yards to the Seariders’ 8, setting up Jackson’s 4-yard scoring run and Herrera’s extra point to make it 21-0. After another three-and-out by Wai’anae on the ensuing series, a low punt snap resulted in a sack and the Hornets took over at the Seariders’ 19. Despite going backwards on two plays and a penalty, Lincon scored again on third-and-26 from the 35 when Smith threw a perfect pass to Dreyden Garner in the end zone. Herrera’s PAT pushed the lead to 28-0 with 1:53 remaining in the third quarter.
Two minutes into the fourth, Smith found Trenice Woods over the middle on third-and-7 and Woods sped to the end zone for a 70-yard touchdown to make it 34-0.
Donald Reed III then capped the scoring on a 75-yard TD run with 7:46 left, triggering the mercy rule and running clock.
Smith, making his first varsity start, finished with 10 completions in 19 attempts for 190 yards and two touchdowns, with no interceptions. Reed gained 110 yards on seven carries.
“We knew the game was definitely going to be physical, and we got a new quarterback, new receivers, so we expected to start a little slow,” Lincoln coach David Dunn said. “We just had to find ourselves and get into our rhythm.”
Lincoln had played in Hawai’i back in the 1990’s, but this is believed to be the first time a Mainland team played at Wai’anae.
“We learned a lot about this program (Wai’anae), they’re very similar to us,” said Dunn, who said an assistant coach reached out to Kaumeyer to set up the game. “They come from a rough area, and we come from a rough neighborhood in California. So when we heard we can be the first team from (the Mainland) to play here, we were happy about it. We saw ourselves in this team.”
The Hornets arrived in Honolulu last Sunday, visited Pearl Harbor and did some other activities, including a luau with the Seariders sponsored by the Wai’anae football booster club. Dunn said Torii Field, which is situated right next to the shoreline, was a unique setting and added bonus.
“This is by far the most beautiful thing we’ve ever seen,” Dunn said. “As a coaching staff, we talked about it … our players loved it, our parents loved it. This scenery is second to none, this is amazing.”
LINCOLN (1-0) 0 7 28 6 — 41
WAI’ANAE (0-2) 0 0 0 0 — 0
L – Aden Jackson 2 run (Aladar Herrera kick)
L – Isaiah Grant 80 kick return (Herrera kick)
L – Jackson 4 run (Herrera kick)
L – Dreyden Garner 35 pass from Akili Smith, Jr. (Herrera kick)
L – Trenice Woods 70 pass from Smith (kick failed)
L – Donald Reed III 75 run (Herrera kick)
RUSHING: Lin: Smith 6-(minus-22), Ayden Billups 3-11, Reed 7-110, Jackson 9-15, Hayden Clark 1-16, Johnny Limon 1-2. Wai: George Mier 12-(minus-32), Shanestin Watson 4-11, Alika Indica 9-16, Hadyn Dowsett 8-14, Excel Jury 1-3. Lopaka Dicion 1-1, Jaylum Pelen 1-10, Kaezen Madeira 1-1, Shanceten Lagunero 1-1, Maximus Kahalewai-Sapigao 1-10, TEAM 1-(minus-6).
PASSING: Lin: Smith 10-19-0–190, Limon 2-5-0–30. Wai: Mier 3-6-2–21, Lagunero 0-1-0–0, Kahalewai-Sapigaom 2-2-0–4.
RECEIVING: Lin: Marcos Pena 1-4. Joseph Benavente 2-33, Grant 1-(minus-6), Dreyden Garner 5-77, Jamarion Herbert 1-9, Billups 1-3, Trenice Woods 1-70. Wai: Indica 4-25, Dowsett 1-0.
Photos: Zetta Digital Media
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