Moanalua football

Forcing a turnover is an exciting moment for a defense. Often, coaches will point to takeaways as key moments or turning points in ball games. In Moanalua’s 42-7 rout over visiting Kailua on Friday, those moments came early and often. “Our defensive backs coach told us that when the quarterback throws the ball, we’re supposed to see the ball and we’re supposed to take it,” defensive back Trequan Henderson said. “Tonight, there were opportunities to be made.” Henderson had two […]

In a game in which Moanalua outgained its opponent 408 total yards to 73, Na Menehune found themselves trailing Castle by two points with less than three minutes to go. And that wasn’t even their biggest worry. Moanalua coach Savai’i Eselu found himself without an available player who had practiced a single rep at quarterback leading up to the season. Starter Nick Au, who threw for 375 yards and four touchdowns, was knocked out of the game after taking a […]

13TH IN A SERIES For two seasons under coach Savai’i Eselu, Moanalua has been a playoff team. He’s trying to continue the trend and maybe go further. Two years ago, Na Menehune qualified for states but went down in the Division I (middle tier) first round in a 17-14 loss to ‘Iolani. Last year, there was a playoff win followed by a playoff loss, but no states. One good sign for Moanalua in this preseason was a strong performance against […]

Moanalua knew it needed to play a perfect game to hang with No. 3 Mililani in the OIA Division I quarterfinals on Friday night. Na Menehune sure tried, but they were not perfect, falling 49-14 at John Kauinana Stadium. So ended a turnaround season, one that seemed lost in early September but was salvaged in very respectable fashion. Moanalua (4-6) began 0-5, staged a three-game rally to make the playoffs, then upset Kailua 17-14 in the first round last week […]