Moanalua pounces on Mililani to win first-ever OIA girls flag football title

MILILANI — In the first-ever OIA girls flag football title game, the old saying still rings true — defense wins championships.

Moanalua came up with two early takeaways and jumped out to a 13-0 lead en route to a 25-6 win over Mililani in a battle of two undefeated teams for the league crown at John Kauinana Stadium Thursday night.

“It’s an amazing feeling because we’re here,” said Moanalua junior quarterback Zaira Sugui. “We’re playing, we’re balling out. A lot of us girls are playing the game that we love on the field. Yeah, we’re in their hometown, but we sure did ball out and we just trusted ourselves. We came in with a good mindset. We stood calm, we weren’t in our heads, we just went out there and showed them what we’re all about.”

Na Menehune (8-0) set the tone on the first play of the game when freshman Lofa Simanu intercepted a Zenn Nelson-pass that was deflected off the hands of a Mililani receiver. Four plays later Sugui found freshman Jodie Keo over the middle for a 3-yard score. The duo hooked up again on the conversion to give Moanalua a 7-0 lead.

The next pass by Nelson also ended up in the hands of Simanu, although this time she was able to return the interception 35 yards for a score to make it a 13-0 game four minutes into the contest.

The Moanalua girls flag football team celebrates in the end zone after Lofa Simanu (1) returned an interception for a 35-yard TD. | Photo: Michael Lasquero

“It was just minor mistakes that we capitalized on,” said Moanalua coach Ladd Mokiao, whose team held the Trojans (7-1) to just 90 yards of offense.

“Those two picks helped us get the lead early and it helped us where we can play comfortable and then lean on our defense to stop them and win the game at the end.”

Instead of trying to chase down the shifty-Nelson behind center, Na Menehune looked to keep her in the pocket with pass rusher Kaia Borje-Peeples keeping contain on Nelson, who accounted for all the touchdowns in the Trojans’ previous three games.

The defense also played tight coverage with Jailyn Smith keeping an eye over the middle and the likes of Marisa Lam and Simanu on the perimeter for the out-breaking routes.

“We came up with a game plan where she needed to beat us with her arms, and not her legs, because all the teams she was beating, she’s a helluva of an athlete, but she was beating everybody with her legs and she was putting the team on her back and just marching them down the field,” said Mokiao.

Moanalua’s Kaia Borje-Peeples gives chase to Mililani’s Zenn Nelson in the OIA championship game. | Photo: Michael Lasquero

The end result saw Moanalua come away with five total interceptions, three of them by Simanu. Sugui and Keo also had one apiece while Smith came close with two pass breakups. Borje-Peeples also notched three sacks and had a team-high five flag pulls.

The duo of Sugui and Keo hooked up a total of nine times to the tune of 106 yards and three TDs against the Trojans. Keo’s second TD of the game was from 33 yards out to give Moanalua a 19-0 lead midway through the second quarter while her final scoring pass of the night was on a 2-yard pass late in the third quarter.

The freshman receiver’s final stat line for league play saw her finish with 56 receptions for 876 yards and 18 TDs in eight OIA contests.

“She has a very big future,” Mokiao said of Keo, who earned HSRN’s ‘VIP of the Game’ award, presented by Fun Factory Games.

Mokiao added that they call Keo ‘MJ,’ referencing her to NBA legend Michael Jordan.

“She can go up for the ball, she’s fast, she plays like a boy, plain and simple. She can take on boys and ‘moss’ boys too, offensively and defensively. It’s hard to find a girl like that. Sometimes, it’s like a diamond in the rough, and I got one, I got lucky.”

Moanalua freshman WR Jodie Keo looks for some running room after catching a pass from Zaira Sugui. | Photo: Michael Lasquero

Sugui finished the game completing 19 of her 27 passes for 208 yards. Although she threw three interceptions against her three TD passes, she never seemed to let the moment rattle her or her teammates, drawing on her experience as a two-time state champion.

“Being a state champion helped me become a leader on this team because wrestling is all about mentality so I just had to really put my mentality into football by leading the team and continuing to show them that they don’t need to be scared,” said Sugui.

“They just have to trust themselves, believe in themselves and when they step on that field, it’s just you against you, no matter who we challenge.”

The Trojans avoided the shutout in the fourth quarter when Brooke Kurasaki found Nahealani Choy Foo on a 5-yard TD pass.

Choy Foo, Ayreeana Manutai and Sienna Maafala each recorded interceptions to lead Mililani in the loss.

The two teams are among seven OIA teams to represent the league in the inaugural state tournament in a few weeks. Joining Moanalua and Mililani in the 16-team field will be Campbell, Nanakuli, Leilehua, Waianae and Kahuku.