Saint Louis shutout for first time since 2012 as Mililani makes statement

MILILANI – Mowed down in Millville.

The No. 2-ranked Mililani Trojans (2-0) made their case for the state’s top ranking on Saturday night, crushing the No. 7-ranked Saint Louis Crusaders (0-2) behind a dominant three-phase performance, 42-0.

According to Hawaii Prep World records, it’s the first time since the 2012 season finale against Punahou at Aloha Stadium that Saint Louis was shutout in a football game.

Mililani QB Hunter Fujikawa looked in full control from start to finish, turning in an efficient performance with 11-of-14 passes completed for 212 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. The junior signal caller also added 22 yards on the ground but did take a pair of sacks in the first half before he gave way to backup QB Temaru Isaacs-Kalahiki to close out the third and fourth quarters.

Mililani QB Hunter Fujikawa navigates pressure against the Saint Louis defense. | Photo Credit: Brian Bautista

Fujikawa found comfort again feeding WR Bless Cabrera-Hopkins, hooking up for six catches, 130 yards and two of Fujikawa’s three TD passes. Junior wideout Hayden Bajet chipped in with three receptions for 60 yards of his own while hauling in his first touchdown as a Trojan in the victory.

Despite Saint Louis winning the time of possession battle handily (28:53 to 19:07), the Mililani defense dominated from start to finish as the Crusaders mustered up just 174 yards all night while committing four of the team’s five turnovers.

The Crusaders began the night in peril as their opening drive came to an early conclusion with a lost fumble, but the defense stood tall with the help of Ricky Li’ili’I’s lone sack of the game and forced Mililani kicker Matthew Bolibol to pull a 31-yard field goal try wide right to keep things scoreless midway through the first quarter.

That was where the good stopped for Saint Louis.

After the Mililani defense forced a punt on the ensuing drive, Fujikawa and the Trojan offense marched 63 yards down the field in four plays to punch in the game’s first score as Toa Sam toted the rock into the end zone from a yard out.

Another forced punt to open the second quarter led to another masterful Mililani drive as Fujikawa connected with Cabrera-Hopkins for the first of their two touchdown strikes, this time on a 23-yard bullet right down the seam for the score to extend the lead to 14-0.

Mililani sophomore Ashton Grace got his hands on his first career pick to start the turnover fiesta back up in the second quarter and junior DB Nui Gilman followed it up two drives later with his first interception of the year, each leading to touchdown-scoring drives for the Trojans – Bajet’s first Trojan touchdown and Cabrera-Hopkins’ second of the night with Toa Sam’s encore score sandwiched in between.

Already leading 35-0 with just under 90 seconds left in the half, the Mililani special teams unit got in on the fun as they forced a fumble on kickoff coverage and Matai Sam picked up the pigskin and scampered to paydirt to put a bow on a 42-point first half for the Trojans.

With running clock in effect, the second half flew by as the Trojans and Crusaders traded stops with each other before giving way to some of the younger depth on each roster to close out the non-league contest.

Saint Louis QB Luke Shigeta had a rough night at the office against one of the top high school teams in Hawai’i, going 5-for-13 passing for 78 yards and two interceptions and a fumble in the loss. Fellow sophomore QB Zander Namoku came in and threw for 50 yards in relief, completing 6-of-11 passes in his limited action.

Senior WR Damien Diaz was one of the lone players on the Crusaders roster to find success throughout the night, grabbing a team-high four receptions for 92 yards in the loss.

Saint Louis continues an exceptionally challenging non-league schedule in two weeks, heading to the continent to face national powerhouse IMG Academy at Saddleback College in California on September 4 with kickoff scheduled for 9 a.m. HT.

Mililani will be back in action next Friday, hosting McClymonds (CA) for the second of three non-league games against opponents from the continent. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. HT.

Mililani WRs Bless Cabrera-Hopkins and Hayden Bajet celebrate big performances against Saint Louis. | Photo Credit: Brian Bautista