Radford runs past Kalani in shootout, 47-37


In a back-and-forth contest between two of the top offensive teams in the OIA White, Radford topped Kalani, 47-37 in a shootout at Kaiser Stadium. The Rams bounced back from a tough defeat to Kaiser last week, while the Falcons had their 2-game winning streak snapped. The Rams, No. 4 in ScoringLive/OC16 Division II Power Rankings improve to 4-1 overall, (3-1 in the White), while the Falcons, No. 8 in the ScoringLive/OC16 Division II Power Rankings fell to 2-3 overall, (2-2 in the White).

The Rams amassed 270 rushing yards and threw for 273 yards. Radford running back Tobias Powell led the charge with 13 carries for 173 yards and 4 touchdowns.

"We knew we had to score points because their offense is so potent," said Radford coach Fred Salanoa. "Offensively we had to score so we don't put pressure on our defense. We had make sure we take control of the ball and run down the clock a little bit so we could sustain a 'W' at the end."

Radford's Cody Lui-Yuen completed 19-of-24 passes for 273 yards and 2 touchdowns. Jameson Pasigan caught 8 passes for 122 yards and 1 touchdown and Absolom Henry caught 6 passes for 106 yards and touchdown.

Kalani's Brandon Roberts was the go-to receiver for Noah Brum and he finished the night with 10 catches for 154 yards and 4 touchdowns.

In the first quarter, Enrique Gruver exploded from the line of scrimmage for a 65-yard run to start the game. Kalani then got on the scoreboard first after Marc Teshima drilled a 19-yard field goal.

Radford answered back with a 68-yard touchdown run from Tobias Powell, but the pass failed and the Rams went up, 6-3.

Kalani responded with a 6-yard touchdown from Brum to Brandon Roberts and the Falcons reclaimed the lead, 10-6.

Radford then marched 97 yards down the field on 15 plays and Powell capped the drive with a 1-yard touchdown. The pass failed making it 12-10.

Kalani started on the 50-yard line after Chance Cacatian fumbled the ball and Tino Faumui recovered it. The Falcons drove all the way to the Radford 4-yard line, however on second-and-goal, Brum was intercepted by Radford's Andrew Killen in the end zone.

"That was a big interception and it really helped us and it saved us from having to fight for seven more points against Kalani," said Salanoa.

Off the turnover, Radford scored on a 28-yard touchdown from Lui-Yuen to Absolom Henry and the Rams went up, 19-10.

However, 18 seconds before the half, Brum found Roberts again for a 24-yard touchdown pass and the Falcons trailed, 19-16 heading into halftime.

Kalani scored on their opening drive coming out of the half after Roberts hauled in a 32-yard pass from Brum and the Falcons went up 23-19.

"Coming out of halftime, we scored and Radford came back and scored. We didn't execute at certain times offensively to match their scores at times," said Kalani coach Greg Taguchi.

The Rams responded as Powell ran it in from 10-yards out and regained the lead, 26-23.

After a Kalani three-and-out and a short punt, the Rams took advantage of great field position on the Kalani 28 yard-line. Lui-Yuen wasted little time as he floated a pass to Pasigan for a touchdown and the Rams built a 10-point cushion. As the third quarter ended, Powell scored his fourth touchdown of the night from 23-yards out and the Rams started to pull away as they headed to the fourth quarter, up 40-23.

Despite the double-digit deficit, the Falcons did not back down.

"I think we played hard til the end, we had to come up with some stops defensively, but we didn't and it became a shootout," said Taguchi.  

Brum and the Falcons used a 12 play, 75 yard drive that resulted in a 4-yard touchdown to Roberts and the Falcons trimmed the deficit to 10 points with 9:04 remaining in the quarter.

However, Cacatian scored a 3-yard run and put the Rams back up by 17 points.

Brum threw a 27-yard touchdown pass to Enrique Gruver with 1:27 remaining in the fourth quarter. The ensuing on-side kick attempt failed and Radford recovered the ball and ran out the clock.

"Kalani is definitely a different team from the past and we respect them and their coaches," said Salanoa.

"We're competing and we're scoring more points. It helps us because Radford is a quality team and to compete with them, it raised our confidence. However, a loss is a loss, but we have a lot to work on and come back ready next week," said Taguchi.



Reach Brandon Ching at [email protected].