Late score lifts Moanalua past Aiea

Greg Yamamoto | SL

Taylor Malloe atoned for a five interception evening with a clutch scoring drive late in the fourth quarter to lift Moanalua to a gritty 28-25 win over Aiea.

In a game punctuated by plays on defense and special teams, it was the offense came through when the game was on the line for Na Menehune, as Malloe orchestrated a drive that began on the Aiea 49, connecting on back to back passes to Jayce Bareng of five and 33 yards before finding Keenan McCaddy on a post route two plays later for the go-ahead 18 yard score.

"I saw the safety sit over and I just threw it over (the defender)," said Malloe of the game-winning score.

"That was the most important drive of the game and that shows what kind of quarterback he is," said McCaddy of Malloe. "He's able to bounce back when he needs to and forget what happened and he showed what he was made of and what our team is made of.

Aiea got the ball back with 2:17 left in regulation and proceeded to drive the ball down field, getting deep into Na Menehune territory on a 39 yard strike from Ezekiel Olie to Geronimo Ulgaran with just under a minute left in the game.

Last gasp for the Na Alii fans in attendance came on a fourth down pass that sailed out of the end zone for a turnover on downs with 38 ticks left on the clock, and Moanalua ended the game on the ensuing play in victory formation.

Malloe finished the game with 202 yards on 17 of 34 passing for two scores, but two of his five interceptions were taken back the other way for touchdowns as well. His favorite target on the evening was Bareng, who corralled 10 passes for 95 yards and a score.

Running back Kaimana Laie-Sauole was a workhorse for Na Alii, toting the ball 23 times for 84 yards.