The 2016 season marked another step forward for an upstart Damien squad, and a key cog for the Monarchs was definitely Marcus Faufata-Pedrina, who rushed for more than 100 yards and averaged nine yards per carry in the first three games of his junior campaign.

Not bad for a quarterback.

Of note was Faufata-Pedrina's performance against Kealakehe on Aug. 20, 2016, when he ran for a team-high 114 yards — nearly half of those coming on a 60-yard touchdown run — on just 10 carries. Faufata-Pedrina threw for 232 yards and three other scores for good measure in a 41-7 win over Kealakehe in a non-league game played at Aiea High School, and was named Male Athlete of the Week for his performance.

As a team, the Monarchs marched to 526 yards of total offense in a balanced effort (283 yards rushing, 243 pass). Six different players caught a pass, including tight end Shaun Apiki's six receptions for 59 yards. He was on the receiving end of a 4-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter and a 13-yard scoring strike in the third, both from Faufata-Pedrina.

By season's end, Faufata-Pedrina finished second amongst all Division II players in rush attempts with 131 and fourth in rushing yards with 567. He also put up numbers in the passing game, finishing fourth in passing yards with 1,596, second in touchdowns with 22 and third in completion percentage (54.8). The dual-threat quarterback garnered ILH II Most Valuable Player honors as well as a second team All-Hawaii Division II selection at the conclusion of the 2016 season.