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St. Francis running back Viliami Teu was a large part of the game plan in a 33-0 win over visiting St. Ignatius of San Francisco Friday evening.
Teu rushed for 214 yards in the first half, 234 yards in less than three quarters on 22 attempts.
The game was the West Catholic Athletic League opener for both teams. The Wildcats are 2-2 overall, 0-1 in the WCAL, the Lancers 3-0, 1-0 in league.
Teu tallied three touchdowns, none better than his first. With the ball at the St. Francis 46, Teu sauntered to his left, then shifted past would-be tacklers, up through the middle and went the distance, 54 yards, with 7:35 left in the opening quarter.
Teu got an instinctive downfield block from wideout Andrew Adkison at about the 5-yard line.
Teu added TD runs of 9 and 1 yards. Teu also had a spectacular 71-yard run early in the second quarter.
“Teu is a special back,” St. Francis coach Greg Calcagno said. “He has great vision. He’s quick and gets downhill.”
Offensive linemen Uluakinofo Taliauli, Denaris DeRosa, Alex Bobadilla and Solomon Tupa helped pave the way.
“I thank the front line, always,” Teu said. “They give me the opportunity. They say I got great vision, but my doctor said I don’t. We’ll see. I just thank everybody.”
Calcagno admitted his team could have had a letdown after its win over the Spartans. That did not materialize.
“There was potential for a letdown,” Calcagno said. “We turned it on against a team that has played a good schedule.”
Backup quarterback Josh Perry got the start for the Lancers over last week’s starter, Matt Dougherty, who sat out the game wearing street clothes. Perry managed the game well, completing 3 of 5 for 52 yards.
The St. Francis’ defensive front was spectacular and its secondary showcased hard hits. SI quarterback Aidan Smith started slowly, but finished 16 of 31 for 164 yards. The Lancers came up with two interceptions, one by Keala Keanaaina, which halted a Wildcats drive. Earlier Keanaaina knocked down a Smith pass on a blitz.
Sawyer Hughes intercepted a pass, denying another SI opportunity late in the fourth quarter. Corner Tyler Evars broke up a pass at the goal line, preventing another possible SI score. The Lancers held the Wildcats to just 40 yards rushing for the game, in picking up their second shutout of the season.
“We knew we beat De La Salle, but that is in the past,” Teu said. “We knew we were 0-0 coming into league. Now we had to win the battle, keep going, week by week and keep getting better. We played outstanding.”
Camilo Arquette had an 11-yard TD run and added a 41-yard run, punishing an SI defender at the play’s finish with the sideline going bonkers. Fullback Jeffrey Xu completed the scoring for the Lancers on a 1-yard plunge.
