Cap piles on to win ‘Battle of the Strip’

This marks the fifth straight year Cap has defeated Mills (1-4, 3-7), tying the record for the most consecutive wins in the rivalry matchup. The Mustangs previously won five straight from 1966-70, and again from ’98-2002.

“This is my first ‘Battle of the Strip’ game and I’m just so appreciative of the community,” Capuchino’s first-year head coach Jay Oca said. “It’s really what high school football is all about. … I’m really happy with the way this turned out in my first year here.”

Cap throttled from the outset, recovering an onside kick on the opening kickoff and scoring three plays later on a 12-yard sweep by running back Ti’a Misa. The senior rushed for a team-high 155 yards on 22 carries as the Mustangs rushed for 344 yards on the night.

“He has great vision,” Oca said. “He’s not the fastest guy … he’s not the guy who’s going to break off 99-yard runs. But he is a good runner and he hits the holes. And we take it from there.”

Senior quarterback Brandon Malaingi closed out his excellent high school career by surpassing the 100-yard rushing mark as well, carrying 11 times for 121 yards while gaining 232 total yards, including two big touchdown passes of 43 and 58 yards.

Malaingi also nabbed two interceptions on the night from his strong safety position, both in the first quarter. The second one, in Mills territory, he returned to the end zone but had the touchdown nullified on one of Cap’s 103 yards in penalties. Cap retained possession though, and scored on its first play from scrimmage at senior fullback Brett Butterfield hammered for a 15-yard scoring run to up the lead to 14-0 with 3:57 remaining in the first quarter.

Butterfield’s carry was the sixth Cap player to rush the ball at that point on just nine carries. Oca said mixing it up in the backfield was a mission from Day One in his taking over the San Bruno program after previously heading up the varsity team at South City.

“Most teams have a featured back,” Oca said. “We have to find one.”

The Mustangs have certainly had a big playmaker in Malaingi, though. And his defense set up another exciting offensive series midway through the second quarter.

After seeing their first two possessions end in interceptions, the Mills Vikings were driving, advancing from their 45 down to the Cap 2-yard line. Facing second-and-goal, however, Mills couldn’t advance any further as the Mustangs defense dug in for an impressive goal-line stand.

“It was great,” Cap defensive tackle Bryning Timothy said. “In the beginning of this game, we were going slow. We didn’t have the momentum. But that drive really changed the momentum.”

Timothy came up with a critical second-down stop, standing up junior fullback Gary Mapa for no gain. On third down, Mills’ leading rusher Tevita Fifita — 13 carries for 56 yards — was stopped for a 1-yard loss by senior defensive end Alipate Tutoe. Then on fourth down, linebacker Kenny Osterlund rushed in to stop Tutoe for a 1-yard gain, forcing a turnover on downs.

“We just knew what they were running … from where they lined up in their formations,” Timonthy said.

Then Cap cashed in again after catching Mills off guard with a fake punt. Malaingi, also the Mustangs’ punter, advanced for a 12-yard gain on the fake to move the chains. Three plays later, the left-handed quarterback rolled out and lofted downfield for a wide-open Osterlund for a 43-yard touchdown pass.

Mills got on the board on the ensuing drive, recovering a Cap onside kick for favorable field position past midfield. Six plays later, junior quarterback Domonic Piefer scored on a 3-yard bootleg to close the lead to 21-6.

But the Mustangs struck again just before halftime.

Malaingi opened the drive blowing past the 100-yard rushing mark with a 28-yard option run to advance into Mills territory to the 27. The Mustangs grinded down the clock to fuel a bit of drama, scoring on third-and-goal from the 1 with just two seconds remaining in the half on a Misa run.

In the second half, Cap continued to add on. The Mustangs scored on their first possession, converting another fake punt on fourth-and-13 from their own 42 when Malaingi found junior Nick Solorzano 20 yards downfield, and the receiver did the rest for a 58-yard score.

Cap added its final score with 8:37 remaining in regulation as Misa scored on an 11-yard run to make it 39-6. The Mustangs followed with an onside kick, but Mills recovered.

Mills head coach Mike Dozier said he didn’t take issue with Cap’s approach, even with the disparity on the scoreboard.

“I’ll never complain about a team scoring points,” Dozier said. “That’s what we’re out here for. You’ve got to stop them.”

Mills added one last score with just over a minute to play when Piefer converted a fourth-down pass of his own, hitting junior Nuku Vahai for a 10-yard score. Even with Mills’ home crowd erupting in applause, Vahai did not celebrate to touchdown.

“To be honest, maybe it picked up my team but, for me, it didn’t do much,” Vahai said, “knowing we were probably going to lose the game.”

Like many players in the season finale, Vahai was quite emotional following the game. Fighting off tears, he expressed disappointment in Mills’ rivalry performance.

“The emotion is obviously our seniors we’ve bonded with since freshman year, they’re leaving,” Vahai said. “And it’s not living up to what we promised them … in bringing this trophy back. We’ll just have to work harder next year.”