Edison football shuts out Wailuku Baldwin in opener

Edison's Jack Kosick, shown tackling San Juan Hills' Joey Hobert on Sept. 7, 2018, blocked a punt and intercepted a pass in the Chargers' season-opening win in Hawaii on Friday.

By Andrew TurnerStaff Writer

Aug. 17, 2019 12:22 AM PT

The Edison High football team excelled in all three phases of the game on Friday night, and it led to the Chargers winning their season opener 52-0 against Wailuku Baldwin at War Memorial Stadium in Wailuku, Hawaii.

The Chargers received big plays in special teams to spur a fast start. Nico Brown brought the opening kickoff out near midfield. After Edison’s opening drive did not result in points, Jack Kosick blocked a punt to set the Chargers up with a goal-to-go situation.

“We came off the ball with a lot of intensity right from the get-go,” Kosick said in a phone interview. “Our offense came out, got it going. We were just firing on all cylinders. It almost felt like we were unstoppable out there.

“Everyone was rallying to the ball on defense. On special teams, we were hustling. We were just all over the field tonight.”

Mike Walters scored the first of his two first-quarter rushing touchdowns on a nine-yard run, and he added a seven-yard score up the middle with 5:25 to go in the opening quarter.

Jacob Hanlon spelled starter Braeden Boyles at quarterback, connecting with junior Ethan Ton for a 48-yard catch and run that put the Chargers ahead 21-0 with 3:19 left in the first quarter.

Boyles returned to action, finding junior speedster Ryan Rivituso on a streak for a 19-yard touchdown pass. Edison extended its lead to 28-0.

Interceptions by Kosick and Bradley Luna led to a pair of Chargers touchdowns to close out the first half. Tanner Nelson bounced out to the right side for an eight-yard rushing score on the first play following Kosick’s pick.

Later, Hanlon threw deep to the left corner of the end zone for Cole Koffler, who came down with the ball for a 36-yard touchdown that put Edison up 42-0 with 41 seconds to go in the second quarter.

Sophomore kicker Troy Fletcher, who converted all seven extra-point kicks to go with a 22-yard field goal, returned an interception 90 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter.

“We had a lot of key blocks out there,” Chargers coach Jeff Grady said. “It wasn’t just him, but obviously, he carried the ball and made the blocks good. Everyone was fired up.”

In the fourth quarter, the Chargers downed a Fletcher punt at the Baldwin five-yard line, adding to what was a complete performance on opening night.

“It was a great effort, a full team effort,” Grady said. “The defense played really good, gave the offense opportunities down low in the red zone, and we capitalized.”