It was a gamble that paid off.

Waipahu's Troy Matautia threw the go-ahead touchdown pass on a trick play, helping the Marauders upset Wai'anae, 28-15, in an O'ahu Interscholastic Association Red West football game Friday.

For most of the season, the Marauders have run their offense based on what opposing teams give them. The players enjoy practicing trick plays, but calling them during a game is a risk.

Fortunately, Matautia, a senior, made it work. Late in the game, he took a pitch from quarterback Josh Lacar, then passed to Lacar — who ran in for a 34-yard touchdown to break a 15-all game.

"Hopefully you call it at the right time and fortunately it was," Waipahu coach Sean Saturnio said. "The kids did a good job, and Troy and Josh get the credit for making it look good.

"But the other nine (players) helped sell the play. It was a great individual effort, making the pass, making the catch and then the run after the catch."

Waipahu then recovered the ball on Wai'anae's fumble on the kickoff return, and Matautia capped the upset with a 5-yard TD. Matautia, the state's leading rusher, finished with 21 rushes for 169 yards and ran in three TDs.

Matautia showed some of his versatility on the trick play. It was the second touchdown he has thrown this season and he has returned punts and kickoffs for scores.

"He finds ways," Saturnio said. "He has great vision, he's quick and deceptively fast."

Matautia is part of a senior class that's been together since meeting as eighth-graders at Waipahu's NFL camp. They've grown together and come together over the years, and the team has played a major role — from the offense moving the ball to slotbacks blocking to offensive linemen holding off opponents — in giving Matautia opportunities.

"They have a love for each other and the community," Saturnio said of his team. "If you bring that mindset, you give yourself a chance."