There is a big blue party on the East Side this weekend.
It was a long time in the making. Kailua rallied for a 13-9 win over defending champion Kapaa, in the Division I title game of the First Hawaiian Bank/HHSAA Football State Championships on Friday night at John Kauinana Stadium.
It is the Surfriders’ first football state championship.
OIA champion Kailua (12-3) turned to its “Wave” formation in the clutch, getting a key first-down completion from Isaiah Keaunui-DeMello to defensive end/tight end Benjamin Honebein, and then a 23-yard touchdown strike from Keaunui-DeMello to Tayvin Kahele on the next snap with 3:31 remaining.
“The time was right. It was make it or break it. We had to reward the defense for all the stops they had,” Kahele said. “We drew the defense it, always playing chess, one step ahead. I looked at Isaiah (at the line of scrimmage). He knew what I wanted, a post corner. He put it on the money. My first diving catch this season. We just made history. No better feeling. There’s a big party on the East Side tonight.”
It wasn’t quite over, of course. Kapaa quarterback Kaitin Mundon opened up the offense, completing three passes in a row, including a 27-yard strike to Sami Kauvaka on third and long.
After Mundon ran the ball for a first down, Kapaa had the ball at the Kailua 14-yard line with 1:18 left. After trying to run the ball twice, the Warriors called time out with 30 seconds left, facing third and 5 at the Kailua 10-yard line.
Mundon then faked to his RB, and tried a jump pass over the middle.
Kailua coach Joe Wong had already warned the defense during a timeout before the play that a jump pass might be coming.
“We talked about the jump pass. We knew if it came down to a play or a 2-point conversion that we would converge a lot on the run, but we told the ’backers to stay back. Oki (Keoki Cypriano) listened and came up with the pick, sealed the game,” Wong said. “He climbed the ladder. That guy can play. He’s a player.”
After making the interception, Cypriano, an inside linebacker, raced to the left sideline.
“The QB didn’t seem to have more of an intention of keeping or giving the ball up (to the
running back). I knew Jonah (Sua) was to my left and I just dropped back to my right,” Cypriano said. “The ball came right to me. I feel amazing. All of us boys, Kailua, Waimanalo, all east side staying home.”
The jump pass was short of target.
“It was there. It was open,” Kapaa coach Mike Tresler. “We coach it to throw the ball to the back of the end zone where no one else can reach it. We threw it short and the linebacker made a great play. He’s a great player. It comes down to a couple plays and they made that play to win the game. That’s the way it goes.”
Kailua took over with 20 seconds left at its 48-yard line, dethroning the defending champions.
Kapaa, champion of the KIF, finished 8-2.
Honebein racked up six tackles. batted down one pass, and made the key reception despite an injured right thumb.
“That was a great call by Coach Noah (Auld, offensive coordinator) and Coach Hau (Wong). My hand was in a lot of pain, but it’s OK,” said Honebein, a commit to UC Davis.
Honebein and fellow defensive lineman Macaiah Kailio spent the night reading Kapaa’s lethal read-option attack, often pulling down Mundon and RB Alakai Pigao-Mundon on desperation dives from behind at the line of scrimmage.
“We keep our gaps and try to contain the quarterback,” said Kailio, who finished with four tackles. “Shout out to Coach Hau. Shout out our defense. This is for the whole East Side.”
Kapaa’s defense did not allow a touchdown until those final four minutes.
“We pride ourselves on being disciplined, but he who makes more mistakes loses the game. We made more mistakes than they did so hat’s off to them,” Tresler said. “Our kids played tough all year round. Our feeling was, we drag it deep into the fourth quarter, we would have the advantage.”
Kailua opened the game with a bang when Micah Sua returned the kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown. The electricity on Kailua’s sideline and bleachers fizzled a bit, however, when Kapaa’s Devon Green blocked the PAT.
Kapaa threatened to score and made a 35-yard field goal, but an offsides penalty gave the Warriors fourth and 2 at Kailua’s 13-yard line. The snap bounced off Mundon’s hands, recovered for a loss, ending the drive.
Kailua then turned the ball over on its first play from scrimmage when Max Kamai dropped a pass from Keaunui-DeMello. The ball was intercepted, fumbled, then recovered by Kapaa at the Kailua 30-yard line.
Again, Kailua’s defense stiffened, and Kapaa got a 26-yard field goal by Yair Antonio. That cut the lead to 6-3 with 1:55 left in the opening quarter.
Sacks by Kapaa’s Green and Bryden Sugai-Salvador derailed Kailua’s next series. Kapaa again drove into the red zone and stalled out, settling for a 35-yard field goal by Antonio to tie it at 6 with 9:05 left in the first half.
The defensive battle finally had its first serious turning point in the third quarter. Facing fourth and 1 from its 37-yard line, Kailua went for it, but Keaunui-DeMello’s swing pass to Rylen Akana for a certain first down was dropped.
Kapaa drove to the Kailua 5-yard line, and on fourth and 3, Antonio split the uprights with a 22-yard field goal, his third of the game.
Kapaa led 9-6 with 11:14 to go.
The Surfriders committed an offensive face mask penalty on the kick return and began the ensuing series at their 5-yard line. Digging into their versatility, power and finesse, they drove 95 yards in 15 plays, overcoming a holding penalty in the red zone.
Source: The Garden Island