KEALAKEKUA — Vengeance was the only option for No. 13 Konawaena football.

Last month, the Wildcats fell at the hands of the 12th-ranked Kamehameha-Hawaii Warriors at Pai’ea Stadium, suffering their first conference loss since 2019. This time around, KSH visited Kona on Friday in a rematch between the two state-ranked programs.

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A rematch that Wildcats coach Brad Uemoto knew his team had to win.

“After a loss like that, you mark that game down and want to know when the rematch is,” he said postgame. “We had extra motivation this week during practice.”

Kona (4-1 overall; 3-1 BIIF) entered the game focused, motivated and eager to get a second go at the Warriors. In a game with multiple injuries, penalties and high emotions, the Wildcats were able to grind out the 30-21 win.

“It was on me for not having the team ready last time,” Uemoto said. “But I think we cleaned things up, made changes on both sides of the ball and executed a lot better this time.”

With the win, Kona also earned the tiebreaker over Kamehameha with the nine-point victory, since the Warriors beat them by seven in September. If each team handles their business in the island playoffs later this month, the BIIF Division I Championship will be held in Kealakekua.

“I’m just happy we got the win,” Uemoto said. “If the title game had been out (at Kamehameha) it is what it is, but we were fortunate enough to win by nine.”

Nothing came easy for the Wildcats, however, as the Warriors showed grit and resilience until the final whistle — even when trailing by multiple scores. Kamehameha (4-2 overall; 3-1 BIIF) trailed by as much as 21-7, but slowly marched back in the second half following quarterback Keenan Alani’s fumble in his own Wildcat territory. The turnover put the Warriors in prime field position, setting up a Dallas Enriquez rushing touchdown.

Running back Kainalu Alves found the pylons on the next drive to extend Kona’s lead to 27-14, but Kamehameha’s offense became more aggressive with its playcalling as the end of the game drew nearer — converting on fourth down several times thanks to Enriquez’s bruising power.

A costly roughing-the-passer call on fourth down went against the Wildcats early in the fourth, putting the Warriors deep in Kona territory. Soon enough, Enriquez found the end zone again to make it a six-point contest.

“Kamehameha has many key guys in key positions — they can throw and run the ball,” Uemoto said. “They’re physical; their defense plays well. They’re not going to give you anything for free … it has to be earned. They are very well coached.”

Alani’s heroics came through on the ensuing drive, as the senior escaped a collapsing pocket on a key third down and rolled to his right, throwing a 30-yard bomb off his back foot to connect with a diving Ka‘el Johnson in field-goal range. A few plays later, Makani Ige converted the three-point kick to extend the lead to nine.

“Keenan was outstanding,” Uemoto said of Alani, who finished with three total touchdowns. “He was making plays with his arm and legs. I think he really took that loss (to Kamehameha) to heart.

“He just did what we asked of him to do all week, and I really think he’s focused in over these last three weeks. He’s a senior, and he wants to go out with a championship, too.”

Despite being down nine late, the Warriors remained aggressive. Kamehameha tried pushing the ball downfield on the final drive, but freshman defensive back Kailewa Silva-Kealoha undercut the route and picked off senior Kahekili Makekau to seal the deal.

Uemoto additionally credited the Wildcats’ two previous games against Kealakehe and Kea‘au as stepping stones for preparing for the anticipated Kamehameha rematch. During those two games, Kona outscored the Cougars and Waveriders 124-0.

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“In the past two, three weeks, we’ve definitely cleaned things up,” he said. “We got more game reps and corrected some things. It was a great learning opportunity.”

In the first half, freshman LaMichael Bronson caught a short touchdown from Alani, who rushed the ball in for another score a few possessions later. Alani also found Justice Charity in the right-hand corner of the end zone at the end of the first half.

The Wildcats are averaging nearly 40 points per game while allowing under 10. Their next test will be against Hilo on Friday night at home. It will be the first meeting of the season between the two programs, as the first matchup was cancelled on Sept. 25 due to Hurricane Nolo concerns.

On top of Enriquez’s two touchdowns, Makekau connected with John Sanborn for a short touchdown in the middle of the second quarter. This came a few plays after Makekau completed an impressive over-the-shoulder, fourth-down throw to keep the chains moving.

After previously winning four in a row, the Warriors will try to get back on track against Kea‘au on Saturday on the road. Like Kona vs. Hilo, Kamehameha’s matchup with the Cougars will also be the first of this season.

The Warriors average nearly 37 points per game and allow under 19.

Around
the island

With the conclusion of last weekend’s games, Honoka‘a remains the only unbeaten team.

The Division-II Dragons roited Kealakehe for the second time this season on Friday night, beating the Waveriders 53-14 on the Hamakua Coast. Honoka‘a improved to 5-0.

In addition to being the only undefeated BIIF team, the Dragons hold the highest scoring margin on the island — averaging 40 points per game while allowing 7.2.

Honoka‘a’s next test will be against HPA on Thursday at home. The matchup will be the first of the season between the two programs, as the first scheduled game on Sept. 25 was called off.

The 0-4 Waveriders will try to redeem themselves against fellow DI foe Waiakea on Friday at home.

Hilo got back in the win column after handling east-side rival Kea‘au 27-26 on Saturday night at Wong Stadium, improving to 2-2 overall on the season and 2-1 in the conference.

Through four games, the Vikings score 22.2 points per game.

The Cougars are still winless at 0-5.

Waiakea and HPA battled on Saturday for the second time this season. When the two teams last dueled in August, the Warriors shut Ka Makani out 42-0, but this past weekend’s game was much closer, with Waiakea escaping with an 8-6 win to earn its first win in over a month.

Waiakea is 3-2 against island competition this season and 3-3 overall, averaging 17.7 points per game. HPA dropped to 1-3, and averages 10.3 points.

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