HANAPEPE — A punt return for a touchdown and a bad Menehune snap was the difference on Saturday night, as Kapa‘a defeated Waimea 31-22 in a Kaua‘i Interscholastic Federation high school football game at Hanapepe Stadium.
Kapa‘a, the Division 1 representative from the KIF, lost little time establishing its dominance on the field, capping its opening drive when Kapa‘a running back Waikahekili Makepa scored on a 10-yard run. Kamalei Gonsalves hit the extra point kick.
On the second play from scrimmage on the ensuing kickoff, Warrior Charles Lee pounced on an errant pigskin at the Menehune 16-yard line to set up Kapa‘a’s second score. That came when Warriors signal caller Kapono Na-O found Lee for a 23-yard scoring pass. Gonsalves nailed the extra point kick for a 14-0 lead with more than six minutes remaining in the opening quarter.
Waimea answered on the ensuing kickoff drive after overcoming infractions that slowed its steady forward progress. Menehune Brennen Fernandez had the honor of taking the pigskin in on a 1-yard touchdown to open the second quarter.
Less than three minutes peeled off the clock, when Waimea’s Mykah Brun plucked a Na-O airball, and ran the pigskin back 52 yards for touchdown with 7:46 showing on the break. The extra point kick failed to leave Menehune down 14-12.
As the clock wound down to the half, Waimea’s Rhayden Ranis-Alameda Dela Cruz split the uprights on an 18-yard field goal to give the Menehune its first lead of the night, 15-14, going into the locker rooms.
Coming off the break, Waimea upped the ante, 22-14 when quarterback Kameron Apilado found the end zone on a 27-yard scamper.
With just 18.4 ticks showing in the third quarter, Kapa‘a knotted the contest, 22-22, on a Keanu Na-O 18-yard touchdown and a successful 2-point conversion play.
Warrior special teams player Nash Burkart later picked up a punt close to midfield and eluded Menehune defenders on his way to the end zone for a touchdown with 6:07 showing on the game to break the 22-22 deadlock. Gonsalves split the uprights with the extra point kick for the 29-22 go-ahead.
Strong Kapa‘a defense moved Waimea backward on the ensuing kickoff drive, and with 3:45 showing and the Menehune looking at a fourth-and-15, a bad snap from center sent the ball rolling out of the end zone for a safety to give Kapa‘a a 31-22 lead. The game was iced when Eleu Keawe later plucked a Menehune pass to seal the deal.
Earlier in the afternoon, the Waimea junior varsity took a 16-7 win over the JV Warriors.
According to the revised KIF schedule, Kaua‘i High School, forfeiting its season opening game to Kapa‘a, will host Waimea High School at the Bryan J. Baptiste Sports Complex. The JV game kicks off at 4 p.m., followed by the varsity game 30 minutes after the end of the JV game.
