Nothing is coming easy for No. 7 Saint Louis these days.

The defending state-champion Crusaders dropped five first-half touchdowns on No. 8 ‘Iolani but needed Kamana Pimental’s 5-yard scoring run with 17 seconds left to pull off a dramatic 42-35 victory over the Raiders on Friday night in the second game of an Interscholastic League of Honolulu doubleheader at Aloha Stadium.

The Crusaders (5-2, 2-2) snapped a two-game skid, losing once more than all of last season on their way to a state title.

‘Iolani’s Jordan Lee capped an 11-play, 80-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown run with 3:49 remaining to help the Raiders come back from a 35-14 halftime deficit.

Saint Louis quarterback Kawai Mook-Garcia barely converted a fourth and 2 with less than 2 minutes remaining, finding Kainoa Abreu with a pass that he just managed to stretch beyond the first-down marker.

Three plays later, on third and 2, Mook-Garcia broke two tackles for a 17-yard gain and Pimental scored his third touchdown on the next play to give Saint Louis the victory.

“Our fight tonight that our guys had … the way they showed their composure and continued to fight, the Lord works in mysterious ways. She’s got different challenges for us and we’re just trying to fight through them and get better,” Crusaders coach Darnell Arceneaux said.

Pimental finished with 147 yards on 24 carries, but found it much tougher going in the second half, as ‘Iolani found a way to slow down Saint Louis.

Junior receiver Jeremy Tabuyo completed Saint Louis’ first drive with a 41-yard touchdown catch as the Crusaders found the end zone on five of six first-half possessions to take a 35-14 lead.

The only downside to a dominant first half was a leg injury to tight end Dallas Tuumalo early in the second quarter. The 5-foot-10, 220-pound senior was hit low after catching a pass and was taken off the field by an ambulance, delaying the game 25 minutes.

Saint Louis scored twice before ‘Iolani’s offense took the field, but that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing for the Raiders.

Senior Sheldon Gallarde followed the Crusaders’ opening score by returning a kick 87 yards for a touchdown.

A 10-yard touchdown run by Kody Mento late in the first half made it 28-14, but the Crusaders drove back down the field, with Mook-Garcia scoring from 6 yards out with 41 seconds left for a 21-point halftime lead.

Gallarde scored on a 7-yard trick play to complete ‘Iolani’s first drive of the second half. After Saint Louis fumbled on the kickoff return, Mento scored his second touchdown on a 1-yard plunge to pull the Raiders within a score at 35-28.

The score stayed that way until ‘Iolani, after stopping Saint Louis twice on fourth-down plays, tied it on the 1-yard score by Lee.

The Raiders got the ball back with 17 seconds remaining, but quarterback Reece Foy was hit with the second of Kamalei Correa’s two sacks in the game. His last-second Hail Mary was batted down by a Crusaders defender to end the game.

Foy finished 20-for-36 for 212 yards after throwing for just 47 in the first half.

The Raiders (4-3, 2-2) lost for the sixth time in eight meetings against Saint Louis, but have played the Crusaders tough in the past.

“That’s the ILH. This is what it’s about,” Arceneaux said. “You’ve got to play until there’s no time left on the clock and (‘Iolani coach) Wendell (Look) and his guys do a great job with what they’ve got.”

Tanner Nishioka was held without a catch in the first half before finishing with six receptions for 100 yards to lead ‘Iolani, which scored all five touchdowns on the ground.

Mook-Garcia finished 13-for-25 for 161 yards and three total touchdowns and Tabuyo had four catches for 83 yards and a score.

Caelan Grugier-Hill blocked a field goal that Micah Choy returned 27 yards for a touchdown with less than a minute left in the first half to help the Warriors (4-2, 3-0) stay undefeated in ILH play.

Tyler Meditz ran for a 22-yard touchdown and Nephi Stevens hit Avery Amasiu with a 10-yard TD pass in the third quarter to help Kamehameha run its winning streak to four games.

Pac-Five (3-3, 0-3) was held to 105 total yards. Nearly half of that came on one play, when Austin Ursua took a pitch from quarterback Jack Foster and tossed a 48-yard strike to Kellen Nakamoto.

Pac-Five was attempting a 37-yard field goal when Grugier-Hill blocked the kick that went straight back. The Warriors won by at least 20 points for the 11th time in 13 meetings between the two schools.