Kahuku’s patience and dominance were tested by a game Kapolei squad.

When underwater push came to shove, however, the Red Raiders surged to another Oahu Interscholastic Association water polo championship, defeating the Hurricanes 9-6 on Saturday at Veterans Memorial Aquatic Complex.

It was Kahuku’s third straight league title; the Red Raiders now own nine of 10 since the OIA started official competition in 2003.

They sure had to work for this one, though. Kapolei opened a 3-1 lead in the first quarter, then tied it up at 6 in the fourth after Kahuku had seemingly established control after halftime.

Immediately after Kapolei drew even, Kallee Krebs lobbed in the go-ahead goal with 3:58 left and senior Sydney Foster put the match away from there with two scores.

"It wasn’t as easy," Kahuku coach Makana Leiataua said of this championship run. "Kapolei’s a good team, and they used their strength, which is swimming, against us. You could tell they really wanted it. They’ve worked really hard this year. So it was a good fight, it was a well-worth win too. It always means more when we have to prove that we’re the best."

Kahuku defeated Kapolei 9-3 in late March, the only game separating the teams in the standings. The Raiders needed a complete effort to pull through this time, getting three goals from Paulina Germain and two from Krebs.

Foster attended school in Kahuku growing up, moved to California for grades 9 through 11, then returned to Hawaii to be with family in January. The Raiders’ hole set (interior attacker) was nearly speechless after she secured the win with a 5-meter penalty shot followed up with a 2-meter goal in traffic.

"Our coach pulled us together, and we just were all unified," Foster said. "I had gotten two ejections earlier. … I wasn’t playing most of the game, and my coach put me in and I wanted to prove (myself) as a senior."

Up next: a crack at an elusive state title, which has belonged exclusively to the Interscholastic League of Honolulu since tournament play began.

Kapolei senior goalkeeper Summer Reyes considered this match a "warm-up" for next week’s HHSAA tournament at the Duke Kahanamoku Aquatic Complex. Kahuku and Kapolei head up six OIA teams in the field of 12.

Reyes did her best against Kahuku’s aggressive, fast-breaking style. The Red Raiders would routinely throw full-pool passes ahead of the pack to players who leaked out, putting Reyes in several 1-on-1 situations.

She saved what she could — deflecting eight balls — but the defending champs kept the pressure up the whole way.

"We were confident in our skill level, and that if we just executed what we did in practice, we would have no problem," Reyes said. "But I think a lot of us got tired and a little anxious that we were winning, so we got kind of frazzled."

Tiala Wendt led Kapolei with three goals, while Brooke Bosque added two scores.