The easier path to the Division I boys volleyball state tournament is still up for grabs.

Top-ranked Kamehameha could not win at Hemmeter Fieldhouse for a third time this season as No. 2 Punahou prevailed at home, 19-25, 25-22, 25-11, 25-22, on Tuesday night.

It set up a winner-take-all playoff for the Interscholastic League of Honolulu championship at 6 p.m. on Friday at Kamehameha. The winner of that match will receive the ILH’s seeded berth (and a first-round bye) in states. The other must win four matches to get it done.

"Bring it," Punahou coach Rick Tune said.

The Warriors were at full strength for the first time this season and could have wrapped up the ILH title outright by taking this second-round match to go with its first-round primacy. Kainoa Downing’s team seemed in great shape after taking the first frame, but Kamehameha dropped five of the last seven points of the second set and absolutely fell apart in the third behind a conflux of passing and hitting errors.

Kamehameha (14-2) and Punahou (14-2) are the only teams to beat the other this season.

"Beating Punahou at Punahou three times in a row? It’s impossible," Downing said. "We beat them twice here for the first time in what, 40 years? Something incredible like that. I reminded (our players) that. What we did was incredible, don’t expect it again. They’re not the best volleyball team in the state for 20-something years because it’s a figment of your imagination. … (Punahou) buckled down and they played tough volleyball."

Kamehameha put up a game fight in the fourth, but the Buffanblu were not to be denied on their senior night. Jonathan Lum, Colin Peros, Dylan Gerard and Kupono Fey were honored after the win.

Junior hitter Larry Tuileta pounded 19 kills, while Fey added eight and junior middle Noah Hayashida seven in the victory. Sophomore setter Micah Ma‘a had 25 assists and four blocks to help snap Kamehameha’s seven-game winning streak.

A tight match went decidedly Punahou’s way in the third set as it jumped out to a stunning 20-5 lead, thanks to a 12-0 run.

"I don’t know. We just fell apart," Downing said. "We didn’t pass, and we made a lot of errors. We pretty much gave them the game. That’s probably the worst we’ve played all year, in that one set."

On the other side of the net, Punahou grew emboldened by the point.

"We talk all the time about playing both sides of the ball and what that means," Tune said. "Keeping constant pressure. And I think that third set was a great example of what we can do if we’re executing on all cylinders. But that’s a great team over there. Congrats to them on the way they responded in Game 4; they really put up a good fight."

Punahou led throughout in that set and by as many as eight points before a setter switch to Kaehu Ka‘a‘a helped the Warriors rally to within 22-19.

But Kamehameha couldn’t play perfect and dropped the next two points to service and hitting errors.

Still, it took four Punahou match points to end it.

"It was a very big match to get that (playoff for) the ILH championship," the University of Hawaii-bound Fey said. "We still gotta push ourselves. It’s at their home gym, so we gotta bring it."

Makoa Camanse-Stevens led the Warriors with 11 kills. Cullen Mosher added nine and Nick Ng eight.