For the first time in a while, Kahuku had something to worry about in OIA girls water polo.

An unheard-of regular-season loss to Kaiser just drove the Red Raiders even harder in crunch time. The North Shore’s pool hegemony reached nine straight years — and 15 crowns in 16 years of league play — with a 9-6 win over the Cougars in the OIA title game on a sunny Saturday afternoon at Central Oahu Regional Park.

“We were nervous about what was going to happen because they did beat us. But, you know, we came out firing,” said Red Raiders senior Sophie Wilson, who scored a game-high four goals.

Kahuku’s two-goal halftime lead got cut to one on a Noelle Nakakura straightaway score on a man-up situation immediately to start the third quarter. Then, in a display of might, the Red Raiders netted five straight to go up 9-3 heading into the fourth.

Kaiser bombed away in the last few minutes, putting in three scores from long range to make the final margin closer. But the several dozen North Shore faithful brought out “The Chop” anyway.

“The legacy that we have as a program is amazing, so we knew we had to come out hard in that third quarter to make it known that the OIA championship belongs at Kahuku,” said first-year coach Gina Ahue, who did that four times as a former player (2005-08). “I’m so proud of the girls — they executed amazing, they swam their hearts out. And I couldn’t have asked for a better turnout, really. The way they composed themselves, and were patient on offense and defense, is what made the real difference for us.”

Wilson had two scores during the decisive run, one on a give-and-go play and one where she beat her defender and exploded inside.

“I think the first two quarters we shook the jitters out,” she said.

Co-captain Ava Countryman added two scores from the hole set (both during the third), and Hannah Smith, Siitia Cravens and Kayla Grigsby also scored for the defending champs.

Kaiser, with its potent outside shooting, ran the table (12-0) in the regular season, including an unprecedented 6-5 stunner over Kahuku on April 4. No other OIA team came within five goals of the Red Raiders in 2018.

It was the best league finish to date for the Cougars, who will be the OIA’s No. 2 team in the state tournament beginning April 30 at Kamehameha.

“To tell you the truth, the first time they played us, I think they took us lightly,” Kaiser coach Asa Tanaka said, a sentiment echoed by Kahuku. “This time there was more purpose in their game. It was faster, it was stronger. They had an intensity that they didn’t have the first time they played us. And we knew it. We knew it, but we couldn’t match it.”

Kaiser wilted in the third in part because of foul trouble to some starters, Tanaka said.

Megan Kaneshiro led the Cougars with three scores, Nakakura added two and Kanoko Niimura one.

Kahuku jumped out with two goals and led 2-1 at the end of the first. Early in the second, Niimura tied it at 2 on a deep shot from the left wing.

But Grigsby scored from straightaway and Wilson capitalized on a 2-on-1 break to give Kahuku a 4-2 halftime lead.

Since OIA water polo began in 2004, the only time Kahuku did not win it was in 2009, when Susan Nishioka’s Roosevelt Rough Riders interjected.