Kahale Clini had 23 kills as Punahou edged Kamehameha 25-22, 21-25, 25-22, 22-25, 15-9 on Wednesday to force a winner-take-all battle for the ILH boys volleyball championship.

Punahou took the double-elimination ILH tournament title with the win, its second in as many days at Kekuhaupio Gymnasium. Regular-season winner Kamehameha will host the championship match again.

The championship match was originally set for Friday if needed, but Kamehameha’s gym is unavailable due to a concert. Rather than travel to play at Punahou, the Warriors opted to play the match at home a day earlier.

The task of beating a powerhouse program three nights in a row seems improbable, but Punahou coach Rick Tune has a pristine memory.

“ ‘Iolani did that to us in 2019,” he recalled.

Wednesday’s was the fifth meeting between Punahou and Kamehameha this season.

“The match was better played on both sides, cleaner than yesterday. That’s what happens you really get to know your opponent,” Tune said. “This is a really great team we’re playing and they have a lot of class, too. They know how to compete the right way, and after the match, they’re all shaking hands and they mean it.”

The long tournament and, now, title match, is just life in the ILH gauntlet.

“Hopefully, this makes both teams better for states regardless of the outcome tomorrow,” Tune said, “but we’re stoked that we’ve got a chance to win for the ILH championship. This group has overcome tremendous adversity over the course of the season, and it’s paid dividends for us right now. Everything happens for a reason.”

Clini was clutch, but it was the Buffanblu’s balanced attack that was key, as well as one of their most efficient performances of the season. Clini hit .298 on 47 attempts, while Ian Kinney had 12 kills, middle Adam Haidar had 10, Evan Porter had nine and Afatia Thompson had nine. As a team, Punahou hit .257 against Kamehameha’s resilient defense.

Elijah Smith (34 assists, 10 digs) and Kanalu Akana (21 assists, six digs) continued to distribute the ball crisply, while Matthew Chun led the back row with 22 digs.

Kainoa Wade led Kamehameha with 33 kills in 84 swings, hitting .238. Punahou’s defensive blueprint continued to be effective, limiting the Warriors to a .222 hitting percentage. Heston Cabinian had nine kills and 10 digs, and Conor Williams added six kills.

“It was a little rough, but I was happy with us cutting down on our unforced errors,” Kamehameha coach Sava Agpoon said. “Both sides are super fatigued, but three nights in a row is just like states.“

Punahou won the battle in the middle with Haidar and James Taras (five kills) with 15 combined kills to Kamehameha’s three.

The final set was tied at 5 before a bad pass by Cabinian led to a kill by Haidar. A hitting error by Cabinian helped Punahou open an 8-5 lead.

Haidar added another kill for Punahou, and after Kamehameha setter Brayden Van Kuren (42 assists) and middle Kaupo Hoopai-Waikoloa failed to connect, the Buffanblu had a four-point lead.

After Clini crushed an overpass, it was 11-6, and Kamehameha got no closer than three the rest of the way.

And yet, the advantage remains with the Warriors. A large crowd is expected again.

“We get another one tomorrow,” Wade said.