Hayden Kaahanui-Cera passed for 253 yards and two touchdowns as Kamehameha stifled Punahou,
19-0, for the inaugural ILH flag football championship Wednesday afternoon at
Alexander Field.
The sophomore quarterback completed 22 of 32 pass attempts with one interception.
The Warriors were 5-1 in the regular season and needed a win over Punahou, which edged ‘Iolani, 21-13, on Tuesday, to win the league title. Despite the loss, Punahou (5-2 ILH) earns the league’s second state-tournament berth.
Kamehameha is coached by former Aiea football coach Wendell Say, who is an assistant athletic director at the Kapalama campus. He guided Aiea’s football team to a Division I title in 2021 and a D-II crown in ’03.
“I thought it was over, but I had this opportunity and it’s been great,” Say said.
Say’s background in the four-wide shotgun offense combined with offensive coordinator Gerald Welch’s knowledge as a former Saint Louis great laid the foundation. So did the experience of Kamehameha’s four club players, including Kaahanui-Cera, who has played club flag football for 11 years under her father, Edwin Cera, coach of Island Empire.
Kaahanui-Cera threw a TD pass to Alexia Medeiros (eight receptions, 78 yards) and another to Kapri Friel-Lacar (four catches, 64 yards) as the Warriors won their fourth game in a row, securing a berth in the HHSAA State Championships on April 30-May 3.
The Warriors opened the season with an 18-0 loss to Moanalua and a 19-0 loss to Campbell, both nonconference games. After two wins to open ILH play, they fell to Punahou, 31-18 on March 25.
“Last time we played them, it was a rough time,” Medeiros said.
“We did a lot of film on our own. We watched a lot of Hudl and did our homework,” said two-way standout Kylee Sivertsen (four receptions, 69 yards).
Kaahanui-Cera, Medeiros, Sivertsen and Kapri-Lacar are the team’s club players, but Kamehameha’s first-year players gelled.
“I had faith because I knew if they wanted to come out they would put the effort in. They would show it and show out,” Kaahanui-Cera said. “We did the homework. Everyone did the work.”
The Warriors have some of the tallest receivers in the state and a persistent pass rush — three sacks against Punahou. They are in peak form.
“Everybody had to learn, which is good. They’re getting better from day one to now,” Say said. “I’m on cloud nine.”
After forcing Punahou into a three-and-out on the opening series, Kamehameha scored on its first drive. A fourth-down pass interference penalty on Punahou set up first-and-goal at the Buffanblu 3-yard line for the Warriors.
Freshman running back Mylee Nguyen scooted around a pass rusher for a 3-yard touchdown run. After Kaahanui-Cera found Silvertsen on the PAT pass, Kamehameha led 7-0 with 4:45 to go in the opening quarter.
Kamehameha’s defense was stout, forcing three consecutive three-and-outs. Punahou had a third-and-1 on its third possession, but Maryah Puletasi’s pass was batted down by Sivertsen.
Kamehameha drove to the Punahou 5-yard line but moved backward on a 5-yard loss on a fumble. Kaahanui-Cera’s pass over the middle was picked off by her counterpart, Puletasi, to end the drive.
That seemed to ignite the Buffanblu, who drove from their 6-yard line to the Kamehameha 7-yard line. However, Puletasi’s pass was intercepted at the goal line by Harmony Gonzales.
The Warriors nearly scored in the final 37 seconds of the first half. On the final play of the series, Kaahanui-Cera launched a 24-yard lob to Sivertsen, who caught the ball in traffic and was tackled at the 1-yard line as time expired.
Two of Kaahanui-Cera’s passes were nearly intercepted during a 40-yard scoring drive. Kaahanui-Cera’s 3-yard TD pass to Friel-Lacar extended the lead to 13-0 with 2:36 to go in the third quarter.
Kaahanui-Cera had full trust in her receivers all afternoon. She heaved a sky-high 22-yard bomb to Medeiros in the end zone for her second TD pass. That opened Kamehameha’s lead to 19-0 with 6:26 left in the game.
Punahou almost got on the scoreboard late in the game. Alethea Hayashi’s 35-yard punt return was 1 yard short of a TD on a diving flag pull by Kaila Miller with 1:35 to go and Kamehameha made one last stand to preserve a shutout.
Puletasi completed 14 of 31 attempts for 138 yards with two interceptions. Hayashi caught five passes for 78 yards to lead the receiving corps.
