KAILUA-KONA — Behind a trio of touchdown connections between quarterback Ka’ale Tiogangco and Kalei Tolentino-Perry, Hilo (2-0, 2-1) escaped Waverider Stadium with a 28-25 win over Division I rival Kealakehe (0-2, 0-3) on Saturday night.
Tiogangco finished the contest 11 of 22 for 166 yards and three touchdowns. The dual-threat senior added 50 yards on the ground. Tolentino-Perry had just three catches, but all were for scores. Running back Kahale Huddleston added 93 yards, most of those coming on a 78-yard run in the third quarter.
“We don’t expect anybody to lay down for us. We always have to come in and execute,” Hilo head coach Kaeo Drummondo said. “For us, it’s really not about the score. It is about everybody doing their job and performing how we feel we are capable of.”
Kealakehe was shocked in its league-debut against Honokaa, dropping its first game to the Dragons since 2009. While the game against the Viks won’t go down as a tally in the win column, there were more than a few positives to take away from the contest.
“We are improving,” Kealakehe head coach Sam Kekuaokalani said. “Regardless of the score, we want to focus on the things that will help us execute and complete the game plan.”
After a stagnant start, the Waveriders inserted Anthony “Head” Trevino. The junior swiss-army knife produced in every facet of the game. Passing, he was 10 of 19 for 92 yards and a score, tacking on 96 yards and two TDs rushing. Trevino also booted a 47-yard field goal before half, punted for the Waveriders, and got some reps in the secondary on defense.
“Head did a great job for us,” Kekuaokalani said. “He’s very talented and can play at a lot of different positions.”
Hilo moves to 6-1 against the Waveriders since its BIIF three-peat started in 2013. However, Saturday’s contest was the fourth in the series decided by a touchdown or less.
“Those guys are tough and came to play,” Drummondo said. “We treat every team the same and prepare the same, but we told our guys coming in, expect them to be ready.”
Kealakehe got its chances early, including an opportunity inside the 25-yard line after a muffed punt. However, the offense couldn’t find its footing and had negative yardage after the first quarter.
Ka’ale Tiogangco found his rhythm on a six play, 81-yard drive late in the first quarter. He hit Kainalu Tiogangco with two quick passes, one of those a short screen taken 36 yards. Ka’ale Tiogangco finished the drive with a bullet into the hands of Tolentino-Perry that was almost too hot to handle, but was hauled in for the score.
None of Tiogangco’s passes were in the air too long. Instead, the Viks relied on the athleticism of their receivers, which worked swimmingly for a while. However, the Kealakehe defense started to rev up and provided a turn in momentum with a stand on 4th-and-1.
Trevino led the ensuing drive 69 yards to tie the game up. He completed both of his passes — including a 16-yard strike to Deven Wagner over the middle — but most of the yardage came on designed quarterback runs. Trevino capped the drive with a 20-yard scamper down the Hilo sideline, sliding just inside the pylon.
The Viking offense continued to struggle due to a flurry of Kealakehe pressure. The Waveriders were very effective with speedy pass rushers Luke Swett and Mason Kaawa-Loa as stand-up defensive ends, and BJ Mareko-Berdon holding down the middle of the line.
Hilo punted late in the first half, and gave Kealakehe a chance to test its two-minute offense. Trevino connected with Kaawa-Loa over the middle for 30 yards, but stalled around the Hilo 30-yard line with six seconds left. Instead of trying a Hail Mary to the end zone, the Waveriders opted instead to use the leg of their newly inserted QB. From 47 yards out, the ball coasted just over the field goal post as time expired. Kealakehe entered the break with a 10-7 edge and momentum.
“It was a gamble,” Kekuaokalani said with a laugh. “But it worked out.”
Hilo didn’t get the memo about the momentum swing. On the first play of the half, Kahale Huddleston busted a 78-yard run to the Waverider 2-yard line. Hilo’s goal line back, Kailee Hamada — listed at 5-foot-3, 150 pounds — punched it in to give the Viks the lead back.
“We had Kahale for pretty much the first time tonight and he made a difference,” Drummondo said. “In the third quarter he gave us a spark.”
However, it didn’t last long. On Hilo’s next drive, reigning BIIF Defensive Player of the Year Randy Hatori dropped back and jumped a slant over the middle, returning the pick inside the 5-yard line of Hilo. One play later, Trevino did his best Cam Newton impression and bulldozed in for the touchdown from two yards out.
Just five minutes into the third quarter, the Vikings provided the third lead change. Tiogangco scrambled to buy some time, and zinged a pass into the hands of Tolentino-Perry, his second of the night.
Kealakehe’s next drive started at midfield after a long kick return by Trevino, but couldn’t do anything with the field position. After the stop, Tiogangco found Tolentino-Perry for the duo’s third scoring connection of the night and a 28-17 lead.
After a Hilo three-and-out, Kealakehe got the ball back, but lacked a sense of urgency on offense. Following a series of runs and short completions, Trevino found Swett over the middle on a 4th down, play-action pass with 1:48 remaining. The Waveriders converted on the two-point conversion to pull within a field goal.
Kealakehe’s onside kick failed, and after two Waverider time outs, Tiogangco found Lukas Kuipers for a first down, effectively ending the game.
Opening festivities
Around 70 Kealakehe Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) members took the field prior to the game for the National Anthem and Hawaii Ponoi. After the songs, the crowd held a moment of silence for those lost in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Organized by the students and JROTC instructors Charles Furtado and Dave Starnes, the ceremony is usually held at the flag pole on campus. But since Sept. 11 fell on a Sunday this year, they decided to do it at a football game.
“The kids came up with this and did a great job,” Furtado said. “They practiced a lot and we are very proud of them.”
With the protest of San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, there has been a national discussion about the flag and the national anthem. It was a topic of conversation among the JROTC members at Kealakehe.
“We did have some discussion about it,” Furtado said. “Some thought it was OK, as long as it didn’t have any disrespect attached to it. Others thought there was no way he should be doing it. It was very interesting and it stimulated a great conversation.”
