Hilo and Konawaena made sure the debut of Monday night football in Kealakekua was well worth the wait.
The Wildcats edged the two-time BIIF DI champion Vikings 34-27 on a mostly dry night at Konawaena in a contest that was postponed because of inclement weather last week.
“This was a great team win,” Konawaena head coach Brad Uemoto said. “A victory over a great program like Hilo is something for us to be proud of. It’s huge.”
Konawaena (2-0 BIIF DII, 4-0 overall) quarterback Austin Ewing racked up 340 yards and two touchdowns on 25 of 39 passing, and running back Algene Kelekolio added 50 yards and two touchdown runs.
Dual-threat Vikings (1-1 BIIF DI, 1-4 overall) quarterback Ka’ale Tiogangco provided a lot of the offense for Hilo. The junior QB was 17 of 32 passing for 196 yards and two touchdowns. He added 87 yards and a score on the ground.
Momentum was the name of the game in the matchup of two BIIF title contenders.
Konawaena didn’t look like it would come away with much from its first possession, but Cameron Howes sparked the Wildcats on a fake punt run down the sideline to keep the drive alive. Kelekolio finished the drive with a 9-yard plunge into the end zone.
“Cameron is an athlete,” Uemoto said. “I tell him under certain situations to look for something. I was a little hesitant because that almost always turns into a fake. But what a weapon we have in him.”
Ewing did plenty to fill up the stat sheet in the first half. The sophomore quarterback dropped back 22 times, connecting on 17 of those passes for 217 yards and a touchdown.
“We opened him up a little bit,” Uemoto said of the heavy workload for his quarterback. “I don’t think there is truly a plan. We go with what is working and moving the ball.”
After the Wildcats tacked on a 31-yard field goal to make it 10-0, Hilo broke the shutout with a 31-yard quarterback keeper by Tiogangco.
Hilo’s first half offense was hampered by four holding calls. Not only did the flags move them back and stall drives, it negated big plays, including a 40-yard gain.
Meanwhile, the Konawaena offense kept pumping out points.
A nifty 42-yard punt return by Howes was negated, but the Wildcats still had a big play in their pocket. Ewing dropped back and heaved a deep pass to big-play receiver Kamakana Ching. Ching hauled in the catch with one hand and set up the Wildcats inside the five-yard line. Kelekolio carried the pile into the end zone for his second score to make it 24-7.
“(Kamakana) has worked really hard and credit to him,” Uemoto said. “He is drawing the attention of defenses and opening up opportunities for our other guys.”
Hilo seemed to be on the right track to start the second half with an interception of Ewing out of the break. However, a fumble slowed down the drive and the Vikings were forced to punt.
Hilo got a good bounce — literally — on its next drive when a punt hit a Konawaena player and the Vikings recovered on the Wildcats side of the field. On the next play Tiogangco rolled out and connected with Kaleihalia Tolentino-Perry for a 38-yard touchdown strike and narrowed the deficit to two scores.
The momentum would not last long though. Konawaena broke out of its sluggish start to the second half with a 75-yard catch and run by Kayson Mahiai. Mahiai looked dead to rights at the first down marker, but juked a few defenders and outran everyone for six.
Hilo wouldn’t go away quietly though. Tiogangco completed a 30-yard pass to set up an Isaac Lerma five-yard touchdown run on the next play.
The atmosphere started getting raucous after the Hilo score. Big hits on the kickoff return and third down added to the noise, but then things got a bit out of control, leading to a Hilo player being ejected and a 15-yard penalty that kept Konawaena’s drive going.
The Wildcats turned the opportunity into a field goal, but more importantly, ran time off the clock.
After Hilo threatened with a long drive down to the Konawaena 10-yard line but were turned away on fourth down, the Vikings pulled within a score on a 25-yard pass from Tiogangco.
Hilo had a chance late to tie the game, but time ran out after Tiogangco lost his footing on the wet field.
Konawaena 10 14 7 3 —34
Hilo 0 7 13 7 — 27
First quarter
KONA — Algene Kelekolio 9-yard run (Austin Ewing kick good), 5:36
KONA — Austin Ewing 31-yard field goal, 2:13
Second quarter
HILO — Kaale Tiogangco 31-yard run (Kaleihalia Tolentino-Perry kick good)
KONA — Ewing 4-yard pass to Cameron Howes (Ewing kick good), 7:09
KONA —Kelekolio 5-yard run (Ewing kick good) 2:39
Third quarter
HILO — Tiogangco 38-yard pass to Kalehalia Tolentino-Perry (Tolentino-Perry kick good), 5:35
KONA — Ewing 75-yard pass to Kayson Mahiai (Ewing kick good), 4:50
HILO — Issac Lerma 5-yard run (2-point pass no good), 2:10
Fourth quarter
KONA — Ewing 23-yard field goal, 7:22
HILO — Tiogangco 25-yard pass to Kahale Huddleston (kick good)
