KAILUA-KONA —As the final seconds ticked off the clock at Waverider Stadium, Honokaa counted down.
“3-2-1,” the Dragons roared with helmets in the air.
Just moments earlier, sophomore Kainalu Swift jumped from the rain soaked turf of Waverider Stadium with his second interception of the night to seal the Honokaa’s 12-7 victory over Kealakehe (0-1 BIIF, 0-2 overall).
The win over the Waveriders was the first for the Dragons since 2009.
Honokaa (1-0, 2-0) quarterback Ocean Guerpo-Beamer exited with an injury early in the second half, but led the way with 146 yards and a touchdown strike on 9 of 21 passing. Ryon Kunishige-Aikau had a TD catch, and Kelvin Falk went over the 100-yard mark receiving.
Kealakehe quarterback Bryton Lewi was 6 of 19 passing for 93 yards through the air, adding 54 yards and touchdown on the ground.
Defense was the name of the game, especially in the first half of the BIIF opener for both teams.
For Kealakehe, the problems stemmed from execution running the read option and drops from wide receivers.
Honokaa had bigger problems — literally. The Dragons ground game had no luck getting around the Waveriders stingy D-line duo of BJ Mareko-Berdon and Hiram Anakalea.
The highlights included timely interceptions by Honokaa’s Kainalu Lau and Kealakehe’s Ismail Souza and a battle for a fumble on a muffed punt.
It seemed only appropriate the first score of the game would come from a Honokaa safety.
Then the rain stopped and the downpour of points began — at least for a little.
Late in the second quarter, Lewi evaded some Honokaa defenders in the backfield and outran the rest for a 54-yard touchdown to put the Waveriders up. The scamper nearly doubled Kealakehe’s offense up to that point.
It seemed like the perfect momentum boost before half, but Honokaa had other ideas. Guerpo-Beamer connected on a long strike to Gene Ansagay and finished the scoring drive on a 29-yard pass to Kunishige-Aikau, wrestling away the lead before half.
The offensive outburst didn’t carry over to the second half. At one point in the third quarter, the teams combined for three fumbles on four plays.
Honokaa’s offensive woes originated from injury trouble, with both Guerpo-Beamer and starting running back Kealakai Lindsey sidelined with injuries.
With Guerpo-Beamer out, the Honokaa game plan had to be adapted, and it took some time. Junior Sheltyn Carvalho took over the quarterback duties and missed on his first three passes. But the routes got shorter and the gains became longer. On a simple screen, Falk ran 80 yards before getting tackle inside the red zone.
The drive, however, nearly turned into a scoop and score for Kealakehe on a blocked field goal, as Richard Manuzzi picked up the ball around his own goal line and ran it to midfield.
Kealakehe’s ensuing drive last just two plays before an interception deep over the middle by Swift — the Waveriders fourth turnover of the second half.
Despite the turnovers and lack of offense, Kealakehe was still just one big play away from taking back the lead as the fourth quarter ticked away. That play seemed to come on middle screen from Lewi to Dallas “Malosi” Laasaga that put Kealakehe just five yards way from pay dirt.
The Waveriders came up short on three opportunities, and the rain-soaked, offensive-starved crowd awoke for a 4th and goal from the five yard line with 2:47 left on the clock. From shotgun, Lewi looked left, then threw right to an open Laasaga. But the ball bounced just short, and Honokaa took over on downs.
Kealakehe got the ball back with 1:18 left, but Swift’s second interception and a few quick QB kneels ended the game.