MILILANI, Hawaii — A protracted, four-team slugfest at John Kauinana Stadium carried into early Saturday morning and finally ended with top-ranked Campbell and three-time defending state champion Kahuku advancing to the Oahu Interscholastic Association Open Division championship game next week.
They will meet at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Farrington. Both teams clinched HHSAA Open Division berths by virtue of their wins; the undefeated Sabers and dynastic Red Raiders got there through decidedly different means.
Campbell, perhaps thrown off by a shift in offensive posture from Kapolei, fell behind by 26 points in the second quarter and spent the rest of the shootout clawing back. The Sabers finally overcame the Hurricanes, 49-43, on Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele’s sixth touchdown pass of the night to Shaison Kupukaa, a 13-yarder over the middle with 2 minutes, 8 seconds to play.
"Thirty-five years I've coached in Hawaii," Campbell's Darren Johnson said. "Never had a comeback like that. What a game. We gave everybody something to cheer about tonight."
Receiver Zayden Alviar-Costa had a four-touchdown night for the Sabers (9-0) on his eight catches for 174 yards. Teammate Rusten Abang-Perez had 12 grabs for 121 yards and a score.
Kapolei (5-4) decided to move its own dynamic quarterback, Tama Amisone, all over the field while largely turning over passing responsibilities to sophomore Leysen Rodrigues. It worked for a while as the Hurricanes built an eye-popping 33-7 lead.
"Tama Amisone is such an amazing athlete and player, but for three years every defense was scheming against him, trying hard to stop him," Kapolei coach Darren Hernandez said. "We decided, since we can't clone him, we're going to just put him everywhere ... quarterback, running back, slotback, receiver, kick returner. It paid off for us for the most part.
"We didn't finish," Hernandez added. "We didn't get it done when it counted. But I'm so proud of the kids. They worked so hard. I love these boys."
But Sagapolutele was too composed and too efficient as he eclipsed 10,000 career passing yards and passed Mililani alumnus and current Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel for the Hawaii high school record. Sagapolutele was 32-for-47 for 473 yards and one interception.
"It's not me, it's all my Lord and Savior," Sagapolutele said of breaking the record. He stands at 10,246 yards; Gabriel, now a Heisman Trophy candidate at Oregon, was credited with 10,048, according to Hawaii Prep World. "My teammates, they do all the work. I just get them the ball and they do the hard-fought 4 yards just for me."
Campbell rallied to within 36-14 at halftime and kept coming from there, outscoring Kapolei 35-7 in the second half. Sagapolutele, a Cal commit, supplied a key 2-yard rushing score on fourth and goal in the third quarter.
Sagapolutele acknowledged some looking past of Kapolei during the week; the Sabers beat the Hurricanes 40-23 at home on Sept. 21.
"We respected them, (but) we weren't playing to our full potential," he said. "Being able to bounce back in the second quarter really shows how great our coaching staff is, how bonded we are as a team."
He said he started looking for more underneath action instead of the early strategy of going deep.
Amisone was sidelined with ice on his hip and unavailable for Kapolei’s last possession in the final two minutes. The Hurricanes appeared flustered and could not move the ball.
Johnson said the key for the rally was shaking jitters out and worrying less about playing mistake-free football.
"We just needed to have some fun, and that's what they came out in the second half (and did)," Johnson said.
Campbell will go for its first OIA championship in either Open or Division I on Friday; its two OIA titles to date (2004, 2008) came in Division II. Kahuku seeks a 30th OIA title, and fourth at the Open level.
The nightcap, meanwhile, was a lopsided affair. Kahuku, looking poised in all three phases at the right time of year, spoiled the return of Mililani quarterback Kini McMillan from injury in a 35-6 rout of the home team and defending OIA champions.
Two-way standout Aiden Manutai broke the game open for Kahuku in the second quarter with a 34-yard touchdown catch from recently imported quarterback Matai Fuiava, followed by his 34-yard pick-six of McMillan with 19 seconds left in the half. Kahuku (7-4) needed only 176 yards of total offense with its effective play on defense and special teams.
Mililani (8-2) also had a freshly imported weapon from the continent in receiver Brandon Gaea, a University of Hawaii commit who caught three balls for 23 yards.
Kapolei and Mililani will meet at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at Radford in the OIA third-place game for the league’s final state berth.
In the Division I final, Kailua (6-5) and Leilehua (8-3) will meet at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at Farrington. The Surfriders upset host Moanalua, 28-17, to notch their fifth straight win, while the Mules blanked Waianae 30-0. Kailua seeks its first OIA title since 2001 when it shared honors with Kahuku. Leilehua last prevailed in 2007.
In Division II, defending league champ Roosevelt (8-2) meets Kaiser (8-1) at 4 p.m. Saturday at Farrington. Roosevelt shut out Castle 38-0, while Kaiser beat Kalaheo 28-12 to gain the final. Kaiser last won D-II in 2021.
The finalists in all three tiers have clinched state berths.
Note: A previous version of the story listed an incorrect time of the Campbell-Kahuku championship game Friday.
Brian McInnis covers the state’s sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at brian.mcinnis@charter.com.