Make it an even 20 for Punahou.

Even though the Buffanblu didn’t win their league, they were resilient enough to make it all the way through to a 2-1 victory over Kaiser in the Division I final of The Queen’s Medical Center/HHSAA Boys Soccer State Championships on Monday night at Waipio Peninsula Soccer Stadium.

So now it’s 20 titles in 44 years of the event, and fourth since the 2010 season under coach David Trifonovitch.

Punahou struck fast for a 2-0 halftime lead and enjoyed a territorial advantage for most of the game before holding off the Cougars’ bold comeback bid in the second half.

“Oh man, talk about a totally different half,” Trifonovitch said. “We put together a good first half and kind of fell apart after that. They were coming at us and we were losing our composure. We played well enough to keep the ball out of the net most of the time. Our own mistake gave them that one goal. Give credit to my defense. They cracked, but didn’t break. It made it exciting.”

The Buffanblu (13-2-2), who finished second in the Interscholastic League of Honolulu behind ‘Iolani, were unseeded and won four straight at states, including a crucial 1-0 semifinal victory over top-seeded Kapolei in double overtime.

“We set our sights on getting through the ILH,” Trifonovitch added. “It’s a tough league to get out of, and then once we get out, the state tournament is like the cherry on top. Let’s go and have fun and play for what we can.”

Unseeded Kaiser (14-2-1) won three games to get to the final, including a 2-1 victory over second-seeded ‘Iolani in the quarterfinals, only to be denied its first state championship.

Duncan McKenna got things started for Punahou in the seventh minute, when he headed home a Christopher Espinoza corner kick. Eighteen minutes later, Jason Vandevender made it 2-0 by streaking in to deflect a high direct kick from Espinoza low into the goal.

“The first one, Duncan called for it and I looked up and saw him wide open so I played it before the other team was ready,” Espinoza said. “The second one, I got it to Jason and he was in the right place at the right time. It was a great team win. We really felt we didn’t have a great game in the ILH championship, so it gave us extra motivation to come in here and win it as a team. I think that really helped us come together. It truly is a team. We played our best soccer in the state tournament.”

Early in the second half, Kaiser showed life. Punahou goalkeeper Nicholas Shor batted away Motoki Sato’s dangerous corner kick. Several minutes later, in the 52nd minute, the Cougars got on the board on Makana Sringvonsana’s low, 20-yard direct kick that somehow made it through Punahou’s wall and Shor and into the left side of the goal.

“We made it far, but we really didn’t bring it this game,” Sringvonsana said. “I don’t know why. We’ll see if we can get ’em next time, but I think we deserve better than this. Couldn’t string it together today. We’ve never had a 2-0 lead against us before, so we were kind of in shock.”

Added Kaiser coach Derek Kawano: “It’s been a great journey. We expected to be here. They’re a great team. We played well. Two set pieces. That’s all it is. They won the ball in the first half. Second half, we played a lot better.”

Shor, who came up from the junior varsity at midseason, took over for Ian Withy-Berry — who got hit in the right eye, which completely closed up — in the 49th minute.

“It definitely wasn’t something I was expecting,” Shor said. “I made sure I was prepared for it. It was a bit scarier than I thought it would be, but we got the win.”