Down 10 points, the Kahuku Red Raiders went back to basics in the second half.

They also went to their Ironmen. Defensive tackle/running back Salanoa-Alo Wily ran for 138 yards and rumbled for two touchdowns in the second half, including the go-ahead 2-yard run with 2:34 left, as No. 3 Kahuku escaped with a 20-10 win over Hilo on Friday in the first round of the First Hawaiian Bank/HHSAA Division I State Football Championships.

A crowd of 3,588 watched at Aloha Stadium.

The win boosted first-year Kahuku coach Lee Leslie and his squad into the semifinals next week against No. 1 Punahou.

It was the first loss after 10 wins for Hilo, the BIIF champion. Things began to unravel with three penalties during Kahuku’s first scoring drive near the end of the third quarter.

"Three straight 15-yarders. They came down the field, kicked that 3 and they gained the momentum. We never regained it. We turned the ball over and you can’t do that against a team this good," Hilo coach David Baldwin said.

Hilo’s defense dominated most of the game, limiting Kahuku (9-2) to 43 yards of total offense in the first half.

But Kahuku turned to its smashmouth approach of yesteryear, pounding away with a core of running backs led by Wily, a 6-foot-1, 270-pound senior. The UH-bound Wily had just four carries for 2 yards in the first half, but he tied the game with a 25-yard TD run in the fourth quarter. Then came a 65-yard drive out of mostly power-I sets, and Wily followed his line and fullback Reupena Fitisemanu down the field for the lead.

Kahuku later got an interception by Jeremiah Hawaka to set up a 30-yard field goal by Gabriel Pinheiro-Alves to clinch the win.

It was a gutty effort by both teams. Hilo lost running back Tristin Spikes, their 1,000-yard rusher, and some key players, including linebacker/defensive end Kiliona Pomeroy. Kahuku came in without key players, too: quarterback Tuli Wily-Matagi (concussion), running back Kesi Ah-Hoy (shoulder) and center Jed Heffernan (back). With a resilient defensive effort, they found a way to stay in the game.

After rushing for just 14 yards on 18 carries in the first half, Kahuku gained 147 yards on 26 carries in the second half.

"These are all my boys. They had my back, they were hanging in there with me. All the boys on the side, cheering me on," Wily said. "You know, I’m not going to lie, I was tired, but the brotherhood started to kick into me and pushed me forward."

Kahuku’s offense was lethargic as Hilo stuffed the box and dared the Red Raiders to throw the ball. The Vikings could barely move, too, against the roaming Red Raiders defense. It took another special-teams bonus, a punt downed by Hilo’s Melvin Kikau at the Kahuku 2-yard line, to tilt the field-position battle in the Vikings’ favor.

Samuta Avea threw to wide receiver Chance Maghanoy, who weaved through the defense for a first down, but fumbled near the sideline. Donovan Faoa-Kelly, who had already picked off a pass, recovered the fumble and returned it 19 yards to the Kahuku 9.

Three plays later, Sione Atuekaho found Isaac Lerma in the end zone, and Lerma’s diving catch for a 4-yard TD gave Hilo the lead with 6:44 to go in the first quarter.

The Vikings drove deep into Kahuku territory just before the half and got a 30-yard field goal from Rayce Takayesu with 42 seconds left for a 10-0 lead.

Kahuku’s offense came alive in the third quarter. The Red Raiders drove from their 20-yard line to the Hilo 2, but a fumble at the 4-yard line ended Kahuku’s threat.

Later, Atuekaho’s second-down throw was too high and Alohi Gilman picked it off easily, returning it to the Hilo 25. On the next snap, Wily avoided a tackler in the backfield, another at the line of scrimmage, then ran through two tacklers en route to the end zone for a 25-yard TD run. That tied it at 10 with 7:43 remaining.

Hilo went three-and-out and Kahuku marched in with the go-ahead TD by Wily. 

For three quarters, it looked like it would become the first win in the D-I state tourney by a BIIF team.

"These are the best kids I’ve ever coached," Baldwin said. "Football teaches you how to overcome failure and shortcomings. At times, we didn’t play our best, but we can take away all the positives and great things we did."

Hilo—Isaac Lerma 4 pass from Sione Atuekaho (Kalei Tolentino-Perry kick)
Hilo—FG Rayce Takayesu 29
Kah—FG Gabriel Pinheiro-Alves 26
Kah—Salanoa-Alo Wily 25 run (Pinheiro-Alves kick)
Kah—Wily 2 run (Pinheiro-Alves kick)
Kah—FG Pinheiro-Alves 31

RUSHING—Hilo: Tristin Spikes 14-35, Lerma 4-4, Rylen Kaniaupio 2-0, Kalei Tolentino-Perry 2-0, Jordan Caoagdan 1-(minus 3), Donovan Kelley 1-(minus 8), Atuekaho 8-(minus 27). Kahuku: Wily 18-136, Hirkley Latu 1-19, Soli Afalava 6-18, Pena Fitisemanu 4-12, Jrue Williams 5-7, Alohi Gilman 1-3, Aaron Tapusoa 1-1, Keala Santiago 2-(minus 1), Kingsten Aloua 1-(minus 15), Samuta Avea 5-(minus 15).

PASSING—Hilo: Atuekaho 7-20-2-68. Kahuku: Avea 3-10-1-42, Gilman 0-1-0-0.

RECEIVING—Hilo: Caoagdan 2-18, Lerma 2-17, Cohlby Espaniola 2-11, Jacob Thome 1-22. Kahuku: Chance Maghanoy 2-36, Likio Vea 1-6.