By MATT GERHART
By MATT GERHART
Hawaii Tribune-Herald
HILO – After the fans had filed out of Wong Stadium and Kealakehe and Hilo sang their alma maters Friday night, the only sound remaining was a Tongan chant emanating from the Waveriders’ locker room.
In any language, the meaning was unmistakable.
Kealakehe was singing and having fun.
Kealakehe was celebrating a big victory.
Kealakehe won’t have to return to Wong Stadium this season.
“I don’t like this field,” said senior running back Kobe Antolin, who shuttered at the thought of coming back. “No way. No way. Honestly, no way.”
The Waveriders won’t have to return, not after Antolin twice had the game in his hands, first failing and then persevering, earning a 30-29 victory in double overtime that wasn’t secure until the Vikings botched an extra point, giving Kealakehe home-field advantage in the BIIF Division I playoffs.
Antolin went from goat to hero in a matter of minutes.
First came the fumble after Kealakehe (5-1 BIIF Division I, 6-2) took over on the 20 to begin the first overtime.
“I was mad, I was sad, I thought I had lost the game for us,” Antolin said.
Then came his 10-yard touchdown run — he got a reprieve after Randy Hatori pushed the Vikings back with a sack, and Lukas Kuipers missed a 44-yard field goal.
“I was holding on with my life and just kept going,” Antolin said. “My teammates picked me up, they supported and they told me to bounce back, and I did. I bounced back.”
Hilo (4-2 BIIF Division I, 4-2) looked like it was going to send the game to a third overtime after Kahale Huddleston scored on a 17-yard touchdown reception from Ka’ale Tiogangco. But Kuipers never got a chance to kick the extra point.
“Just too many mistakes and a lack of execution across the board,” Hilo coach Kaeo Drummondo said.
Riggs Kurashige returned to the lineup, rushing for a touchdown and catching another for Kealakehe, which finally found a way to reach the end zone against Hilo, ending a four-game losing streak to the two-time defending league champion.
Kealakehe had scored only one touchdown in the past four games against Hilo, including back-to-back losses in BIIF championship games at Wong – but if there is a rematch in three weeks in the league final, it will come at Waverider Stadium.
“They drove across the island and beat us,” Drummondo said. “If we want to get where we want to go, we’re going to have to do the same thing.
“This will test our will. We’ve got to buckle down for what’s coming.”
Kealakehe knows a thing or two about bouncing back. From getting torched by Honokaa in a narrow escape, to getting drubbed by rival Konawaena on its homecoming to turning the ball over six times against Keaau, coach Sam Kekuaokalani hailed his team’s mental toughness.
“They always stay the course,” he said.
On Friday, it was Antolin’s turn.
“He was in his own world (after the fumble),” Kekuaokalani said. “I can’t say I was able to get through to him, but I know I set the tone earlier.
“From the locker room, to the practice to the sidelines, we try to stay focused on the goal. I guess I’d say resiliency would be the key.”
Tiogangco’s 51-yard touchdown pass to Josiah Factora and a two-point throw to Kuipers tied the game midway through the fourth quarter, stopping a streak that saw Kealakehe score three consecutive touchdowns to erase a 15-3 deficit.
Markus DeGrate threw long touchdown passes to Anthony Trevino and Kurashige in the second half. DeGrate’s 9-yard pass in the second OT set up Antolin’s winning run.
“In all of our losses, we’ve given up 70-and 80-yard touchdowns,” Drummondo said. “Same thing tonight. We knew they were going to try to get the ball to Riggs all over the field.”
Kurashige finished with 71 yards on the ground, giving his team a boost with his shiftiness opposite Antolin’s power.
“He’s a different player,” Kekuaokalani said.
The Vikings managed just 74 yards on the ground in regulation and turned the ball over three times and were lucky to trail only 3-0 at the end of the first quarter after a bevy of Kealakehe penalties stalled two drives.
Hilo took its first lead after a bad punt snap, setting up at the 1, and Iosaia Lavatai connected with Huddleston for a score.
Lavatai, the usual backup, played the first half and also threw a 30-yard scoring strike to Isaac Lerma – but he also had a costly interception near the end of the half. Just after Kaiana Lewis’ interception for Hilo, Pulama Lewis picked off Lavatai and returned it 49 yards to the Hilo 8.
Three plays later, Kurashige plowed into the end zone from a yard out, the Waveriders’ first touchdown against Hilo in 10 quarters dating back to 2013.
Tiogangco sat out the first half in what Drummondo called a coach’s decision.
After it was all over and the lights were off at Wong Stadium, Antolin, who was a freshman the last time Kealakehe won the BIIF title, summed it all up.
“We’re coming back,” Antolin said.
He wasn’t talking about the venue.
Kealakehe 3 7 13 0 0 7 —30
Hilo 0 15 0 8 0 6 — 29
First quarter
Kealakehe – FG 19 Anthony Trevino, :46
Second quarter
Hilo – Kahale Huddleston 3 pass from Iosaia Lavatai (Lukas Kuipers kick), 5:50
Hilo – Isaac Lerma 30 pass Lavatai (Lavatai pass to Pono Lanford), 1:43
Kealakehe — Riggs Kurashige 1 run (Kolby Martin kick), :14
Third quarter
Kealakehe – Anthony Trevino 46 pass from Markus Degrate (kick blocked), 4:53
Fourth quarter
Kealakehe – Riggs Kurashige 67 pass from DeGrate (Martin kick), 9:44
Hilo – Josiah Factora 51 pass from Ka‘ale Tiogangco (Kuipers pass from Tiogangco), 7:16
Second overtime
Kealakehe – Kobe Antolin 10 run (Martin kick)
Hilo – Huddleston 17 pass from Tiogangco (kick failed)