KAPAAU — In a back-and-forth affair where it felt like either team could take the victory, Kohala football fell in close fashion to Pahoa by a score of 14-13 on Saturday at home. While the Cowboys were in control for a majority of the game, the Daggers’ physical run game and ability to force turnovers late proved to be the deciding factor.
“We felt confident heading into this week,” Kohala coach Earl Hoshida said postgame. “But sometimes things just don’t go your way.
“We just have to keep working on the mental side of things.”
The Cowboys (0-5 overall) showed bright spots despite the defeat. Junior quarterback and defensive back Hezekiah Wilson had a strong showing on both sides of the ball, scoring a rushing touchdown and securing an interception in the secondary.
Sophomore receiver Ayzen Yamamoto-Perez caught a touchdown, while sophomore running back Tiras Perez rushed for 147 yards to lead the backfield.
Linemen John Barayuga (19 total tackles) and Wyatt Rabang (nine total tackles, sack) led Kohala’s defense.
Pahoa was carried by its stout backfield led by running back Kukui Ahin-Ganir, who had two rushing scores. The Daggers, a bigger team than the Cowboys, used their size and physicality to pound the rock in the run game from the very first drive.
“I thought we did a good job defending (Pahoa’s run game),” Hoshida said. “We got blown back a little bit with their size, but our guys made some great tackles.”
Kohala struck first thanks to establishing the run early. In the opening quarter, Perez broke free for a 25-yard gain to get the Cowboys deep in Pahoa’s territory. Yamamoto-Perez then caught an impressive 25-yard throw from Wilson in the bottom-right corner of the end zone. The extra-point attempt was missed.
Pahoa responded to Kohala right away through a series of big runs by quarterback Kanoa Kahele and Ahin-Ganir down the middle for a lengthy, yet effective drive. Ahin-Ganir then rushed for a 7-yard touchdown to even the score.
The Cowboys answered back shortly thereafter. Following a 15-yard catch and 10-yard run from Perez to put Kohala back in the red zone, receiver Ryzen Cazimero-Bautista caught the ball on the 1-yard line to set up a short rushing touchdown from Wilson.
Wilson, playing defensive back for Kohala, then intercepted the Daggers’ pass in the ensuing drive to protect the Cowboys’ 13-6 lead going into the half.
“He’s our delivery guy,” Hoshida said of Wilson. “We can tell him what play we need, and he’ll go right out there and do it.”
But Pahoa wasn’t going to go out quietly. Following a Kohala fumble at the start of the second half, the Daggers ran the ball down Kohala’s throat to set up another Ahin-Ganir rushing touchdown. Pahoa then converted the 2-point attempt to go up one.
Kohala couldn’t answer the call after that, as Pahoa’s defense held up in the fourth quarter to close out the game. In some of the Cowboys’ last attempts to regain the lead, Daggers linebacker Zechariah Hose-See forced a fumble to keep the ball away from Kohala, followed by defensive back Cash Cohen picking off Wilson.
Despite a disappointing loss, Hoshida drew positives from the experience, noting that the Cowboys are starting to find their chemistry with one another. He plans to utilize the lessons learned from the game into Kohala’s next matchup against Ka‘u on Saturday on the road.
“We definitely have gotten a whole lot better since we started,” he said. “Now, we just need to work on minimizing mistakes and bouncing back from them.”
Pahoa (2-3 overall) will have a short week and return to action against Hawaii Prep on Thursday at Kea‘au.