KEA‘AU — In a perfect season, Konawaena girls flag football ended it in the perfect way.
The first-seeded Lady Wildcats shut out No. 2 Hawaii Preparatory Academy 27-0 in Wednesday’s first-ever Central Pacific Bank/Big Island Interscholastic Federation Girls Flag Football Championship at Kamehameha-Hawaii.
Kona concluded the inaugural island season at a perfect 9-0 — punching its ticket to next week’s state championship as a No. 3 seed. The Lady Wildcats will take on Nanakuli at 6 p.m. Wednesday in Pearl City in the opening round.
“I think all of our hard work and commitment to game-planning and practicing day in and day out on the easy days and hard days paid off,” Lady Wildcats head coach Mason Pyper said postgame. “There’s so much that’s done behind the scenes that no one really sees, and those long and hard days are all worth it in the end when something like this happens.”
Domination would be an understatement to the Lady Wildcats’ success in 2025. The championship win was Kona’s fourth shutout of the season, adding to their impressive average of scoring 34.7 points per game while allowing just 4.2.
In Wednesday’s win over Ka Makani, Pyper praised the Lady Wildcats for their preparation and attention to detail.
“I think we were just very sound in what we were planning to do,” he explained. “We were in the right places at the right time. We didn’t always make the play, but them being in the right place allowed us to execute properly. They’re extremely competitive — they don’t even want to give up a yard on any play.
“On offense, we just attacked what the defense gave us. We had to hold up our end and play complimentary football.”
While Kona breezed through the conference this season, Pyper acknowledged that the journey wasn’t easy. He pointed to the girls’ passion and interest in the sport from the very beginning of the season, explaining that their willingness to learn and improve each week was a driving force in the team’s success.
“The girls have shown up and have been very eager to learn,” he said. “Whenever they are confused or are unsure of something, they ask questions and they’re eager to learn. A lot of them play other sports, so they have that competitive drive and competitive nature, but it’s been a learning process.
“I think them being open to learning new things, as well as working hard at those things, is what has been attributed to our success.”
Pyper also pointed out a few Lady Wildcats who have been central contributors to the team, including quarterback Ki‘ilei Leleiwi — who has already established herself as one of the best signal callers in the state. Leleiwi’s patience in the pocket, ability to read the field and throw downfield have made Kona’s high-powered offense nearly impossible to defend.
“I ask a lot of her, and she’s been doing a great job handling it,” Pyper said of Leleiwi. “She’s the only person on the field that has to know what every single player is doing on offense, but also on defense too. It’s a very important and hard thing to do, and it takes a lot of leadership and focus. She’s been very impressive throwing the ball, running the ball and doing anything we ask of her.
“Our No. 1 slot receiver, Kylie Denis, has been outstanding on both sides of the ball. She’s just been an incredible athlete for us and continues to make plays for us. Defensively, our defensive backs Iolani Campbell, Bria Hao and Kalei Blas have done a great job shutting everything down. I think those players are really coming into form, but it really takes the whole team to do what we’ve done.”
Pyper and the Lady Wildcats are excited for the opportunity of competing for the first-ever HHSAA flag football title next week, but understand that they need to take it one game at a time and not fall under the trap of looking ahead. For the next week, all of their energy is going towards the Lady Golden Hawks in Round 1.
“I always tell them that we have one game at a time, and that’s what we have to accomplish before we move on to anything further,” Pyper said. “Our mentality is that we’re going to show up and give everything we have. We’re going to trust in what we know we can do, and we’re going to play Konawaena football. And it doesn’t really matter who the opponent is. As long as we can do what we typically do, we should be in a position to put ourselves in a successful spot.”
But no matter what happens on Oahu, Pyper looks at the inaugural island flag football season as a huge success not just for the Lady Wildcats, but for the 13 other Big Island schools that fielded teams. For Kona’s program specifically, he hopes winning the BIIF title will create a lasting legacy for years to come, and that other girls on the Big Island will be inspired to play the new sport.
“It’s starting to become a buzz in the school communities — everyone is talking about it and showing up to the games,” Pyper said. “We have a lot of great players on this island, and I think there’s going to be some very dedicated individuals who are going to focus on this new sport opportunity. I’m sure there’s a lot of young people here that love football and haven’t had an opportunity to play, and now that have that opportunity. So there’s even more motivation to start when you’re younger and be that next player to help lead a team to a championship.
“For us, it was great to have the community’s support, and hopefully we’ll be able to start some youth programs for younger ages. Kona has had a lot of success in tackle football, so I think pairing flag football with that is going to make a great combination that will keep our athletic program moving forward. We want to uphold that mindset of success and capture what it looks like to work hard and allow sports to change your life.”
Although HPA (7-2) fell short in the championship, Ka Makani will still compete in the state tournament, and will play Leilehua at 6 p.m. Wednesday at Mililani High School in the opening round.
Prior to Wednesday’s championship, second-seeded Waiakea and No. 1 Hilo squared off in the third-place game, with the Vik Queens winning 14-0. Finishing with an 8-1 record, Hilo will take on fourth-seeded Kamehameha-Maui in the first round of the state tournament at 4:45 p.m. Wednesday at Mililani.
Waiakea also qualified for the HHSAA tournament, set to take on No. 2 Kamehameha-Kapalama in the opener at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday in Pearl City.
