KAPA‘AU — The 2025 Big Island Interscholastic Federation (BIIF) football season officially kicked off over the weekend with matchups across the isle. The opening west-side matchup was played Saturday afternoon at Kohala High School —where the Cowboys battled hard against Pearl City in the first two quarters, but the Chargers went on a 20-0 run in the closing half to win 54-27 in the non-conference matchup.
Pearl City had a potent offensive attack in the running and passing game that overwhelmed Kohala. Senior quarterback Ikaika Torres displayed an array of play-extending highlights — consistently evading Kohala’s pass rush to make impressive, off-balanced throws to his disposal of weapons. He finished the game completing 23 of his 35 attempts for 404 yards, four touchdowns and one interception — throwing accurate balls through wheel routes, over the shoulder plays and through the teeth of the defense in the middle of the field.
The Chargers opened the afternoon establishing the run, as running backs Alohi Gaspar and Aidan Minami took turns carrying the load through the backfield. Gaspar finished with 84 rushing yards and two touchdowns, while Minami rushed for 71 and a score.
Despite the Cowboys showing an impressive goal-line stance on defense, Pearl City still elected to go for it on fourth down, handing the rock to Gaspar — who then scored to put the Chargers on the board first. On Pearl City’s next drive, Torres started to get in rhythm — hitting receiver Treyver Leavy for a 30-yard touchdown pass to go up two scores at the end of the first quarter.
Kohala then decided to answer immediately afterward. Junior Sheldon Anchetta-AhPuck returned the Chargers’ kick all the way to the house for a touchdown, slimming Pearl City’s lead down to one possession heading into the second quarter. The Chargers responded with Torres firing a laser down the middle to receiver Kaze Texeira to enter the Cowboys’ territory. Texeira finished the afternoon with 80 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Pearl City finished the drive with another touchdown rush from Gasper — this time from 12 yards out — to take the 20-7 lead. After Kohala’s offense failed to move the chains in the ensuing drive, its defense picked up the slack in a big way. Anchetta-AhPuck added to his highlight reel, grabbing a dropped Chargers’ pass in the secondary to take it 10 yards back to the endzone for a pick six.
With the game now at 20-14, an exciting back-and-forth affair was unfolding in front of the Kohala faithful. But like all afternoon, Pearl City answered the call. Chargers receiver Maiaku Lii caught a 30-yard bomb from Torres to put his team deep into the host’s territory, setting up an eight-yard touchdown reception to the sophomore two plays later.
Cowboys receiver and kick returner Tirus Perez then returned Pearl City’s kick to the Chargers’ three-yard line, setting up an easy rushing touchdown from quarterback Kaualeinahua Reyes. The sophomore signal caller finished the day with 53 passing yards, 25 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
Soon after, Torres made another impressive throw to Lii for a huge gain. Texeira then caught a touchdown from Torres to go up 34-21.
But Kohala got the last laugh in the half, as Perez caught a deep pass from Reyes to put the Cowboys in the red zone as the clock neared halftime. Reyes then punched the ball in from one yard out to cut Pearl City’s lead to seven. Kohala’s extra-point kick attempt was blocked, leaving the halftime score at 34-27.
The second half was less hectic, mainly due to the Chargers cleaning up prior mistakes and their defense settling in. The Cowboys were shut out for the remainder of the game, but Pearl City still had more offense left in the tank. Chargers receiver Christian Kihewa caught a 22-yard touchdown pass for the lone score of the third, while Minami secured an 11-yard touchdown run at the midway point of the fourth.
To seal the day, Noah Sullivan picked off Kohala to take the ball back 40 yards for the second pick six of the game.
Pearl City finished with 574 yards of total offense to the black and gold’s 136. The Chargers’ front seven also made sure to clog the Cowboys’ run game, allowing just 2.6 yards per carry.
Kohala (0-1) will continue its non-conference slate, set to take on Kalani on Friday on the road. Head coach Earl Hoshida saw the loss as a learning opportunity for the Cowboys’ next matchup.
“I thought we played well, and there is always room for improvement,” he told West Hawaii Today postgame. “I’m glad no one came out seriously injured, just because our roster is so small. We made good plays, but also made mistakes. We’ll get back to work and focus on the upcoming game Friday against Kalani.”
KSH 33, Nanakuli 32
Kamehamha-Hawaii football opened up its 2025 season with a thriller non-conference win over Nanakuli on Friday in Kea‘au.
Trailing by five in the fourth quarter, Warriors running back Isaac Aurello marched to the endzone off a 24-yard rush to go up one. The two-point, extra-point attempt failed, but KSH’s defense was able to halt the Golden Hawks for the remaining seven minutes to seal the close win.
The game-winning touchdown wasn’t the only score Aurello logged. To open the game, the senior secured a 20-yard rushing touchdown to get on the board first. Aurello finished the night with 10 rushes for 81 yards and two touchdowns.
But Nanakuli came knocking shortly after the Warriors’ opening score. In response, Golden Hawks running back Zade Kalua earned a six-yard rushing score to open the second quarter, but Nankuli failed to convert the extra-point attempt.
KSH bounced back just four minutes later, as junior quarterback Chanse Kaaua-Long fired a 23-yard laser to receiver Chaseton Wong for the score — expanding their lead to 13-6. Kaaua-Long finished with 201 yards and two touchdowns.
Senior running back Dallas Enriquez scored a seven-yard run for KSH at the end of the second quarter. He finished the night with 17 carries for 102 yards and a touchdown.
Despite trailing 20-12 at halftime, Nanakuli responded big with a 20-point second quarter. A two-yard touchdown run by Kalua put the Golden Hawks up 32-27 — their first lead of the night until Kamehameha ultimately pulled ahead at the end.
Another standout for the Golden Hawks was quarterback Allix Yap, who completed 15 of his 25 attempts for 265 yards and three touchdowns — a 26-yarder to Vainuupo Fanuaea, another to Malosi Muaau and the final to Zhyrisen Kahaleka from 41 yards out.
Cole Walker of the Warriors additionally caught a 35-yard touchdown pass from Kaaua-Long at the midway point of the third quarter.
Defensively for KSH, senior linebacker Kaikoa Nobriga finished with 2.5 sacks, while lineman teammate junior Jaidon Feliciano-Munoz recovered a fumble.
Lineman Hunter Kealoha logged 2 sacks for Nanakuli.
Now at 1-0, the Warriors will open their BIIF schedule against DI opponent Kealakehe — set to take on the Waveriders on Saturday night at Waverider Stadium.
Other scores
• 8/8 Baldwin 17, Hilo 13
• 8/9 Kalani 21, Waiakea 6
• 8/9 Maui 21, Kealakehe 6
Please email clangs@westhawaiitoday.com with any statistics from the games above.