KALAEPOHAKU — Down go the champs.

With postseason plans out of the picture, Punahou ended the season on a high note in a 33-28 upset win over reigning ILH and state Open Division champion Saint Louis Saturday afternoon at Kamali’i Field.

The Buffanblu’s victory also ended the Crusaders’ season as Saint Louis (5-3 overall, 2-2 league) needed a victory to force a winner-take-all playoff for the ILH crown and lone state tournament berth with Kamehameha (4-4, 3-1).

Instead, Punahou snapped a four-game losing streak and earned its only win of the ILH season to finish the year with a 3-6 record.

“The mindset going into the game was to finish strong,” said Punahou sophomore quarterback Hunter Fujikawa. “Our team worked hard and the offense prepared a good game plan.”

With more freedom to change plays based on the defense, Fujikawa had the Buffanblu humming early as they started the game scoring 27 straight points.

Fujikawa’s 10-yard touchdown pass to Keola Ane was responsible for the first points while the duo hooked up on another 9-yard score to give Punahou a four-possession advantage with 4:54 remaining in the first half.

“Keola has been on of my go-to receivers all-season,” Fujikawa said of Ane. “He’s been reliable and I know that he will put his body on the line to make plays. Those two touchdowns were huge and helped build our team’s confidence.”

Saint Louis would not go down without a fight however.

The Crusaders got a much-needed score right before halftime when Nainoa Lopes found Jayse Braun for a 2-yard TD to make it a 20-point game at the break.

A failed fourth down attempt by Punahou early in the second half led to another Saint Louis score when Lopes hit Kamana Collins for an 8-yard score midway through the third quarter.

The Buffanblu’s lead continued to get smaller after Lopes hit Jordan Nunuha for a 1-yard TD in the first minute of the fourth quarter to make it a 27-21 game.

The score would hold for nearly the next eight minutes before Hunter Fujikawa found Brady Lau coming across the back of the end zone for a 11-yard score with 3:24 left in the game.

“With Saint Louis closing in, we knew it was a must score drive to stop their momentum,” Fujikawa said.

“I knew a blitz was coming and trusted Brady getting open and making a catch. He has been making clutch catches all season.”

Leading the charge defensively to keep Saint Louis off the scoreboard early on was Punahou sophomore defensive end Tyler Lim with two tackles for loss, a sack and a forced fumble. John-Luke Twigg and Brodey Correa also came away with fumble recoveries for the Buffanblu.

“It was a full-team effort on both sides of the ball,” said Fujikawa.

“The defense played awesome and put us in great positions to score They made key stops when we needed them most and gave us the confidence to keep attacking on offense.”

The sophomore QB finished the game completing 25 of 41 passes for 274 yards and three scores while adding a 9-yard TD run to give Punahou a 13-0 lead after the first quarter.

Lau was the leading receiver with six receptions for 78 yards and a TD while Ane finished with five grabs for 63 yards and two scores.

Aaron Johnson led the ground game with 13 carries for 42 yards and a 1-yard TD run to give Punahou a 20-0 lead in the second quarter.

Lopes finished the game with 210 passing yards on 16 of 21 passing. He threw four TDs, with his final one coming at the 1:38 mark of the fourth quarter to make it a 33-28 game. Nunuha was Lopes’ top target with six receptions for 111 yards and two scores.