Waiʻanae Stuns Moanalua in Overtime to Capture OIA Division I Flag Football Title

The title marks Waiʻanae’s first football championship since the school’s boys tackle football team won the OIA crown in 1997, adding another historic chapter to the rapid rise of girls flag football across Hawai‘i.

“It’s just amazing,” Waiʻanae head coach Kenneth Joseph said after the victory. “All glory to the Lord, and all glory to our girls. Their hard work and commitment is just amazing.”

The championship game featured momentum swings throughout.

Waiʻanae struck first on a 9-yard touchdown pass from Kawena-Lynn Kaluna to Angel Medeiros before Moanalua answered with three consecutive scores to take a 25-12 lead midway through the third quarter.

Defending OIA champion Moanalua leaned heavily on freshman quarterback Breidi-Ann Higa and standout sophomore receiver Jodie Keo, who connected three times for touchdowns. Keo finished with nine catches for 174 yards and all three of the receiving touchdowns for Nā Menehune.

Higa threw for 362 yards and added a rushing score in another explosive offensive performance for Moanalua.

But Waiʻanae never panicked.

“We told them before the game it was going to be an up-and-down battle,” Joseph said. “Don’t pay attention to the scoreboard. Just keep playing until that board hits zero.”

That resilience became the defining story of the night.

Kaluna answered with touchdown passes to Shyzelle Baron-Riveira and Makayla Gaston in the fourth quarter to erase the deficit and force overtime. Kaluna finished with 308 passing yards and five touchdown passes while adding 44 rushing yards.

Baron-Riveira hauled in 11 receptions for 92 yards and two scores, while Gaston added a 59-yard touchdown reception that shifted momentum back toward the Seariders.

Then came overtime.

Moanalua received the ball first in the extra period, but Waiʻanae’s defense delivered one of its biggest stops of the night to keep Nā Menehune off the scoreboard and immediately shift the pressure.

That opened the door for the Seariders to win it with a touchdown.

With the championship on the line, Kaluna found Cheylen-Brooke Beebe-Lee for a 14-yard touchdown pass to complete the walk-off victory, setting off a celebration on the Waiʻanae sideline as the Seariders officially dethroned the defending champions.

Cadence Lau anchored that defense throughout the night, terrorizing the Moanalua offense with six sacks despite battling illness entering the championship.

“She was fighting the flu through the whole weekend,” Joseph said. “But she just doesn’t quit. The kid is amazing.”

Lau said the team’s identity all season centered around one word: resilience.

“We never gave up and we kept on going,” Lau said. “We had confidence in ourselves and we kept pushing.”

Joseph credited the team’s growth from last season’s playoff heartbreaks to this year’s championship breakthrough to the culture the Seariders built throughout the offseason.

“We installed our core values — resilience became number one for us,” Joseph said. “Being able to trust themselves that they’re good enough, that was our philosophy from February.”

For Joseph, a longtime Waiʻanae coach deeply rooted in the community, the victory carried emotional significance far beyond the scoreboard.

“I love Waiʻanae from the deepest part of my heart,” Joseph said. “This is for the Seariders and all the Waiʻanae community.”

Now, the Seariders move on to the state tournament with momentum, belief, and a long-awaited football championship finally back on the west side.

PHOTOS BY MICHAEL LASQUERO & DANIEL FUJITA