KAPOLEI — If the state of Hawai‘i wasn’t already prepared, it knows now — watch out for the Hurricanes.

Kapolei handed top-ranked Mililani its first loss of the season with a 25-7 win Saturday night in an OIA Open Division contest at Alvin Nagasako Sports Complex on senior night.

After suffering its first loss of the season to Campbell on Sept. 11, Kapolei picked up its fourth consecutive win and improved to 7-1 overall and 4-1 in league play to close out the OIA regular season.

The Hurricanes secured the No. 1 seed and a first-round bye when the league’s Open Division playoffs begin Oct. 23. Kapolei will not play another game until Oct. 30 at the earliest.

The Trojans suffered their first loss of the season and dropped to 8-1 overall and 4-1 in league play.

Kapolei’s head-to-head win over Mililani gives the Hurricanes the OIA tiebreaker and solidifies their position as the No. 1 seed.

The Hurricanes’ win over the Trojans comes one week after Kapolei defeated Kahuku, last season’s OIA champion, for the first time since 2007.

“We’re steadily climbing,” Kapolei coach Darren Hernandez said. “We were always the fourth seed. It started in 2024. We had a collapse against Campbell when we were up by four touchdowns. We felt we should have played in the OIA championship that year. That game fell apart on us. Last year, we were the No. 2 seed. We got to the OIA championship and lost in a close one by a yard. So this year, we said, ‘Hey guys, we have the horses to compete for the No. 1 seed.’”

Sophomore offensive tackle Shyzen Akiona said the biggest improvement for the Hurricanes since their loss to Campbell has been their ability to control what they can control.

“We disciplined ourselves,” he said. “We limited the penalties and the turnovers. Since Campbell week, we’ve limited the turnovers, and that’s a big part of us. In the beginning of the season, we had plenty of turnovers, which couldn’t get our offense going and put our defense in bad situations.”

Both teams were dealing with significant injuries, particularly at receiver, but it was Kapolei that came away with the victory.

“This game, we had to fight a lot of adversity, dealing with injuries,” senior cornerback Hayden Hose said in a postgame interview with Spectrum OC16.

“We practiced hard the whole week. First group, second group, scout team. It don’t matter. This is very special for our standings, specifically when it comes to playoffs. I know coach Hernandez really wanted this win so that we get the first seed.”

Mililani drew first blood when quarterback Hunter Fujikawa scored on a 6-yard run with 3:25 remaining in the second quarter, but Kapolei took control from there.

After going three-and-out on its first four possessions, the Hurricanes responded to the Trojans’ score with a four-play drive. Sophomore quarterback Jonez Nunuha completed a 47-yard pass to freshman receiver Kameeiamoku Manners on third-and-10 before connecting with Zeph Salis for a 27-yard touchdown strike. Beckham Collman’s extra point tied the game at 7 with 2:23 remaining in the first half.

Mililani drove to the Kapolei 28-yard line on the ensuing possession before settling for a 46-yard field goal attempt that was blocked by Kapolei’s Ava Cook.

The Hurricanes capitalized on the special teams play with a scoring drive to take a 10-7 lead into halftime. Collman connected on a 27-yard field goal on the final play of the first half. A 37-yard catch-and-run by Mikey Kapahu helped set up the score and gave Kapolei momentum heading into the second half.

“That gave us big momentum,” Akiona said. “Mikey making a baller play, one-on-one, just getting there, getting the ball, giving us plenty of momentum. We came out second half firing.”

Kapolei senior RB Mikey Kapahu runs the ball against Mililani. | Photo: Brian Bautista

The halftime lead also helped Kapolei commit more heavily to its running attack.

Akiona added that one of the adjustments the Hurricanes made during the game was bringing in an extra blocker to help jump-start the ground game.

The Trojans went three-and-out on their first possession of the second half, which was also plagued by two false-start penalties, and Kapolei made them pay.

After forcing the punt, the Hurricanes put together a seven-play, 56-yard drive capped by a 12-yard touchdown run by Kapahu. The drive consisted entirely of running plays, with Kapahu gaining 53 yards on six carries.

Salis, who had the only other carry on the drive, scored the two-point conversion from the holder position on a fake extra-point attempt to extend Kapolei’s lead to 18-7 with 6:58 remaining in the third quarter.

The Trojans went three-and-out again after Kapolei extended its lead to multiple scores, setting up the Hurricanes’ final points of the game. Kapolei drove 72 yards on seven plays, capped by a 24-yard touchdown run by Kapahu in the final minute of the third quarter to make it 25-7.

“I’m just proud of the guys,” Hernandez said. “We came out and (Mililani) really did a number on our run game in the first half. We made some adjustments in the second half. We said, ‘Look, we’re going to have to adjust the way we play.’ We didn’t want to put pressure on our young quarterback. As you can see in the second quarter, he delivered some beautiful throws and got us back in the game, 7-7. But again, we didn’t want to put all the pressure on a young guy, so we wanted our run game to do its magic with Mikey.”

Kapahu finished the night with 107 rushing yards on 19 carries and two touchdown runs.

“He’s just a workhorse,” Hernandez said of his senior running back. “He’s a stud. I’m still waiting for University of Hawai‘i to offer him. This kid, he is a pure running back. Speed, power, he’s the total package.”

Mililani drove to the Kapolei 36-yard line on its next possession before Hose came up with an interception in the end zone while defending Mililani wideout Ashton Grace in one-on-one coverage.

“(Mililani) did trips right, I was on the backside,” Hose said of the play. “Pretty much I was reading Hunter’s eyes, and I knew he was throwing it deep to Ashton on that one-on-one. I just took it and did what I had to do.”

The Trojans turned the ball over on downs on their next two possessions, both times thwarted by pressure from Kapolei’s pass rush. Sophomore defensive end Mo Lopati-Mokiao forced an incompletion by Fujikawa near midfield on fourth down with 7:41 remaining in the fourth quarter. Sophomore linebacker Branzton Kaopuiki then recorded a sack of Fujikawa with 1:44 left in regulation after the Trojans had driven to the Kapolei 15-yard line.

“Maybe I’m biased, but I think we have the best defense in the state of Hawai‘i,” Hernandez said. “People can quibble with other teams, but these guys — we’ve only given up one touchdown in the fourth quarter this year, and it was a garbage-time touchdown against Kailua. We’ve given up zero touchdowns in the first quarter all season. This defense, they came to play.”

Hernandez also credited junior nose tackle Brock Lawler and senior defensive tackles Ava Cook and Issac Patu for spearheading the effort in the trenches. Lawler recorded a solo sack and shared another sack with Lopati-Mokiao, who finished with two quarterback hurries. The other defensive end, Noah Papu-Muaava, had a game-high three quarterback hurries and drew the attention of most of the Trojans’ offensive line.

Kapolei defensive end Mo Lopati-Mokiao takes down Mililani quarterback Hunter Fujikawa. | Photo: Brian Bautista

Fujikawa finished the game completing 25 of 42 passes for 236 yards and one interception. It was the first time all season he did not throw a touchdown pass.

Hose led Kapolei’s defense with a team-high eight solo tackles, an interception and a pass breakup. Cornerback Toa Leffler, who lined up opposite Hose, was next with seven solo tackles and two pass breakups.

With a lengthy layoff before the Hurricanes’ next game, Hernandez stressed to his team after the victory that the season was far from over as they awaited their next opponent in the playoffs.

“Now we’re the hunted,” he said. “We’ve always been the underdogs. We’re going to have to play big in big situations because every team is going to bring their A-game against us, so we just have to prepare and play our best.”

Akiona echoed his coach’s message.

“This win tonight only lasts till 12 o’clock. After tonight, we’re going to let it go and get back to the board and start working again. Back in the weight room, back in the classroom watching film, back on the field and putting in that work, ready for that next opponent.”

Kapolei head coach Darren Hernandez addresses his team after picking up his 160th career win as a head coach. | Photo: Michael Lasquero