A week after shutting down a prolific Leilehua passing attack led by All-State quarterback Andrew Manley, Kamehameha's defensive unit pulled off a "hana hou" last night against Kahuku's vaunted ground game.

The Warriors blanked the Red Raiders in the first half without allowing a single first down, helping Kamehameha take a 20-0 lead en route to a 34-21 victory in the First Hawaiian Bank/Hawai'i High School Athletic Association Division I Championship game at Aloha Stadium.

"This is the best feeling," said Warriors defensive end Beau Yap, who had two sacks among his five tackles. "I feel like I'm on top of the world."

Last week, Kamehameha sacked Manley seven times and limited him to 14 completions in 28 attempts for 120 yards in a 40-0 whitewash.

But the Warriors faced a different challenge last night against Kahuku's physical run-blockers, who averaged 6-feet, 256 pounds.

"They're a demolition crew, they're awesome," said Yap, a 6-2, 235-pound senior. "They're bigger than what we see in the (Interscholastic League of Honolulu), so it was a whole different ball game."

But Kamehameha adapted immediately, forcing the Red Raiders to punt on five of their six first-half possessions and making an interception on the other. Kahuku had only 31 yards of offense in the first two quarters.

"On film, we saw that they were strong and fast and technically sound," Red Raiders coach Reggie Torres said. "We simplified the blocking (scheme) and did the best we could to prepare, but they just did better than us."

Kahuku did not gain a first down until early in the second half and did not cross midfield until 7:14 remaining in the third quarter, after a pass interference penalty.

The Red Raiders finally reached the end zone on Evan Moe's 26-yard touchdown pass to Punga Vea with 6:25 left in the third quarter, and Kahuku closed it to 20-14 less than three minutes later after Fonoivasa Mata'afa's 36-yard TD scamper.

"That was my fault," said Warriors defensive coordinator Jimmy Nakamura. "We got too conservative."

But Kamehameha answered with TC Campbell's 10-yard touchdown pass to Charles Bollig IV, then later stretched the lead to 34-14 after Ryan Ho's 27-yard TD run with 8:02 remaining in the game.

By then, the Warriors defense stiffened again and did not allow the Red Raiders to score until Moe's 16-yard pass to Vea with 2:41 left.

"We started to relax in the second half, but then when they scored (to make it 20-14), we knew we gotta step up again," Yap said.

Kahuku offensive coordinator Walter Santiago said Kamehameha did not have any surprise schemes, but was difficult to move the ball against anyway.

"They're real good up front, even their big boys have quick hands and quick feet," said Santiago, whose son Walter Jr. started at cornerback for the Warriors. "That Yap boy, sometimes we sent two people at him and it was still difficult. Hat's off to them."

Read his blog on high school sports at http://preptalk.honadvblogs.com