Kamehameha's girls volleyball team rallied from match point in Game 2 last night to hand two-time defending state champion Punahou its first Interscholastic League of Honolulu loss in almost three years, 20-25, 28-26, 25-16.

The Warriors improved to 10-0 in the ILH, sharing the league lead with Iolani. The visiting Buffanblu fell to 9-1; their last ILH loss before last night came Nov. 15, 2002, against La Pietra. They won their next 48 league and state tournament matches after that.

"We really wanted this and fully prepared this week in practice," said Kamehameha sophomore Kanani Herring, who finished with a match-high 13 kills. "All we needed was to work together as a team, and that's what carried us through."

The Warriors rebounded in the second and third games after a crucial call swung the momentum Punahou's way in Game 1. Trailing 17-16, Kamehameha appeared to score a kill to tie it, but the point was reversed after the officials ruled the Warriors earlier had a back-row attack.

Instead of a 17-all score, the Buffanblu went up 18-16 and proceeded to stretch the lead to 21-16 before winning 25-20.

"We had a bad break, but after that game we were able to focus," said Kamehameha junior Alexis Robins, who added 10 kills. "That's something we've been working on — even if something bad happens and we lose a point, just side-out right away."

That situation arose again in the second game, after Liz Ka'aihue's kill put Punahou up 26-25 to set up match point. But Devon Bukoski answered with her own kill to tie it and an error put the Warriors up 27-26. Herring then got a solo block to force a third game.

"I was proud of how the girls ended Game 2," Kamehameha coach Chris Blake said. "They faced adversity, but they fought through it."

The third game was tight until the Warriors were able to build an 11-7 lead, helped by strong blocking and a quick middle attack.

The Buffanblu closed to 16-14, but Herring and Bekah Torres led a solid hitting and blocking effort to help Kamehameha run off seven straight points.

"In the third game, we didn't execute what we were doing well in the first two games," Punahou coach Scott Rigg said. "We went away from our game plan, and (the Warriors) got hot."

A kill by Robins ended the match, setting off a celebration for Kamehameha's first victory over the Buffanblu since Nov. 7, 2002.

"We've always had a hard time beating Punahou, so it feels good to finally break through," Blake said. "We were lucky to come out on top. It's a good win for our program, but we've still got a lot of tough matches left."

The Warriors play Iolani on Oct. 17; the Buffanblu face the Raiders four days later.

Reach Wes Nakama at wnakama@honoluluadvertiser.com.