WAILUKU — This was a tune-up for both teams, plain and simple, but it was exciting to the very end.

Kingston Kapu caught a 50-yard touchdown pass from Kalelepono Wong with 18 seconds to play to give King Kekaulike a 34-30 win over Maui High on the Sabers’ homecoming night at War Memorial Stadium.

Maui High (2-6) led by 15 points in the second half and by 11 with five minutes to play.

The Sabers pushed the lead to 22-7 on the first possession of the second half when Charlie Peterson caught a 28-yard pass from Nathaniel Russell and Ofa Falekaono scored the two-point conversion on a run with 9 minutes, 29 seconds left in the third quarter. That capped a 62-yard, nine-play drive.

Na Alii (5-1) climbed within three points with lightning-strike scores on each of their next two possessions.

Wong broke free up the middle on a 52-yard touchdown run to make it 22-13 with 7:48 left in the third quarter and Kalani Puu scored on a 9-yard run with 2:20 to go in the third. A bad snap on a punt set up Na Alii on the Sabers’ 14-yard line for Puu’s scoring run.

The Sabers later took advantage of a bad snap on a Na Alii punt to push the lead back to 30-19. Maui High took over on the King Kekaulike 25 and a penalty moved the ball to the 12. From there, Juan Casilla Lopez scored on a 12-yard run to make it 30-19 with 5:17 to play.

Na Alii got back within 30-27 on a 41-yard scoring jaunt up the left sideline by Puu with 4:57 left to play.

The Sabers took a 14-7 lead into the halftime intermission.

After a scoreless first quarter, Peterson hauled in a 70-yard touchdown pass from Nathaniel Russell on the second play of the second quarter. On the first play of the second quarter, Peterson dropped a pass that would have been a first down. He made up for it with his athletic play on the touchdown when he wrestled the ball away from a defender and outraced the secondary to the end zone.

After the Sabers stopped Na Alii near midfield, Kapu was stopped on a run out of punt formation, giving the Sabers the ball on Kekaulike’s 40-yard line.

After a 15-yard penalty gave the Sabers a first down on the 15, Braden Albrecht hauled in a 15-yard touchdown pass from Russell with 6:42 left in the half to make it 14-0.

Na Alii took their next possession 61 yards in nine plays to climb within seven when Puu scored on an 18-yard run with 1:33 left in the half.

The Sabers drove 61 yards to the King Kekaulike 14 before the first-half clock expired.

Puu finished with 182 yards on 17 carries for Na Alii, while Russell led the Sabers with 226 yards passing.

* Robert Collias is at rcollias@mauinews.com

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King Kekaulike 0 7 12 15–34

Maui High 0 14 8 8–30

Second Quarter

MH–Charlie Peterson 70 pass from Nathaniel Russell (kick failed), 11:43.

MH–Braden Albrecht 15 pass from Russell (Piercen Evans run), 6:42.

KK–Kalani Puu 18 run (Soana Akinaka kick), 1:33.

Third Quarter

MH–Peterson 28 pass from Russell (Ofa Falekaono run), 9:29.

KK–Kalelepono Wong 52 run (kick failed), 7:48.

KK–Puu 9 run (run failed), 2:20.

Fourth Quarter

MH–Juan Casilla Lopez 12 run (Falekaono run), 5:17.

KK–Puu 41 run (Cason Brooke run), 4:57.

KK–Kingston Kapu 50 pass from Wong (Akinaka kick), 0:18.

Junior varsity–Maui High 26, King Kekaulike 9.

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MIL FOOTBALL STANDINGS

Note: Only in-division games will count toward state tournament qualification; overall record in parenthesis

DIVISION I

W L Pct PF PA

Lahainaluna (3-0) 2 0 1.000 79 6

Maui High (2-6) 2 1 .667 85 69

Baldwin (0-7) 0 3 .000 32 121

DIVISION II

W L Pct PF PA

KS Maui (5-1) 1 0 1.000 34 21

King Kekaulike (5-1) 0 1 .000 21 34

Friday’s Result

King Kekaulike 34, Maui High 30

Today’s Game

Baldwin at Lahainaluna, 7 p.m.

Friday, Oct. 27

King Kekaulike at Kamehameha Maui, 7 p.m.

Saturday, Oct. 28

Maui High at Lahainaluna, 7 p.m.

End of regular season