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HALAWA - In the end, Kamehameha came up one yard short.

Javin Kawai stuffed Nephi Stevens' quarterback sneak attempt from the 1-yard line on the final play of the game to help Punahou escape with a 24-17 win over Kamehameha in a winner-take-all, one-game playoff for the Interscholastic League of Honolulu Division I championships Thursday night.

A crowd of about 6,000 at Aloha Stadium saw the Buffanblu, ranked sixth in the ScoringLive/OC16 Football Power Rankings, stave off a thrilling, fourth-quarter rally by the fourth-ranked Warriors. With the win, Punahou (10-2 overall, 7-1 ILH) claimed its first league title since 2008, when it went on to win the state championship.

No. 4 Kamehameha (7-4, 6-2) saw its season come to an abrupt end.

"It feels great," said Kawai, a junior linebacker. "We're going to celebrate tonight and get back to work on Monday."

Kamehameha had first-and-goal from the Punahou 2-yard line inside of the final minute. After a 1-yard run by Bronson Barretto, the Warriors burned their third and final timeout. Stevens was stopped for no gain on a quarterback sneak on second down and with the clock running, he tried again to another sneak, but Kawai halted his progress short of the goal line and the final seconds ran off the clock as the Buffanblu began their celebration.

"I just saw the (left) tackle block down, the quarterback bounced out and I just hit him," said Kawai.

Punahou head coach Kale Ane credited both teams after the game.

"There was a lot of heart on display tonight, but Kamehameha played great, they never quit and our kids hung in tough and made big play when they had to," Ane said. "We got clutch performances from both our offense and defense."

Ane challenged his defense during the final timeout.

"I told them 'We have to find some heart, we have to do what we have to do to make a play,'" Ane said.

Warriors' coach David Stant was proud of his team's effort, but disappointed in the end result.

"It was a tough loss, but I can't be more proud of my team though," Stant said. "You know, things weren't going in our favor, but they kept fighting and they fought hard and never gave up, but it was a hard loss ... especially when you have a chance to tie it toward the end."

It was Kamehameha who scored first, when it capitalized on a first-quarter Punahou fumble. Kamuela Grugier-Hill stripped Larry Tuileta of the ball and Kory Rasmussen recovered at the Buffanblu 19-yard line. Four plays later, Bronson Barretto scored on a 1-yard run and following the extra point by Kanekoa Pawn-White, Kamehameha led, 7-0, with 6:57 left in the first.

Timothy Kamana's 93-yard interception return early in the second quarter got Punahou on the board. The senior safety picked off Stevens' pass at his own 7-yard line and ran untouched down the left sideline and following the extra point by Kaimi Fairbairn, the score was tied at 7 with 9:38 left in the second.

Punahou seized the lead for good on its next possession. Tuileta connected with 6-foot-5 wide receiver Malik Johnson for a 53-yard touchdown pass with 6:05 to play in the first half.

"The safety was in, so I knew that if I could just get inside of the receiver, the middle would be wide open," said Johnson, who finished with three grabs for 63 yards. "Tui threw a great ball and the defender fell right after I caught it and I just ran as hard as I could."

Following a Warriors' three-and-out, Punahou extended its lead to 17-7 on a 37-yard field goal by Fairbairn, but Kamehameha's Kanekoa Pawn-White answered with a 36-yard field goal as time expired to make the score, 17-10 at the intermission.

The Buffanblu again went ahead by two scores on their first second-half drive. Steven Lakalaka capped a eight-play, 66-yard drive with his 2-yard touchdown run midway through the third quarter to give his team a 24-10 lead. The score was set-up by a 21-yard reverse to Johnson off a pitch from Lakalaka, who was the wildcat quarterback, two plays prior.

Kamehameha pulled within a score after Barretto scored his second touchdown of the game on the first play of the fourth quarter. The 7-yard run culminated a 13-play, 80-yard drive that included two third-down conversions. Punahou helped extend the drive with a personal foul (late hit out of bounds) following a third-down play. After the PAT by Pawn-White, the score was 24-17 with 11:54 left in the game.

The Warriors failed to make use of a Punahou fumble on the first play of its ensuing drive. Kamehameha took over at the Buffanblu 18, but turned it over on downs following an incomplete fourth-down pass fell through the hands of tight end Keoni Bush-Loo.

Following a Punahou three-and-out, Kamehameha had another chance to tie it or go ahead, but again turned it over on downs. This time, Stevens' fourth-down pass was too far for wide receiver Alii Pedrina, who had beat his defender to the end zone.

After Punahou punted away on its next drive, the Warriors' orchestrated their 19-play drive - which included a spectacular diving catch by Pedrina on fourth down to keep his team's hopes alive - but ultimately fell short at the Buffanblu 1.

"We're not satisfied, but we're happy," said an emotional Lakalaka. "Words can't describe how I feel right now."

Lakalaka finished with 118 yards on 18 rushes.

Barretto carried 26 times for 128 yards - both game highs - and Stevens finished 13-of-31 passing for 127 yards and an interception.

Punahou, which avenged a 17-10 loss to Kamehameha just three weeks ago, will draw a first-round bye in the upcoming First Hawaiian Bank/Hawaii High School Athletic Association State Championships.

See also: Kamana helps keep family title tradition going