---

WAHIAWA - Quarterback Christian Akana accounted for two scores as defending Division I state champion Kamehameha won a defensive struggle, 21-7, in a non-league game at Leilehua Saturday.

The Warriors improved to 2-0 before a crowd of about 1,200 at the Mules' Hugh Yoshida Stadium. It was the season opener for Leilehua and the first time the hosts played on the newly-installed Field Turf surface.

The teams combined for just 362 yards of offense, with the Mules outgaining the visitors 193 to 169. Kamehameha recorded just 11 first downs, including only two in the second half. Much of the Mules' success came late in the game, but they still managed to move the chains just eight times.

"It was an ugly game, but it's always nice to win, of course," Warriors' coach David Stant said. "We actually played a good first half, didn't make too many mistakes or anything like that, but in the second half we just turned into a different team and that shows that we're still weak-minded."

Stant's Warriors' were far from polished, but did just enough to win. Kamehameha was stingy on defense and opportunistic on offense. Leilehua's first offensive possession ended with a botched punt attempt, which gave the Warriors the ball at the Mules' 2-yard line.

On fourth-and-11, the snap to punter Fred Padrones was high and he was forced to run for the first down. However, he was dragged down from behind at the 4 and an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty moved the ball half the distance to the goal. Two plays later Akana punched in a 1-yard score on a quarterback sneak and Kamehameha led 7-0 after the first quarter.

Leilehua's offensive struggles continued and after a Padrones punt the Warriors took over at their own 35. On first down, Akana fired a 37-yard gain to Charley Bollig IV off his back foot before connecting with Keanu Haina for a 19-yard pick-up to set-up first-and-goal from the Mules' 8-yard line. On third-and-goal, Jason Muraoka took the handoff from Akana, started right, cut back to his left and stretched across the goal line with 7:29 left in the second quarter. Drew Honda's extra point was good to make it 14-0.

On the third play of Leilehua's ensuing drive, quarterback Jordan Kalaau was intercepted by Kamehameha's Shaydon Terukina, who recorded a second pick off Kalaau late in the third quarter.

"The first interception we were in a zone and he threw it right to where I was," said Terukina, a 5-foot-6, 140-pound cornerback. "The second one we were in (man-to-man coverage) and I just tried to make a play on it at the right time."

The Warriors recycled the interception into their third score of the game. Kamehameha took possession at the Leilehua 13-yard line and needed just four plays to find the end zone. After picking up five yards on a shovel pass, the Warriors were left with fourth-and-six from the 9. Akana took a three-step drop and fired a pass to Bollig IV, who freed himself from his defender on an out pattern, to extend his team's lead to 21-0 with 3:30 until halftime.

Leilehua scored its lone touchdown with just 20 seconds left in the second quarter. Backup quarterback Kenan Sadanaga threw a 5-yard TD pass to Darrien Shealy to cap a nine-play drive that was set-up by Blaine Furtado's 45-yard kickoff return to the Warriors' 49-yard line.