A healthy Kamehameha squad, armed with a new look, was ready to play the role of Cinderella last night.

'Iolani just said no. The defending champion Raiders got a 25-yard blast from sophomore Jordan Lee in the ninth minute of overtime as 'Iolani outlasted Kamehameha 2-1 at chilly Waipio Peninsula Soccer Stadium.

'Iolani (10-2-2) will face top-seeded Punahou today in the final of the JN Automotive/HHSAA Division I Boys Soccer State Championships. Game time is 7 p.m.

“;It was a hard-fought game,”; 'Iolani coach Chris Lee said with a sigh of relief.

Kamehameha switched from a normal 3-5-2 set to a 4-4-2, coach Andrew Ah Nee's secondary game plan.

“;We were a little surprised. They were able to control the ball more than we expected,”; said senior Nick Goo, who scored the game's first goal.

Goo got the ball just outside the 6-yard box and used his footwork to separate from a defender. His 10-yard rip from the right side into the left of the net made it 1-0 at the 22-minute mark.

Kamehameha (9-6-1) used rugged defense to keep 'Iolani's normally explosive offense under wraps. The first few minutes were filled with collisions and takedowns and hardly a call.

“;They won a lot of tackles,”; Goo said.

“;You just gotta adjust to the referees' calling,”; Lee added. “;It went both ways. We knew nobody's going to give each other anything.”;

Kamehameha finally got on the board when Michael Maertens' blast from midfield soared over the head of 'Iolani keeper Logan Nowack, who leaped but couldn't touch the ball. That tied the match in the 59th minute.

There were a few near-makes, including a tough miss in traffic by Kamehameha's Ridge Kaneshiro at the 70-minute mark.

Lee stepped up in overtime, taking a cross from Shudhi Datta and sending a shot from the middle that was untouched into the left side of the net.

“;We dominated most of the game,”; Ah Nee said. “;We congested the middle part of the field.”;

Ah Nee guided the Warriors to the state title two seasons ago. This year, injuries derailed them early on before they healed up and found their stride.

Tonight's title match between the two Interscholastic League of Honolulu rivals is a toss-up, he believes.

“;It's anybody's game. It's a different season now,”; he said.

'Iolani, meanwhile, is in sync despite losing key players to graduation last year.

“;It's taken a little longer for us to develop as a team,”; Lee said. “;But we're where we hoped to be now.”;

Nowack had five saves for 'Iolani. The Raiders had more shots on goal, 15-12. Both teams had two corner kicks.

Punahou, which last won the title in 2007, has 16 state titles. 'Iolani has six.