Kamehameha's four-year hold on the Interscholastic League of Honolulu boys track and field championships came to a heartbreaking end on their home track last night as senior standout Brandon Hardin was disqualified and his four first-place scores voided because Hardin had entered in too many events.

Punahou took first place in the boys division with 187 points, followed by Kamehameha (91) and 'Iolani (73). The Punahou girls (196) also won, beating Kamehameha (128) and 'Iolani (99).

Kamehameha head coach Sam Moku said he erred by entering Hardin, his top athlete, in five events. According to ILH rules, which follow National Federation of High Schools guidelines, athletes can enter only four events per meet. (The ILH is the only Hawai'i prep league to adopt NFHS rules for track and field meets.)

Hardin competed in the long jump, triple jump and 100-meter and 200-meter races during trials on Thursday. Moku added him to yesterday's 4x100 relay team, which triggered the penalty.

Moku said the mistake happened because he was thinking about the trials, where Hardin was in four events, and ahead to next week at the state championships, in which athletes may compete in as many as six events.

"I accept full responsibility for that," Moku said. "It was totally my fault."

When officials ruled on the penalty, Kamehameha was in second place and gaining on Punahou thanks to Hardin's first-place finishes in the long jump, triple jump, 100-meter run and 4x100 relay. He was still waiting to compete in in the 200-meter run.

The gaffe cost the Kamehameha boys 40 points (10 per first-place finish) and a realistic shot at defending the title.

A red-eyed Hardin said he was in "disbelief" when the penalty was assessed. Still, he said he will use the experience as motivation for his final meet next week.

"Next week is all about redemption," Hardin said. "I can't blame it on anyone and I don't want to."

And after his dominant, if wasted, performances yesterday, Hardin's opponents at the state championships could be in for a long night.

"Now he's pissed," said teammate Kyle Pidot, who outsprinted Punahou's Lucas Lam down the stretch to win the boys 800-meter run. "Next week, he'll be right there in the thick of it."

Though happy for the win, Punahou coaches said they felt for Kamehameha's coaches and athletes.

"I feel horrible," said Punahou boy's coach Mike Pavich, who sought out Hardin after the meet.

Punahou head coach Duncan Macdonald said he's worried about making the same sort of error.

"It's every coach's worst nightmare," he said. "I feel bad for Sam because I can just see that happening."

Punahou senior Samantha Cabreras cemented her reputation as a cold-blooded competitor by breaking her own meet record in the triple-jump with a distance of 39 feet, 8 1/2 inches on her final attempt. The record jump came after Cabreras faulted on her two previous attempts.

"I definitely felt the pressure," Cabreras said. "But I feed off that pressure."

Cabreras set the previous record of 38-8 1/2 at last year's ILH championships.

Kamehameha's Alana Meditz also broke her own record yesterday, finishing the 300-meter hurdles in 45.65 seconds, .22 seconds faster than the record she set during Thursday's trials.

Through all of the miscues (at least five runners fell during competition yesterday) and high emotion yesterday, at least one runner found time to appreciate the wonders of nature.

Punahou's Chris Burniske marveled at the blazing magenta-and-purple sunset that served as the backdrop for his 9:29.11 victory in the 3,000-meter relay.

"It was so pretty I had trouble concentrating," Burniske said, laughing.

Reach Michael Tsai at mtsai@honoluluadvertiser.com.