Koli Point action The Koli Point action , during 3 – 12 November 1942 , was an engagement between U . S . Marine Corps and U . S . Army forces and Imperial Japanese Army forces around Koli Point on Guadalcanal during the Guadalcanal campaign . The U . S . forces were under the overall command of Major General Alexander Vandegrift , while the Japanese forces were under the overall command of Lieutenant General Harukichi Hyakutake . In the engagement , U . S . Marines from the 7th Marine Regiment and U . S . Army soldiers from the 164th Infantry Regiment under the tactical command of William H . Rupertus and Edmund B . Sebree , attacked a concentration of Japanese Army troops , most of whom belonged to the 230th Infantry Regiment , commanded by Toshinari Shōji . Shōji ' s troops had marched to the Koli Point area after the failed Japanese assaults on U . S . defenses during the Battle for Henderson Field in late October 1942 . In the engagement , the U . S . forces attempted to encircle and destroy Shōji ' s forces . Although Shōji ' s unit took heavy casualties , he and most of his men were able to evade the encirclement attempt and escape into the interior of Guadalcanal . As Shōji ' s troops endeavored to reach Japanese positions in another part of the island , they were pursued and attacked by a battalion - sized patrol of U . S . Marine Raiders . Background . Guadalcanal campaign . On 7 August 1942 , Allied forces ( primarily U . S . ) landed on Guadalcanal , Tulagi , and Florida Islands in the Solomon Islands . The landings on the islands were meant to deny their use by the Japanese as bases for threatening the supply routes between the U . S . and Australia , and to secure the islands as starting points for a campaign with the eventual goal of isolating the major Japanese base at Rabaul while also supporting the Allied New Guinea campaign . The landings initiated the six - month - long Guadalcanal campaign . Taking the Japanese by surprise , by nightfall on 8 August the 11 , 000 Allied troops — under the command of Major General Alexander Vandegrift and mainly consisting of U . S . Marines — had secured Tulagi and nearby small islands as well as an airfield under construction at Lunga Point on Guadalcanal . The airfield was later named Henderson Field by Allied forces . The Allied aircraft that subsequently operated out of the airfield became known as the " Cactus Air Force " ( CAF ) after the Allied codename for Guadalcanal . To protect the airfield , the U . S . Marines established a perimeter defense around Lunga Point . In response to the Allied landings on Guadalcanal , the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters assigned the Imperial Japanese Army ' s 17th Army — a corps - sized command based at Rabaul and under the command of Lieutenant - General Harukichi Hyakutake — with the task of retaking Guadalcanal from Allied forces . Beginning on 19 August , various units of the 17th Army began to arrive on Guadalcanal with the goal of driving Allied forces from the island . Because of the threat by CAF aircraft based at Henderson Field , the Japanese were unable to use large , slow transport ships to deliver troops and supplies to the island . Instead , the Japanese used warships based at Rabaul and the Shortland Islands to carry their forces to Guadalcanal . The Japanese warships , mainly light cruiser s or destroyer s from the Eighth Fleet under the command of Vice Admiral Gunichi Mikawa , were usually able to make the round trip down " The Slot " to Guadalcanal and back in a single night , thereby minimizing their exposure to CAF air attack . Delivering the troops in this manner , however , prevented most of the soldiers ' heavy equipment and supplies , such as heavy artillery , vehicles , and much food and ammunition , from being carried to Guadalcanal with them . These high - speed warship runs to Guadalcanal occurred throughout the campaign and were later called the " Tokyo Express " by Allied forces and " Rat Transportation " by the Japanese . The first Japanese attempt to recapture Henderson Field failed when a 917 - man force was defeated on 21 August in the Battle of the Tenaru . The next attempt took place from 12 – 14 September , with the 6 , 000 soldiers under the command of Major General Kiyotake Kawaguchi being defeated in the Battle of Edson ' s Ridge . After their defeat at Edson ' s Ridge , Kawaguchi and the surviving Japanese troops regrouped west of the Matanikau River on Guadalcanal . As the Japanese regrouped , the U . S . forces concentrated on shoring up and strengthening their Lunga defenses . On 18 September , an Allied naval convoy delivered 4 , 157 men from the U . S . 7th Marine Regiment to Guadalcanal . These reinforcements allowed Vandegrift — beginning on 19 September — to establish an unbroken line of defense completely around the Lunga perimeter . General Vandegrift and his staff were aware that Kawaguchi ' s troops had retreated to the area west of the Matanikau and that numerous groups of Japanese stragglers were scattered throughout the area between the Lunga Perimeter and the Matanikau River . Vandegrift , therefore , decided to conduct a series of small unit operations around the Matanikau Valley . The first U . S . Marine operation against Japanese forces west of the Matanikau , conducted between 23 and 27 September 1942 by elements of three U . S . Marine battalion s , was repulsed by Kawaguchi ' s troops under Colonel Akinosuke Oka ' s local command . In the second action , between 6 and 9 October , a larger force of U . S . Marines successfully crossed the Matanikau River , attacked newly landed Japanese forces from the 2nd ( " Sendai " ) Infantry Division under the command of generals Masao Maruyama and Yumio Nasu and inflicted heavy casualties on the Japanese 4th Infantry Regiment . The second action forced the Japanese to retreat from their positions east of the Matanikau . In the meantime , Major General Millard F . Harmon — commander of U . S . Army forces in the South Pacific — convinced Vice Admiral Robert L . Ghormley — commander of Allied forces in the South Pacific Area — that U . S . Marine forces on Guadalcanal needed to be reinforced immediately if the Allies were to successfully defend the island from the next expected Japanese offensive . Thus on 13 October , a naval convoy delivered the 2 , 837 - strong 164th U . S . Infantry Regiment , a North Dakota Army National Guard formation from the U . S . Army ' s Americal Division , to Guadalcanal . Battle for Henderson Field . Between 1 and 17 October , the Japanese delivered 15 , 000 troops to Guadalcanal , giving Hyakutake 20 , 000 total troops to employ for his planned offensive . Because of the loss of their positions on the east side of the Matanikau , the Japanese decided that an attack on the U . S . defenses along the coast would be prohibitively difficult . Thus , after observation of the American defenses around Lunga Point by his staff officers , Hyakutake decided that the main thrust of his planned attack would be from south of Henderson Field . His 2nd Division ( augmented by troops from the 38th Division ) — under Lieutenant General Masao Maruyama and comprising 7 , 000 soldiers in three infantry regiments of three battalions each — was ordered to march through the jungle and attack the American defenses from the south near the east bank of the Lunga River . The 2nd Division was split into three units ; the Left Wing Unit under Major General Yumio Nasu containing the 29th Infantry Regiment , the Right Wing Unit under Major General Kiyotake Kawaguchi consisting of troops from the 230th Infantry Regiment ( from the 38th Infantry Division ) , and the division reserve led by Maruyama comprising the 16th Infantry Regiment . On 23 October , Maruyama ' s forces struggled through the jungle to reach the American lines . Kawaguchi — on his own initiative — began to shift his right wing unit to the east , believing that the American defenses were weaker in that area . Maruyama — through one of his staff officers — ordered Kawaguchi to keep to the original attack plan . When he refused , Kawaguchi was relieved of command and replaced by Colonel Toshinari Shōji , commander of the 230th Infantry Regiment . That evening , after learning that the left and right wing forces were still struggling to reach the American lines , Hyakutake postponed the attack to 19 : 00 on 24 October . The Americans remained completely unaware of the approach of Maruyama ' s forces . Finally , late on October 24 Maruyama ' s forces reached the U . S . Lunga perimeter . Over two consecutive nights Maruyama ' s forces conducted numerous , unsuccessful frontal assaults on positions defended by troops of the 1st Battalion , 7th Marines ( 1 / 7 ) under Lieutenant Colonel Chesty Puller and the U . S . Army ' s 3rd Battalion , 164th Infantry Regiment , commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Robert Hall . U . S . Marine and Army rifle , machine gun , mortar , artillery and direct canister fire from anti - tank guns " wrought terrible carnage " on the Japanese . More than 1 , 500 of Maruyama ' s troops were killed in the attacks while the Americans lost about 60 killed . Shōji ' s right wing units did not participate in the attacks , choosing instead to remain in place to cover Nasu ' s right flank against a possible attack in that area by U . S . forces that never materialized . At 08 : 00 on 26 October , Hyakutake called off any further attacks and ordered his forces to retreat . Maruyama ' s left wing and division reserve survivors were ordered to retreat back to the Matanikau River area while the right wing unit under Shōji was told to head for Koli Point , east of the Lunga River . To provide support for the right wing units ( now called the Shōji Detachment ) marching towards Koli , the Japanese dispatched a Tokyo Express run for the night of 2 November to land 300 fresh troops from a previously uncommitted company of the 230th Infantry Regiment , two mountain gun s , provisions , and ammunition at Koli Point . American radio intelligence intercepted Japanese communications concerning this effort and the Marine command on Guadalcanal determined to try to intercept it . With many of the American units currently involved in an operation west of the Matanikau , Vandgrift could spare only one battalion . The 2nd Battalion , 7th Marine Regiment ( 2 / 7 ) — commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Herman H . Hanneken — marched east from Lunga Point at 06 : 50 on 2 November and reached Koli Point after dark the same day . After crossing the Metapona River at its mouth , Hanneken deployed his troops along in the woods facing the beach to await the arrival of the Japanese ships . Action . Early on the morning of 3 November , the five Japanese destroyers on the express run arrived at Koli Point and began to unload their cargoes and troops about east of Hanneken ' s battalion . Hanneken ' s force remained concealed and attempted in vain to contact their headquarters by radio to report the landing . At dawn , after a Japanese patrol discovered the Marines , both adversaries began to engage each other with mortar , machine gun , and small arms fire . Soon after , the Japanese unlimbered and began to fire the two mountain guns that they had landed during the night . Hanneken , still unable to contact his headquarters to request support and now taking casualties plus running low on ammunition , decided to retreat . Hanneken ' s battalion withdrew by bounds , recrossing the Metapona and then the Nalimbiu River further west , where Hanneken was finally able to establish contact with his superiors at 14 : 45 to report his situation . In addition to Hanneken ' s report of sizable Japanese forces at Koli Point , Vandegrift ' s staff also possessed a captured Japanese document that outlined a plan to land the remainder of the 38th Infantry Division at Koli to attack the Marine Lunga defenses from the east . Unaware that the Japanese had abandoned the plan , Vandegrift decided that the threat from Koli Point needed to be dealt with immediately . Thus , he ordered most of the Marine units currently engaged west of the Matanikau to return to Lunga Point . Puller ' s battalion ( 1 / 7 ) was ordered to prepare to move to Koli Point by boat . The 2nd and 3rd Battalions of the 164th Infantry Regiment ( 2 / 164 and 3 / 164 ) prepared to march inland to the Nalimbiu River . The 3rd Battalion , 10th Marines began to move its 75 mm pack howitzer s across the Ilu river to provide artillery support . Marine Brigadier General William Rupertus was placed in command of the operation . At the same time that the U . S . forces were mobilizing , Shōji and his troops were beginning to reach Koli Point east of the Metapona River at Gavaga Creek . Late in the day , 31 CAF aircraft attacked Shōji ' s forces , inflicting about 100 deaths and injuries on the Japanese . Some of the CAF aircraft also mistakenly attacked Hanneken ' s men , causing several deaths and injuries to the Marines . At 06 : 30 on 4 November , the 164th troops began their march towards Koli Point . Around the same time , Rupertus and Puller ' s battalion landed at Koli Point near the mouth of the Nalimbiu River . Rupertus decided to wait for the army troops to arrive before attacking Shōji ' s forces . Because of heat , humidity , and difficult terrain the 164th troops didn ' t complete the march to the Nalimbiu until nightfall . In the meantime , the U . S . Navy cruisers , , and destroyer bombarded Shōji ' s positions with artillery fire , killing many officers and soldiers from the 9th and 10th Companies , 230th Infantry . On the morning of 5 November , Rupertus ordered the 164th troops to cross to the east bank of the Nalimbiu and envelop the inland flank of any Japanese forces that might be facing Puller ' s battalion . The two battalions crossed the river about inland and pivoted north to advance along the east bank . The army troops encountered few Japanese but were greatly slowed by difficult terrain and stopped short of the coast for the night . That same day , the Japanese troops that had been landed by the warships on 3 November , made contact with and joined Shōji ' s forces . The next day , Puller ' s battalion crossed the Nalimbiu as the 164th troops resumed their march towards the coast . On 7 November , the Marines and army units joined forces at the coast and pushed east to a point about west of the Metapona , where they dug in near the beach because of sightings of a Japanese Express run heading for Guadalcanal that might land reinforcements at Koli that night . The Japanese , however , successfully landed the reinforcements elsewhere on Guadalcanal that night and these reinforcements were not a factor in the Koli Point action . Meanwhile , Hyakutake ordered Shōji to abandon his positions at Koli and rejoin Japanese forces at Kokumbona in the Matanikau area . To cover the withdrawal , a sizable portion of Shōji ' s forces dug - in and prepared to defend positions along Gavaga Creek near the village of Tetere , about east of the Metapona . The two mountain guns landed on 3 November — in combination with mortars — kept up a constant rate of fire on the advancing Americans . On 8 November , Puller ' s and Hanneken ' s battalions and the 164th soldiers attempted to surround Shōji ' s forces by approaching Gavaga overland from the west and landing by boat near Tetere in the east . In action during the day , Puller was wounded several times and was evacuated . Rupertus , who was suffering from dengue fever , relinquished command of the operation to U . S . Army Brigadier General Edmund B . Sebree . On 9 November , the U . S . troops continued with their attempt to encircle Shōji ' s forces . On the west of Gavaga Creek , 1 / 7 and 2 / 164 extended their positions inland along the creek while 2 / 7 and other 164th troops took positions on the east side of Shōji ' s positions . The Americans began to compress the pocket while subjecting it to constant bombardment by artillery , mortars , and aircraft . A gap , however , existed by way of a swampy creek in the southern side of the American lines , which 2 / 164 was supposed to have closed . Taking advantage of this route , Shōji ' s men began to escape the pocket . The Americans closed the gap in their lines on 11 November , but by then Shōji and between 2 , 000 and 3 , 000 of his men had escaped into the jungle to the south . On 12 November , Sebree ' s forces completely overran and killed all the remaining Japanese soldiers left in the pocket . The Americans counted the bodies of 450 – 475 Japanese dead in the area and captured most of Shōji ' s heavy weapons and provisions . The American forces suffered 40 killed and 120 wounded in the operation . Aftermath . As Shōji ' s forces began their march to rejoin the main body of Japanese forces west of the Matanikau River , the U . S . 2nd Marine Raider Battalion — under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Evans Carlson , which had been guarding an airfield construction effort underway at Aola Bay , further east from Koli Point — set off in pursuit . Over the next month , with the aid of native scouts , Carlson ' s raiders repeatedly attacked trailing elements and stragglers from Shōji ' s forces , killing almost 500 of them . In addition , a lack of food and tropical diseases felled more of Shōji ' s men . By the time the Japanese reached the Lunga River , about halfway to the Matanikau , only 1 , 300 men remained with Shōji ' s main body . Several days later , when Shōji reached the 17th Army positions west of the Matanikau , only 700 – 800 survivors were still with him . Survivors from Shōji ' s force later participated in the Battle of Mount Austen , the Galloping Horse , and the Sea Horse in December 1942 and January 1943 . Speaking of the Koli Point action , U . S . Sergeant ( later Brigadier General ) John E . Stannard , who participated as a member of the 164th Regiment , stated that the battle for Koli Point was " the most complex land operation , other than the original landing , that the Americans had conducted on Guadalcanal up to that time . " He added , " The Americans learned once again that offensive operations against the Japanese were much more complicated and difficult than was defeating banzai charges . " The Americans later abandoned the attempt to construct an airfield at Aola . Instead , the Aola construction units moved to Koli Point where they successfully built an auxiliary airfield beginning on 3 December 1942 . The next major Japanese reinforcement effort failed during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal , undertaken as Shōji and his troops struggled to reach friendly lines near the Matanikau . Although most of Shōji ' s troops had escaped from Koli Point , the inability of the Japanese to keep their forces on Guadalcanal adequately supplied or reinforced prevented them from contributing effectively to what turned out to be Japan ' s ultimately unsuccessful effort to hold the island or retake Henderson Field from Allied forces .