Farrington's Shaylen Tatupu-Timu attempts a 3-pointer in the second half of the OIA Division II championship game against Campbell. CJ Caraang | SL

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_20013050_GBKB_OIAD2_FARR-CAMP_CJCARAANG-1479.jpg - CJ Caraang | SL

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Sharpshooting and a suffocating defense was the winning formula for the Farrington girls basketball team Wednesday night.

The Governors connected on their first three shot attempts and never looked back as they breezed to a 41-28 win over Campbell in the OIA Division II championship game at Radford's James Alegre Gymnasium.

Junior Shaylen Tatupu-Timu led the way with 16 points and four made 3-pointers — one in each quarter — to power Farrington to its ninth overall league crown.

It was a redeeming moment for the Governors, who lost to Castle in overtime in last year's championship game after squandering a six-point lead with under a minute to play in regulation.

"It feels great honestly because last year, it really hurt us and it brought us down, but we made sure to bounce back and push through no matter what," said Tatupu-Timu.

Defensively Farrington held Campbell to 4-for-32 shooting (12.5 percent) from the field through the first three quarters by utilizing a box-and-one defense on Lauren Poniatowski, the Sabers' leading scorer.

"We wanted to take out what we thought was their main player who scoring wise was key for them," said Farrington coach Caroline Tatupu. "We figured if we can take her out of the picture and see what the rest of the team can do, that would be to our advantage."

Indeed.

The Governors led by as many as 20 points in the the third quarter as Campbell took a while to adjust and adapt to Farrington's game plan.

"Tonight we took a little longer to get into a groove and start executing and unfortunately against a team like that, you can't wait too long to turn on the jets," said Campbell coach Jazmine Corpuz.

MJ Peralta also had a solid game for the Governors with eight points, nine rebounds, three assists, three steals and one block. Charmmaine Balala was key as well with eight points in the first half while playing solid defense on Poniatowski before having to sit with foul trouble. Rounding out the key contributors for Farrington was Jorja Williams with 11 rebounds, three assists, three steals, two blocks and two points.

Poniatowski finished with eight points to lead the Sabers in the loss.

Both teams qualify for the Snapple Girls Basketball D2 State Championships, which start next Wednesday. All games in the D2 tournament will be held at the Hilo Civic Center.

Farrington, as the OIA champion, is expected to receive a first round bye in the 12-team tourney.