Kamehameha's Noelle Sua-Godinet intercepts a pass intended for Farrington's Chantal Mailou. CJ Caraang | SL

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Thu, Nov 17, 2016 @ Farrington

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Kamehameha

45

Farrington

26

Final	1	2	3	4
Kamehameha (9-5, 21-6)	17	9	9	10	45
Farrington (9-1, 16-5)	8	4	7	7	26

• Points
• Rebounds
• Assists

M. Heimuli 10 pts  2/4 FTs

K. Vierra 12 pts  2 3pm  0/0 FTs

M. Heimuli 6 tot  1 off  5 def

K. Obrey 7 tot  3 off  4 def

M. Heimuli 3 ast

J. Paaluhi-Caulk 3 ast

KALIHI — Scoring on Kamehameha won't be easy this season. 

The Warriors used a pesky defense to cruise past host Farrington, 45-26, in a preseason contest at Richard Kitamura Gymnasium Thursday night.

Kamehameha held the Governors to 9-for-35 shooting on the night and forced the home team into 16 turnovers for its fourth straight win of the year.

"We're going to emphasize playing defense," said Kamehameha coach Joe Cho, who is in his third year leading the Warriors. "That's what I tried the first year, but last year I got away from it. I've always been a defensive coach, so we're really trying to stress that this year and hopefully that leads to a better offense." 

Leading the Warriors' effort was junior 5-foot-10 swingman Kiana Vierra, who used her long wingspan to record four steals, all of which came in the first quarter. She also had 12 points, seven rebounds, an assist and a blocked shot for a solid all-around performance.

Sophomore center Kalina Obrey and Keeanna Andres added seven points each while Princy Paaluhi-Caulk and Mikialo Maio chipped in six points apiece to round out the Warriors' top scorers.

The Warriors took an early 6-0 lead within the first minute of the game thanks to their full court press. Kamehameha's lead quickly grew to 10-1 after a put back by Obrey and a steal and finish by Vierra. The fast start helped Kamehameha take a 17-8 lead after the opening period. 

"We got a lot to work on in taking care of the ball," said Farrington coach Caroline Tatupu. "Kamehameha put the pressure on in the beginning. We couldn't handle the pressure too well and turned the ball over. Teams like Kamehameha, they always capitalize on those turnovers." 

The Warriors didn't force as many turnovers in the second quarter, but were able to let up just one field goal by the Governors in the frame. Farrington was 1-for-8 from the field in the period, which allowed Kamehameha to take a 26-12 lead at the break.

"Defensively we're playing well," said Cho. "I've been really pleased since last week because it really has shown that we really worked hard on defense, not just in the press, but in the half court defense as well."

After an Obrey put back to start the second half, Farrington was able to go on a 7-0 run to cut the Warriors' lead to single digits, 28-19.

"We just told them we have to clean it up a little bit, be a little bit more patient defensively," Tatupu said about the second half surge. "In the beginning we forced too many turnovers. Just be patient, move the ball, take good shots, look for good shots and try to get the ball to our bigs. It worked for a little bit."

Kamehameha regained control of the game on back-to-back triples from Vierra, which gave the Warriors a 35-19 lead.

"She's been tremendous on the press, tremendous on the 3s," Cho said of Vierra. "The first half wasn't all that great, but the second half you could see it when she hit two 3s in a row."

The Warriors didn't shoot the deep ball particular too well — going just 5-for-21 from 3-point land — but Cho wasn't too worried about the amount of missed 3-pointers.

"If the three is open we want to shoot it," he said. "I want to keep encouraging them to keep shooting it if it's open, but just be patient in the offense. I don't mind them shooting in the offense. I just hate when they come down, and that the only pass and they shoot a three. In the (Interscholastic League of Honolulu) you have to be able to shoot some 3s if you want to win it."

Although her team didn't come up with the win, Tatupu was proud of her team's half court defense. 

"I think we did pretty well. We had them moving the ball. They were trying to get shots and they couldn't. They got some pukas here and there, but for the most part, I was pretty happy with our half court defense — but you know we can't only play half court defense, we have to perfect everything else." 

Senior Molimau Heimuli led the Governors in the loss with 10 points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals.