The Governors erupt in celebration after holding off Kaimuki for the OIA Division I championship. Steve Erler | SL

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Thu, Jan 26, 2017 @ Waipahu

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Farrington

45

Kaimuki

37

Final	1	2	3	4
Farrington (9-1, 16-5)	16	5	8	16	45
Kaimuki (9-1, 16-11)	7	5	7	18	37

• Points
• Rebounds
• Assists

V. Kintz 23 pts  5/8 FTs

M. Heimuli 22 pts  6/12 FTs

K. Espinda 9 tot  9 def

N. Peltier 11 tot  4 off  7 def

V. Kintz 3 ast

K. Carganilla 3 ast

WAIPAHU — The Farrington Governors were "all in" in their latest championship run.

Farrington got huge contributions from its supporting cast as it held off a late Kaimuki rally to win the Oahu Interscholastic Association Division I title, 45-37, at Waipahu High's Gymnasium Thursday night in a matchup that featured the league's previous two Division II champions.

The Governors (12-1), ranked sixth in the ScoringLive/Hawaiian Electric Girls Basketball Power Rankings, also held the Bulldogs to 2-for-22 shooting from behind the 3-point arc to capture their eighth league crown and first since 2014, when they won the OIA Division II title.

Farrington coach Carol Tatupu, who coached the Governors to three straight OIA Division I titles from 2009-11, was ecstatic to see her players' hard work pay off. 

"They had their challenges and they pushed and didn't give up, didn't stop believing in themselves, so I'm happy that the (OIA) season ended with a championship title," she said.

Senior post Molimau Heimuli was her usual self with 20 points (7-for-14 shooting) and eight rebounds, but she didn't have to do it alone. Kylie Carganilla hit two big treys in the first half and had 10 points with three assists, Chantal Mailou poured in nine points, eight rebounds and five steals and Naomi Peltier did work under the basket with five points and 11 boards. 

"They all stepped up and I'm very proud," said Tatupu. "We talked to the girls about everybody stepping up and playing because we knew that teams would try and shut Moli down, and we wanted to let them know that we're not just a Moli team and that other girls can contribute as well.

In the previous meeting between the two teams on Dec. 15, the Bulldogs (11-2) were able to pull away in the second half for a 50-35 victory. Heimuli said the Governors' chemistry wasn't strong early in the season, which resulted in their lone loss in league play. 

"We just found our team chemistry. Everyone has their own confidence and they used it, they showed it on the court tonight." 

Farrington got a big boost early in the contest when Heimuli drew two quick fouls on Kaimuki post Mele Loo-Godinet, who played a huge role in the Bulldogs' regular season win. Loo-Godinet picked up her first foul of the game 11 seconds into the contest and her second at the 6:31 mark of the opening period. 

"We knew (Loo-Godinet) was going to try and be aggressive against Moli so we just told (Moli) to play her game, take her to the basket to try and draw the foul," said Tatupu.

With Kaimuki's defensive presence in the paint on the bench for most of the first quarter, things opened up for the Governors on the perimeter as they were able to take a 16-7 lead into the second period. 

The Bulldogs were able to get open looks from the perimeter as well, but could not find the bottom of the net. Kaimuki went 0-for-16 from 3-point land in the first three quarters and trailed 29-19 heading into the final period of play. 

Kaimuki, who won the last two OIA Division II titles before moving up to Division I, wouldn't go down quietly however. Victoria Kintz was able to score on a steal and Kaelyn Espinda knocked down two triples to cut the deficit to two in the first two minutes of the fourth quarter.

Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, Kaimuki never got any closer than that. Peltier scored on a putback and Heimuli added four straight points to push the Governors' lead back to eight, 35-27. Kaimuki also didn't get any more 3-pointers to fall and Farrington was able to make free throws down the stretch to win the championship.

"Hats off to them, they played a helluva of a damn game today," Kaimuki coach Mona Faasoa said on the Governors. "We win some, you lose some, it's part of the game. We knew coming into thisgame it wasn't going to be an easy task. We missed all our shots, they made all theirs. That's just how basketball rolls.

Kintz led all scorers with 23 points in the loss.