Kapolei topples Farrington

With both teams understanding that a win would seal an OIA Red title, it was Kapolei that seized control in a 28-7 victory over Farrington.

The Hurricanes entered the game 4-1 in OIA play, while the Governors came in at 5-1, making the matchup a virtual OIA Red title game.

Kapolei started the game with consecutive three-and-outs. On the Hurricanes’ third drive, Farrington’s Chasen Castilliano picked off quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa for a 17-yard touchdown with 1:47 left in the first quarter. Tagovailoa recovered with touchdown passes to Kaeo Alvarez-Ranan and Jaymin Sarono in a span of under four minutes.

“We had a slow start, but I think after we kind of got comfortable with knowing what the defense was showing, everything just went smooth,” Tagovailoa said. “We just had to relax. We were kind of tense in the beginning, all getting hyped. Once we relaxed, it was fine.”

Tagovailoa finished 18-for-33 with 264 yards, two touchdowns and an interception.

The Governors leaned heavily on running back Challen Faamatau throughout the game. The senior carried the ball 21 times in the first half, the vast majority from direct snaps. He finished with 37 carries for 118 yards. The Govs threw the ball 17 times.

“We felt that we wanted to keep their offense off the field,” Farrington coach Randall Okimoto said. “We’ve got a lot of respect for (Kapolei offensive coordinator) June Jones and what he’s able to do, so that was the game plan. They did a great job of stopping it at the beginning, but I know we were wearing them down. But it was kind of hard because we got behind, so we kind of went back to our regular set.”

Kapolei had its chances to gain separation in the second half but let the Governors hang around with some mistakes.

“We didn’t capitalize on all of our opportunities offensively. A couple of turnovers hurt us, but we pitched a shutout on defense,” Kapolei coach Darren Hernandez said. “They didn’t score on us and so we felt like the defense played well. It was kind of a bend but don’t break defense at times, but we’ll take the win.”

The Hurricanes were on their way to adding to their halftime lead in the third quarter, but Wyatt Perez fumbled in the red zone after catching an 18-yard pass from Tagovailoa. Rushing touchdowns by Leighton Rosa and Dreyden-Steele Kawewehi in the fourth quarter put the game away for the Hurricanes.

Since joining Division I, this is Kapolei’s first OIA divisional title. It is also their first OIA title since winning the OIA White division in 2003.

Farrington’s regular season is over, while Kapolei closes with Nanakuli next week.

“We still gotta take care of business,” Hernandez said. “Yes, this is a big first step. Yes, we’re in the driver’s seat, but you can’t take anybody lightly.”