Farrington’s flaming finish finds an OIA Division II title at the end

HONOLULU – For the second time ever on the baseball diamond, the Farrington Governors are OIA champions. 

The Govs (9-2-1) completed a scorching hot three-week stretch with an OIA Division II title on Saturday, climbing above the Kapolei Hurricanes (9-2) to an 8-5 victory at Hans L’Orange Park in Waipahu. Using a whopping 17 free passes (15 walks, two hit batters), fourth-seeded Farrington needed just two hits all game to pull off a second upset in as many days as they closed April with a flurry of success. 

Kyle Hayase-Fong earned the win for the Govs, going 4+ innings and hitting a three-run home run to help his own cause before giving way to Thomas Nakashima for the save. Nakashima provided 3.0 steady innings on the mound in relief, helping Farrington escape a jam in the fifth inning and shutting down the Hurricanes’ offense after. 

Nakashima also turned in a perfect day at the plate, drawing five walks and earning two RBI at the top of the Govs’ lineup. The shortstop-turned-closer also scored two runs for Farrington, helping deliver the program’s first league title since 2018. 

Kapolei right fielder Brock Pamatigan tried to will the No. 2-seeded Hurricanes back to life with a 3-for-4 showing at the plate, scoring two runs and knocking in another in the loss. Halona Felix was tagged with the loss, going 2.2 innings and giving up four runs on eight walks and one big bases-clearing double to Farrington catcher Paul Hioki Jr. in the second inning. 

After falling on April 2 to Waianae, 3-2, Farrington has not lost. The Govs tied three days later against Radford, 9-9, but then ripped off five straight wins with different styles of play. From pitching duel victories to outscoring opponents in an offensive battle, Farrington has figured out ways to win while beating a few very talented squads. 

Both Farrington and Kapolei clinched spots in next week’s 2025 Wally Yonamine Foundation Baseball Division II State Championships with the OIA title game appearance. The Division II tournament runs from May 8-10 and will be played at Les Murakami Stadium on the campus of the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa.