HMS caps perfect season with championship

Fueled by unfinished business, the Hopwood Middle School Lady Hilitais turned their quest for redemption into a flawless run to the championship of the IT&E Interscholastic Girls Middle School Basketball League 2024–2025.

The south-side squad clashed with the north’s Tanapag Middle School Lady Tatagas in the finals and won it all, 31–19, last Saturday at the Marianas High School Gymnasium.

Defense wins games—and it won them the championship this year. The Lady Hilitais stole, rebounded, and converted turnovers, leaving TMS looking like a fish out of water. While the Lady Hilitais hustled their way to a commanding 17–0 lead, TMS floundered and struggled to even get close to their basket.

HMS’ Maria Enriquez, Hayven Moteisou, and Alina Eskova controlled the shooting game, executing nearly every attempt at the basket. Meanwhile, TMS couldn’t get a steady grip on the ball, with frequent mishandled passes leaving them scoreless as the first half neared its end.

Finally, with two minutes left in the half, TMS’ Aaleyah Fatialofa found an opening and put her team on the board, 2–17. Moteisou then fired a rimless three-pointer, and the first half closed with a 16-point deficit, 20–4.

In the second half, TMS got the ball rolling as Fatialofa delivered more baskets. But with each shot, HMS’ faster and more polished team executed play after play, moving the ball efficiently and taking open shots that TMS’ defense couldn’t contain.

Enriquez, now joined by Anica Aquino, continued to build the lead and shrink the distance to the championship trophy. Fatialofa gave it her all, scoring 14 of her team’s 19 points, but it was too little, too late. HMS then clinched the title and solidified their perfect season as the final seconds of the game expired.

HMS assistant coach D.J. Taitano said of their championship, “It was very surreal, but I think the best thing about it was that we got a shot at redemption. Last year, we fell short and we took third place unfortunately. But, we were able to come back this year and take the championship.”

With their undefeated run in the regular season and the playoffs, he said, “We’re very proud of them that they’re undefeated. The biggest thing I think was just trying to stay humble throughout the process—not to get too overconfident, so every time we came into play, we try to get the mentality that it’s do or die.”

Head coach Connie Camacho added that they will come back next year to defend their title, as only three players are moving on to high school and the majority of the team consists of sixth and seventh graders.

Taitano then thanked God, the parents, and their supporters. “Big shoutout to everybody that shows up for the girls,” said the 6th grade math teacher.

Afterwards, Enriquez, Esakova, and Moteisou were interviewed. For Enriquez’ part, she said of their win, “It feels good because last year, we had a hard time making it to the championship.”

As for the finals, Esakova said, “It was really tough but we managed to push through.” For Moteisou, she said what mattered was “teamwork.”