Coach John Kyle was not happy by the performance of his team.
"It is the worst performance since I started coaching the Otago women's team," Kyle said. "The backs were a shambles and I will be telling them that at training on Tuesday."
But Kyle still believes his team has the chance of reaching the national championship final.
"We started badly when we lost to Canterbury 19-0 last year," Kyle said. "We came back and made the final.
"I sensed before this match that our players thought we'd bag this one easily. We've had a rude awakening."
It was a dismal performance by Otago against a team that lost its five national championship games last year and was beaten 29-0 by Otago in Napier.
Hawkes Bay was boosted by four former members of the Otago Spirit team and three of them had a big impact on the result.
The most dynamic was hard-running Black Fern wing Piki Solomon, who bulldozed her way to two first-half tries that took the stomach out of the Otago team.
The first, after 3min, was started by fullback Maia Tua-Davidson, another former Otago player, when she counterattacked out of her own half and gave Solomon a 30m run to the corner.
The second, after 37min, was a classic performance started by halfback Julie Ferguson when she ran the short side and unloaded to Solomon 40m out.
The wing put in a neat chip kick over the defenders, gathered, and ran 15m to the line to give Hawkes Bay a decisive 13-3 lead at the break.
Otago was a beaten team when the strong-running Tua-Davidson made another break up the centre after 17min in the second spell and wing Te Maari MacGregor sped to the line to extend the lead to 21-3.
Black Fern and another former Otago star Shannon Willoughby spearheaded a Hawkes Bay loose trio with Shaan Waru and captain Chanel Huddleston that outplayed Otago at the breakdown and in support play.
Halfback Julie Ferguson pressured opposite Zoe Berry into having her worst game for Otago.
Berry's inept passing made life difficult for first five-eighth Kelly Brazier who was Otago's best back.
Brazier made a decisive break deep inside the Hawkes Bay 22m after 8min but wing Chloe Trubshoe dropped the ball with the line beckoning.
Black Fern wing Carla Hohepa is Otago's most potent attacking back but she was starved of ball for most of the game.
A pass mark must be given to the Otago tight five which had the better of Hawkes Bay until it grew tired and frustrated in the last 20min of the match.
A feature of the first spell was the way Otago dominated the set pieces. The scrum was solid and frequently pushed Hawkes Bay back.
The driving play of the tight five was a feature with captain and prop Beth Mallard leading by example with her strong driving play and strong scrummaging. Fellow Prop Kamila Wihongi also did her bit.
Lock Nicki Crawford also shone with her aggressive driving play and with her work in the line-out.
The tight forwards supplied enough good ball for Otago to win the game. They would have been frustrated by the inept display by the backline.
• Hawkes Bay 21 (Piki Solomon 2, Te Maari MacGregor tries; Amy Williams 2 penalty goals), Otago 3 (Kelly Brazier penalty goal). Half-time: Hawkes Bay 13-3. Referee: Ross Barnett.
