GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM Pearl City's Carlton Tanabe missed this pitch but singled in a pair of runs last night in the Chargers' win over Mililani at Central Oahu Regional Park.

Pearl City ends Mililani’s season

Pearl City's postseason seed was set well before its regular-season finale last night.

But the Chargers' 3-2 win over Mililani at Central Oahu Regional Park proved pivotal for two other teams.

Mililani could have extended its season by beating the OIA Red West champions, but saw it come to a close with the defeat. Instead, Kapolei will continue its season next week in the OIA playoffs.

Pearl City took advantage of a fit of wildness from Mililani ace Dustin Antolin to take a 3-0 lead after two innings, with catcher Carlton Tanabe providing the key blow with a two-run single in the bottom of the first.

The Trojans scratched out runs in the fourth and fifth, but couldn't quite catch the Chargers, stranding eight runners on base.

"It very tough, it's disappointing," Mililani coach Dean Sato said.

"(Antolin) was a little too pumped up, just tried too hard. But he did well, just one hit gave them the two-run lead. But we squandered away a lot of opportunities."

Pearl City starter Micah Nakasone picked up the win by containing the Trojans and got help from the bullpen, as Chace Numata and Kahana Neal protected the slender lead in the late innings.

As the division's top seed, the defending OIA champion Chargers will have a bye in the first round of the playoffs.

"It's good to win and Antolin is one of the better pitchers in the state and I'm happy for the boys today," Pearl City coach Gary Nakamoto said.

"This was a tough game; so to dig out a game this close was very good."

Antolin, who gave up just three hits and finished the game with eight strikeouts, walked six and hit two batters in the first three innings, with three of those baserunners coming around to score.

"He was kind of wild, so we told the kids to look at more pitches," Nakamoto said.

Duane Kiyota was hit to lead off the bottom of the first and Bryson Nakamura walked and Tanabe drove both in with a two-out single to right-center.

The Chargers added another run in the second. Bully Casarez led off with a walk and later scored on a bases-loaded walk to Nakamura.

Mililani scratched out a run in the fourth and added another in the fifth on Travis Jones' RBI single. The Trojans put the tying run on third with two outs, but Pearl City shortstop Ryno Acosta, who was bothered by cramps earlier in the inning, scooped up a sharp grounder up the middle and threw to first to preserve the Pearl City lead.

Pearl City's relievers then closed out the win and Mililani's season.

"They never shook me off, they just had confidence and threw it where I showed them," Tanabe said of the Chargers' three pitchers.