Dane Awana hurled a shutout and Cid Moses drove in two runs to lead Waianae to a 3-0 win over Aiea in an Oahu Interscholastic Association Western Division baseball game yesterday. Seariders capture
OIA West crownBy Marc Dixon
Special to the Star-BulletinThe win allowed the Seariders to leapfrog Aiea in the standings and capture a first-round bye in next week's OIA Tournament as the division champion.
"This win was real important for us, it allows us to rest one more day in the tournament and save one of our pitchers," said Waianae coach Glenn Tokunaga.
Both teams closed the regular season at 8-1, but Waianae claimed the top seed with the head-to-head tiebreaker.
Aiea came into the contest averaging 10 runs per game and Waianae pitchers had allowed the fewest runs in the OIA. Proving the accuracy of old baseball lore, pitching beat hitting as Aiea's potent offense was stifled by Awana.
Using inside fastballs and a deadly change-up, the lefthander improved his record to 5-0. The senior notched four strikeouts and stranded Aiea runners on third base three times.
"I knew it was a big game but I was confident because I knew my teammates had my back," Awana said.
Awana's biggest backer was senior designated hitter Moses. Moses ended the day with three hits, but hit the ball hard all four times at bat. His last at-bat ended in the glove of Aiea centerfielder Bryan Tucker a few feet from the Aiea Tennis Courts.
"I was just seeing the ball real well," Moses said. "Nothing real different, just see the ball and swing."
The OIA Tournament begins May 9. Waianae will be the OIA West top seed. Aiea and Mililani are the West's second and third seeds.
"I feel good about our chances now with the bye," Tokunaga said. "Playoffs is do or die and I think our kids have been gaining confidence as the year went along and are ready now."
At Aiea High School
Waianae (8-1) 002 010 0 -- 3 6 2 Aiea (8-1) 000 000 0 -- 0 4 4 Dane Awana and Mike Ferreira. Blake Lamug, Nelson Hao (6) and Aaron Asher. W -- Awana. L -- Lamug.
Leading hitters -- Waianae: Cid Moses 3-4, 2 2b, 2 RBI. Aiea: Taylor Watanabe 2-3.
Pearl City 4, Leilehua 3
Darrick Tanigawa's two-out infield single in the bottom of the seventh inning scored Bryson Higa with the winning run in the Chargers' victory over the Mules.
At Pearl City H.S. field
Two out when winning run scored
Leilehua (3-6) 010 010 1 -- 3 9 1 Pearl City (6-3) 100 011 1 -- 4 9 6 John Dolac, Spencer Omalza (6) and Daylen Hale. Chad Itokazu, Jonathan Serapion (6) and Kellen Concepcion. W -- Serapion. L -- Omalza.
Leading hitters -- Leilehua: Omalza 2-3; Patrick San Nicolas 2-3; MacKenzie Hanson 2-3, 2b. Pearl City: Ryan Tanabe 3b; Serapion 2b; Brandon Wythes 2-3, 2 runs; Darrick Tanigawa 3-3, 2 RBIs.
Mililani 2, Waialua 0
Christopher Balatico struck out nine and combined with Nick Mizusawa on a one-hit shutout of the Bulldogs.
Mizusawa doubled and scored on an error in the second.
Mililani ended the regular season with just seven runs allowed in nine games.
At Mililani H.S. field
Waialua (3-6) 000 000 0 -- 0 1 3 Mililani (7-2) 010 001 x -- 2 5 2 Gavin Nakamura, and Charlie Tantog. Christopher Balatico, Nick Mizusawa (7) and Shawn Saito. W -- Balatico. L -- Nakamura. S -- Mizusawa.
Leading hitters -- Mililani: N. Mizusawa, 2b.
Waipahu 10, Campbell 6
The Marauders took advantage of six Saber errors to close the season with a win.
At Campbell H.S. field
Waipahu (3-6) 001 405 0 -- 10 8 1 Campbell (5-4) 131 100 0 -- 6 11 6 Shane Jelf and John Fauatea; Bill Tennent, Chaunsey Basilio (4), Shaunsey Saito (6) and Ikaika Trinidad. W -- Jelf. L -- Saito.
Leading hitters -- Waipahu: Jared Kiyabu 2-4; Chane Garcia 2-2; Ty Takahashi 2-4. Campbell: Jason Scholl 2-4, 2 2bs, 2 RBIs; B. Tennent 3-4; Keahi Kapana 3b; I. Trinidad 2-4; S. Saito 2-4.
Roosevelt 7, Moanalua 6 OIA East
Rough Chris Mols hit a three-run homer in the top of the first inning and earned a complete-game win as the Rough Riders clinched the OIA East title.
Roosevelt built a 7-3 lead, but Moanalua closed the gap on Geoffrey Say's three-run blast in the sixth. But Mols struck out the side in the bottom of the seventh to preserve the win.
At Moanalua H.S. field
Roosevelt (8-2) 400 201 0 -- 7 7 3 Moanalua (6-4) 001 203 0 -- 6 8 1 Chris Mols and Kevin Fujii. Scott Batula, Lorin Nakagawa (7) and Brett Tanigawa. W -- Mols. L -- Batula.
Leading hitters -- Roosevelt: Mols 2-4, HR, 3 RBIs; Cameron Kimura 2-3, 2 2b; Brandon Loo 2b; Corey Higa 2b, 2 RBIs. Moanalua: Tanigawa 2-3, 2b; Nakagawa 2-4, 2b; Neal Manutai 2b; Geoffrey Say 2-3, HR, 3 RBIs.
Kahuku 6, Castle 5
Cory Supranovich scored the go-ahead run the top of the seventh on Jeremiah Bohnet's sacrifice fly as the Red Raiders pulled out a road win over the Knights.
Kahuku finished the regular season tied with Roosevelt atop the OIA East and will be the division's second seed in next week's playoffs.
At Castle H.S. field
Kahuku (8-2) 004 010 1 -- 6 10 0 Castle (6-4) 040 010 0 -- 5 8 3 Melvin Silva and Alex Ponciano; Ryan Lum, Darin Hamada (7) and Jason Taniguchi. W -- Silva. L -- Lum.
Leading hitters -- Kahuku: Spencer Nakamura, 3-4; Cory Supranovich, 2-3; M. Silva, 2-4, 2b, 2 RBIs; Jeremiah Bohnet, 2b, 3 RBIs. Castle: Jordan Tom, 3-3, 2 3bs, 2 RBIs; Scott Shinsato, 2b.
Kalani 7, Kailua 5
Brandon Ishii hit a grand slam to highlight the Falcons' five-run third-inning rally as Kalani upset the Surfriders.
At Kahala Field
Kailua (7-3) 301 010 0 -- 5 10 2 Kalani (4-6) 205 000 0 -- 7 7 2 Garrett Yamamoto, Eddie Campbell (3), Mike Kealoha (6) and Chad Nishizuka. Bryce Sumida, Scott Komine (4), Ty Sarchet (5) and Brandon Ishi, Willis Kato (7). W -- Sumida. L -- Yamamoto. S--Sarchet
Leading hitters -- Kailua: Yamamoto 2-3; Jarid Kawamoto 2b, 2 RBIs; Cody Texeira-Vickery 2-3; Kamaile Santos HR; Lawrence Hamocon 2-4, 3b; Shaun Sasaki 2-3. Kalani: Scott Harada 2b, 2 RBIs; Ishii 2-3, grand slam.
Kaimuki 11, Farrington 1
The Bulldogs sent eight batters to the plate and scored five runs in the bottom of the sixth in a game that was shortened due to the 10-run rule.
At Kaimuki H.S. field
Six innings, 10-run rule
Farrington (0-10) 001 00 0 -- 1 2 3 Kaimuki (3-7) 330 005 -- 11 11 3 Paul-Alan Dela Cruz, Sanford McKee (4) and Criston Barba. Tino Caires, Leland Ohelo (4) and Ohelo, Shaye Asoau (4). W -- Caires. L -- Dela Cruz.
Leading hitters -- Farrington: none. Kaimuki: Jay Tokuuke 2-4, 2b, RBI; Caires 2-4, 2 2b, 2 RBIs; Kaulana Kaluna 2-3, 3b, 2 RBIs; Asoau 3b; Shaun Kitamura 2-2.
Junior varsity--Kaimuki 5, Farrington 1
Kaiser 17, McKinley 11
The Cougars outslugged the Tigers to end the season at 5-5. The Tigers finished 1-9. Details were not available.
Mid-Pacific 9, Iolani 6 ILH
The Owls survived an impressive power display by Iolani's Kala Ka'aihue to earn a spot in the tournament finals.
MPI scored six runs in the final two innings to give starting pitcher Ryan Basco the win. Ka'aihue sent two bombs into the left-field stands and drove in five runs for Iolani.
The Raiders face Kamehameha at 6 p.m. today at Ala Wai Field in an elimination game. The winner plays MPI on Saturday.
At Aloha Stadium
Mid-Pacific (14-4) 030 003 3 -- 9 11 1 Iolani (10-7) 100 202 1 -- 6 7 3 Ryan Basco, Patrick McGuigan (6) and Matt Inouye. Chris Loo, Dustin Goto (6), Tyler McCready (7), Kawiha Letman (7) and Kala Kaaihue. W -- Basco. L -- Loo.
Leading hitters -- Mid-Pacific: Troy Hanzawa 2-3; Blake Kaneshiro 2-3; Inouye 2-3, 3b; Basco 2b. Iolani: Kala Ka'aihue 3-3, 2b, 2 HR, 5 RBIs; Kila Ka'aihue 2b, 2 runs.
Kamehameha 2, St. Louis 0
Isaac Kamai tossed a four-hit shutout as the Warriors stayed alive in the tournament.
Kamehameha scored both runs in the fifth inning on RBi singles by Aaron Fuller and Baba Merino. St. Louis ends its season at 9-9
At Aloha Stadium
Kamehameha (15-3) 000 020 0 -- 2 7 0 St. Louis (9-9) 000 000 0 -- 0 4 1 Isaac Kamai and Baba Merino. Leon Julian, Kaimi Mead (6) and Jowen Murray-Thornton. W -- Kamai. L -- Julian.
Leading hitters -- Kamehameha: Keoni Ruth 2b; JP Kennedy 2-3; Zach McAngus 2b. St. Louis: Justin Humalon 2-3.
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