[ HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL ]
CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARBULLETIN.COM
Mid-Pac first baseman Chris Freshour tagged Spenser McCready on a pickoff throw from pitcher Harrison Kuroda.
Mid-Pac edges
defending champs,
4-3
If Mid-Pacific pitcher Harrison Kuroda had to write an essay about yesterday morning's baseball game against Kamehameha, the title could easily be, "How to give up 11 hits and still win."
The Owls' right-hander somehow made it through four scary final innings to secure a 4-3, complete-game Interscholastic League of Honolulu victory over the Warriors at Ala Wai Field.
The defending state champion Warriors had runners at the corners with one out in the fifth, but Kuroda picked off Nick Freitas at first and then fanned Spenser McCready to end the threat.
"Harrison's location was a bit off today," said MPI catcher Kip Masuda, whose two-run single in the third put the Owls on top for good. "So we mixed in a lot more of the off-speed pitches. After a while, we stuck mainly with the off-speed stuff because they (the Warriors) were hitting his fastball."
Keola Kaluhiokalani ripped a single to left to start Kamehameha's sixth, but he quickly became a double-play victim when Owls shortstop Randy Rundgren grabbed A.J. Satele's liner and doubled up Kaluhiokalani off first.
In the seventh, Kuroda found himself in trouble again when Travis Young doubled to left with one out, but he got Dayne Ogawa to swing at an outside pitch for strike three and induced Freitas into a game-ending groundout.
"I'm happy right now, but not satisfied," said MPI coach Dunn Muramaru, who has led the Owls to four state titles. "Kamehameha is a great hitting team and because it was a day game, they were really seeing the ball well today. It's a good thing we weren't playing at our home field because they would have had (a bunch of) home runs."
The deepest spot in the MPI outfield (350 feet in right) is about the same as the shortest outfield dimension at Ala Wai.
With the victory, the Owls (7-1) maintained their grip on sole possession of first place, while Kamehameha (6-3) fell farther back.
At the plate, the Warriors were much more effective than in Thursday's 10-0 loss to Punahou, but their infield continued to be problematic. They committed four errors after making six defensive miscues against the Buffanblu.
"Our defense needs work," said Ogawa, the Kamehameha second baseman. "We've got to work to cut down on those errors, and we've got to do it with teamwork. There's too many individuals right now."
After Kuroda's RBI double gave the Owls a 1-0 lead in the first, Ogawa tied it in the bottom half of the inning by doubling and scoring all the way from second on Freitas' fly out to center. An MPI outfielder thought the catch was the third out and didn't get the ball in quickly enough.
Kamehameha's first error -- with two already gone in the third -- was crucial, and southpaw pitcher David Parrow was ultimately the victim. All three runs that eventually crossed the plate -- one on a bases-loaded balk and the other two on Masuda's single to center -- were unearned as the Owls took a 4-1 lead.
"Parrow (who ended with a four-hitter) pitched well today," Warriors coach Vern Ramie said. "He deserved a better fate, but we didn't support him very well."
At Ala Wai Field
Mid-Pacific (7-1) 103 000 0 -- 4 4 2 Kamehameha (6-3) 100 200 0 -- 3 11 4 Harrison Kuroda and Kip Masuda; David Parrow and Stuart Kam. W--Kuroda. L--Parrow.
Leading hitters--MPI: Kuroda 2b, RBI; Masuda 2-3, 2b, 2 RBIs. Kam: Travis Young 2b, Dayne Ogawa 2b, Spenser McCready 2-3, 2b; Keola Kaluhiokalani 2-3, 2b, RBI.Iolani 8, Maryknoll 7
Pitcher Andrew Inouye retired the side in the seventh inning, striking out two, to save Iolani's fourth victory on the season.
Maryknoll (0-7-1) 001 123 0 -- 7 7 2 Iolani (4-5) 111 023 x -- 8 8 2 Kody Seminara, Brett Ikei (6), Hiroshi Kuroda (7) and Bert Mitsunaga, Riley Yamamoto (6). Sean Freas, Jon Sakoda (4), Kahiwa Letman (6), Andrew Inouye (7) and Brian Tabata. W--Freas. L--Seminara. S--Inouye.
Leading hitters--Mryk: David McCoy 2-3, 2b, RBI; Ikaika Duyag 2-3, 2b, RBI; Tabata 2-runs. Iol: Wally Marciel 3-4, 3b, 2 RBIs; Kelly Teramoto 1-3, 2-runs, RBI.Punahou 16, Damien 9
Noah Phillips scored four runs and Landon Nakata had a triple and three RBIs as the Buffanblu outlasted the Monarchs.
At Ala Wai field
Punahou (6-3) 290 012 2 -- 16 16 0 Damien (2-6) 000 900 0 -- 9 11 6 Kasey Ko, Kurt Komatsubara (3), Logan Narikawa (4), Reid Ishikawa (4), Tyler Tokigawa (4) and Robert Kurisu, Michael Chock (4). Robert Cuizon, Chris Stephenson (2), Brandon Baguio (5) and Nick Zieser, Baguio (2), Zieser (5). W--Ko. L--Cuizon.
Leading hitters--Pun: Kaohi Downing 2b; Mark Veneri 2-5, 2 2b's; Mike Lam 2-4; Noah Phillips 3-5, 4 runs; Justin Ariki 2-3; Landon Nakata 3b, 3 RBIs. Dam: Kaimana Balanon 3-4, 2 2b's; Elijah Souza 3-5; Baguio 2b, 2 RBIs; Duncan Ebert 2 RBIs.Saint Louis 10, Pac-Five 7
The Crusaders sent 10 batters to the plate in a six-run third inning.
At Ala Wai field
Saint Louis (7-2) 006 121 0 -- 10 11 4 Pac-Five (1-6-1) 400 120 0 -- 7 11 2 Danny Lee, Ryan Sasaki (4), Edwin Apostol (7) and Jowen Murray-Thornton. Tyler Inouye, Nick Miyamoto (5), and Aaron Chilcote. W--Sasaki. L--Inouye.
Leading hitters--StL: Kelii Zablan 2-4, 2 RBIs; Kaulana Kauleinamoku 2-4; Sheldon Santiago 2-4; Johnny Gentry 4 RBIs. Pac: Paul Nishimura 2-4, 2 RBIs; Aaron Chilcote 3b, 2 RBIs; Ryan Takeda 2-4.
OIA WEST
Pearl City 18, Nanakuli 0
Kyle Fukuda's 2-run double highlighted a 10-run first inning for the Chargers.
At Pearl City H.S. field
Nanakuli (2-3) 000 00 -- 0 2 4 Pearl City (4-1) 1060 2x -- 18 16 1 Bryson Felisi, DeVan Harris (3) and Curtis Wright. Anthony Ganigan, Blake Kaneshiro (4), Austin Jo (5) and Corey Giammaldo, Kyle Poentis (4) and Paul Domingo (5). W--Ganigan. L--Felisi.
Leading hitters--Nan: Felisi 2b. PC: Michael Higa 2-3, 2b, 3-runs; Kaneshiro 2-4, 3-runs; Thomas Yamasaki 2-3, 2b, 3b, 2-runs; Kyle Fukuda 2-2, 2b; Devin Fukunaga 2-3; Craig Calantoc 2b; Rex Yamaguchi 2b, 2 RBIs; Giammaldo 3 RBIs.Campbell 12, Radford 6
Tristan Bailey's 2-run triple capped a seven-run first inning as Campbell held off a Radford rally.
At Campbell H.S. field
Radford (2-3) 005 001 0 -- 6 7 2 Campbell (3-3) 703 200 0 -- 12 13 5 Chad Asi, Kahoku Tampos (3) and Kyle Howell. Tristan Bailey, James Bannister (6) and Kendall Hodson, Ian Pantorilla (4). W--Bailey. L--Asi.
Leading hitters--Rad: Asi 2b, 2 RBIs; Andrew Atmosdera 2b, HR, 2-runs, 2 RBIs; Ian Traven 2b, RBI. Cam: Brandon Tanigawa 3-4, 2 RBIs; Bailey 2-3, 2b, 3b, 4 RBIs; Bannister 2 2bs; Keoni Gaui 2b; Victor Caphuela 2-runs.Aiea 3, Waianae 2
Aiea got three runs in the first two innings, and pitcher Shawn Hao made it stand, throwing a complete-game two-hitter as Aiea improved to 5-1 with a key OIA West victory over Waianae.
At Aiea Recreation Center field
Waianae (3-3) 000 002 0 -- 2 2 3 Aiea (5-1) 120 000 x -- 3 6 5 Clayton Uyechi and Mike Ferreira. Shawn Hao and Aaron Asher. W--Hao. L--Uyechi.
Leading hitters--Aiea: Kepa Wong 2b, RBI; Dylan Libadisos 2-3.Mililani 4, Kapolei 2
Down 2-1 in the bottom of the fifth, Kelsey Nakata's single to right center drove in Chaz Miyashiro and Reid Hirata for the tying and go-ahead run, defeating the Hurricanes.
At Mililani H.S. field
Kapolei (2-4) 100 100 0 -- 2 6 3 Mililani (2-3) 000 031 x -- 4 5 2 Colin Dumlao and Drake Kula. Cameron San Gregory and Kamaka Crabbe. W--San Gregory. L--Dumlao.
Leading hitters--Kapo: Bryan Padayao 2b; Charles Recamara 2-3. Mil: Kelsey Nakata 2 RBIs.Junior varsity
Campbell 13, Radford 3
OIA EAST
Moanalua 15, Kaimuki 1
Peter, Adam and Neal Arakawa combined for six of Moanalua's 15 hits. Andrew Blomberg struck out eight in three innings for Moanalua.
At Moanalua H.S. field
Kaimuki (1-4) 000 01 -- 1 3 8 Moanalua (4-1-1) 726 0x -- 15 15 0 Erik Leong and Janson Hew. Andrew Blomberg, Trevor Bell (4), Shawn Kaulukukui (5) and Donovan Souza, John Estores (4). W-- Blomberg. L--Leong.
Leading hitters--Kaim: Hew 3b. Moan: Peter Arakawa 2-4, 2b; Adam Arakawa 3-3, 2 RBIs, 2 2bs; Glenn Taijeron 3-3, 2b, 2 3bs, 4 RBIs; Blomberg 2-2; Markus Miyashiro 2b, 2 RBIs; Neal Arakawa 2b.Kalaheo 9, Farrington 3
Several Governor errors were a key factor in their loss at the hands of the Mustangs. Only four of Kalaheo's nine runs were earned, the rest scored on some of Farrington's 11 errors.
At Kailua Recreation Center field
Farrington (2-3-1) 000 300 0 -- 3 7 11 Kalaheo (3-2) 400 221 x -- 9 6 1 Brian Cabral, Alison Tolentino (5) and Matt Bell. Scott Galusha, Sean Tamba (4), Sonny Harbottle (6) and Jake Myking. W--Galusha. L--Cabral.
Leading hitters--Far: Bell 2-4. Kal: Myking 2-4; TJ Meyer 2-3, 3b, run, RBI; Cody Racoma 2 RBIs.Kailua 10, McKinley 2
Kevin Matsumoto went 4-for-4 with a pair of RBIs, and Sean Medeiros' 2-run double highlighted a five-run fifth inning as Kailua stayed undefeated.
At Kailua H.S. field
McKinley (1-4) 000 020 0 -- 2 4 2 Kailua (5-0) 013 051 x -- 10 14 0 Devin Okinaga and Andy Mitani. Chris Mahelona, Aaron Kent (6) and Sean Medeiros. W--Mahelona. L--Okinaga.
Leading hitters--Kail: Mike Kealoha 2-4, 2 2bs, 2 RBIs; Kekoa Sua 3-4, 3b; Ryan Rodrigues 2b; Medeiros 2-3, 2b, 2 RBIs; Derek Mailau 2b; Kevin Matsumoto 4-4, 2 RBIs; Matt Kinoshita 2b.Roosevelt 5, Kahuku 0
Rough Riders pitcher Kalani Yoshimura struck out eight as he shut out the winless Raiders.
At Kahuku H.S. field
Roosevelt (3-3) 012 100 1 -- 5 10 0 Kahuku (0-6) 000 000 0 -- 0 7 0 Kalani Yoshimura and Kevin Fujii. Kurtney Silva and Melvin Silva. W--Yoshimura. L--K. Silva.
Leading hitters -- Roos: Joshua Danz 3-4; Fujii 3-3, 2b; Ricky Eusebio 3-4, 2 RBIs. Kah: Joshua Bohnet 2-3; M. Silva 2-3, 3b.Kalani vs. Castle, PPD rain
The game has been rescheduled for tomorrow at 4 p.m. at Castle.
