Pearl City routs
Kapolei

The power surge of the West is beginning to run through the color purple.

Kanani Numata and Shanna Vierra socked home runs as the Pearl City softball team overwhelmed Kapolei 10-3 yesterday afternoon at the Hurricanes' field.

Marina Guzman allowed two early runs but shackled the Hurricanes the rest of the way. The junior scattered eight hits and allowed two earned runs for the complete-game win. She fanned eight 'Canes and walked six.

Pearl City improved to 5-1 in Oahu Interscholastic Association Red West play. Kapolei dropped to 4-2.

The Chargers trail front-running Mililani in the Red West race.

It was a heart-wrenching experience for the Hurricanes, who learned just before pre-game warmups that senior football player Ikaika Tan had died in an auto accident.

"I passed his car around 1:30, but it was so wrecked, I couldn't recognize it," said infielder Austi Paris, a friend of Tan's. "It wasn't our best. Our minds were somewhere else."

Numata went 2-for-3 with a two-run homer that opened up a close game. Vierra finished 2-for-4. Krystal Plunkett went 3-for-4, and Lauren Fujisaki finished 2-for-4 to spark a potent Pearl City hitting attack.

Paris and Stephanie Sanchez each went 2-for-3 for Kapolei.

"Since our loss to Mililani, the team has worked hard the last three weeks," Pearl City coach Keoki Behic said. "This is the hardest-working bunch I've seen."

The visiting Chargers, hitting .455 as a team coming into the game, swung away from the start. Corrie Nishikida's fielder's choice groundout brought in Guzman, the leadoff hitter, for Pearl City's first run.

Plunkett followed with a deep fly to foul territory down the right-field line, bringing in Numata from third.

Kapolei cut into the two-run deficit with one run in the bottom of the first. Sheryl Rebinol led off with a walk, and then stole second and third. Tricia Warashima laid down a perfect bunt, allowing Rebinol to score.

Kapolei tied the game in the second with another manufactured run. With Charnelle Ioane at third and Sanchez at first, Rebinol struck out swinging. Sanchez took off for second on the play, and the throw to second sailed into center field. That allowed Ioane to score easily to tie the game at 2.

Guzman led off the third inning with a double to center, and Numata followed with a shot over the left-field fence approximately 200 feet away.

Kapolei pitcher Tajia Acierto settled down and had control until the fifth. Nishikida and Plunkett hit back-to-back singles before Vierra belted a towering fly that just got over the center-field fence for a three-run homer. Pearl City led 7-2 at that point.

The Chargers added three more runs in the sixth for insurance thanks to RBI singles by Plunkett and Vierra.

"Acierto is good, one of the best in the state," Behic said. "We had to stay off her rise-ball and be aggressive. She doesn't throw too many balls."

Guzman is one of the hardest-throwing pitchers in the state, but the difference this year is her location. "She's got a lot better control. She's been working on a bunch of pitches," Behig said.

Guzman agreed. "Last year, I couldn't find the glove," she said.

The Hurricanes saw a good dose of fastballs early, followed by rises and drops. "Kapolei is a good team," said Guzman, who plays on a summer team, the Kapolei Blastahs, under Hurricanes coach Tony Saffery.