LIHU’E — Lihu’e’s 6-9 win over the Kapa’a Cardinals in the tail end of Sunday’s playoff doubleheader sets the stage for the championship fight which will take place Sunday, June 30 at Hanapepe Stadium. The opener of the June 23
LIHU’E — Lihu’e’s 6-9 win over the Kapa’a Cardinals in the tail end of Sunday’s playoff doubleheader sets the stage for the championship fight which will take place Sunday, June 30 at Hanapepe Stadium.
The opener of the June 23 doubleheader saw Waimea capitalize on Koloa’s pitchers to take an 11-1 victory in six innings. Waimea will await the winner of Wednesday’s contest which will feature Lihu’e travelling to the Anne Knudsen Park in Koloa to face off against Koloa starting at 4:30 p.m.
The winner of the Wednesday contest will travel to Hanapepe to square off against the Waimea Blue Jays in a planned doubleheader. Both Lihu’e and Koloa need to best the Blue Jays twice to earn the Pony baseball title and the right to represent Kaua’i at the state tournament which will be held in Central O’ahu.
Waimea, however, holds the drivers’ reins as it needs to win just one game to take the title.
The Blue Jays answered a 1-0 Koloa lead in the third inning as they pumped five runs across the plate, and added another four in the fifth inning enroute to their 11-1 victory that was called in the sixth inning on the 10-run rule.
Drew Ueno, doubling off Travis Delima in the third, drew blood for Waimea in the third as he scored on an Aina Emayo throwout error at first. Emayo stole his way to third and crossed on another miscue throwout effort of Quinton Natividad.
Kaipo Resquer-Yorkman powered two more runs across the plate in the outing with a single to right-center scoring Isaac Castillo and Bryson Niheu for the 5-1 Waimea lead.
Castillo opened up the 4-run fifth for Waimea with a solo in-the-park homer to right center followed by Emayo chalking up a 3-RBI single to rightfield scoring Niheu, Keith Kauahi, and Kai Reyes.
The game ended with Castillo scoring again in the sixth on a Niheu RBI single.
Koloa’s run came in the first inning as Niko Elvenia scored on a Pat Kua single.
Castillo picked up the win on the mound for Waimea, allowing 6 hits, walking 3, but striking out 8 in the contest.
