HANAPEPE – The Hanapepe Rivermen pounded out 18 hits and took advantage of 14 walks to efficiently dismantle the Makaweli Indians 18-7 in seven innings Sunday morning at the Hanapepe Ball Park. The Rivermen broke open a scoreless ball game
HANAPEPE – The Hanapepe Rivermen pounded out 18 hits and took advantage of 14 walks to efficiently dismantle the Makaweli Indians 18-7 in seven innings Sunday morning at the Hanapepe Ball Park.
The Rivermen broke open a scoreless ball game with 12 runs in the third frame, highlighted by Derrick Lincoln’s towering three-run homer to center and two RBI singles by Vincent Nitta, Dean Nonaka, and Nolan Albarado.
Hanapepe extended its lead to 14-0 with a pair of runs in the fourth on Nonaka’s run scoring double and a Lincoln sac fly.
Lincoln’s 2-RBI double to the left field gap and a Wendall Nonaka knock-up-the-middle accounted for three more scores in the fifth.
Florens Castillo drew a bases-loaded walk to plate Kainoa Naka’ahiki in the sixth for an 18-0 Rivermen advantage before the Indians rallied for six runs in the home half and another in the seventh to trim the deficit.
Leading hitters for Hanapepe included Derrick Lincoln (4-4, double, homer, sac fly, 7 RBIs, 2 runs), Dean Nonaka (3-5, double, 3 RBIs, 3 runs), Nolan Albarado (2-3, 2 RBIs, 2 runs), Wendall Nonaka (3-3, double, RBI, 2 runs), and Russell Ijima (2-4, RBI, run).
Leighton Otoman (2-4, double, 2 runs) paired hits and teammate Kyle Nakagawa contributed a sixth inning grand slam to head the Makaweli offense.
Lihu`e 8 Kapa`a 6
In a proverbial battle of David vs. Goliath, David again prevailed as previously-winless Lihu’e, with only 11 players available for the nightcap, got a complete game nine hitter and clinching eighth inning two-run blast over the right field fence from Mike Cardinez to knock Kapa’a from atop league standings with the Rivermen.
The Builders took an initial 1-0 lead in the top of the second as Cardinez opened with a double to right, advanced to third on a Barry Kawamura fly-out, and raced in on Ahren Kaneshiro’s sacrifice fly.
Kapa’a knotted the affair in the home half as Kalani Miyashiro walked, stole second, and streaked to the plate on a Lihu’e throwing error, then jumped ahead when Dereck Lacaden scored on an Evan Gibson RBI-triple to the right center field fence.
Lihu’e returned the favor and claimed a 3-2 edge on Dan Tanimoto’s two-run third inning shot over the left field fence.
Miyashiro, Brandon Hirokane, and Lacaden each drove in a run in the bottom half as Kapa’a leap-frogged to a 5-3 advantage.
Koishigawa and Cardinez pitched scoreless fifth, sixth, and seventh frames for their respective squads before Cardinez’s decisive drive put Lihu`e ahead for good at 7-5.
Leading the Builders with multiple hit games were Dan Tanimoto (4-5, homer, 2 RBIs, run), Mike Cardinez (2-4, homer, 3 RBIs, 2 runs), and Ahren Kaneshiro (2-4, double, RBI, run). Curtis Sadamitsu also doubled for the victors in the sixth frame.
Ageless Gordon Muramaru (2-4, double, sac bunt), Brandon Hirokane (2-4, double, RBI), and Ryan Silva (2-3, stolen base, run) paired hits in a losing effort. Evan Gibson tripled in his lone at-bat while Dereck Lacaden drove in a pair of runs for Kapa`a.
Action continues next Sunday at the Hanapepe Ball Park as Kapa`a (4-2) hooks up with leader Hanapepe (5-1) in a critical match-up at 10 a.m. with the Kalaheo (2-3)-Makaweli (2-3) tilt to follow at 1 p.m.
