LIHU‘E — Four Kaua‘i teams fill the eight remaining spots of the 7th Lihu‘e Baseball League Da Bash. The Lihu‘e Mustang Yankees will open against Maui in the semifinal game which starts at 8 a.m. at the Lihu‘e County Park,
LIHU‘E — Four Kaua‘i teams fill the eight remaining spots of the 7th Lihu‘e Baseball League Da Bash.
The Lihu‘e Mustang Yankees will open against Maui in the semifinal game which starts at 8 a.m. at the Lihu‘e County Park, Mustang field.
The Manoa Storm Mustangs face the MKYBL Angels in the second semifinal game, also starting at 8 a.m. at the Lihu‘e County Park, Pinto field, or the field closest to the parking lot of the Kaua‘i War Memorial Convention Hall.
The Lihu‘e Mustang Yankees are the sole hometown contenders for that division title, but the Lihu‘e Bronco Yankees are joined by the Lihu‘e Brewers and the Lihu‘e Diamondbacks as contenders for that division title.
The Bronco Yankees, only recently earning its division title with a 10-inning game against the Brewers, will open against the Manoa Pirates at 8 a.m. at the Bronco field at the Lihu‘e County Park.
The Lihu‘e Brewers will face the Lihu‘e Diamondbacks in another Bronco division semifinal at Isenberg Park at 8 a.m.
Winners of the semifinals in both divisions will meet at the Lihu‘e County Park for their respective titles starting at noon.
After holding a 9-0 lead over Extreme on the opening day of Da Bash, the Bronco Yankees clinched an 11-2 win, advancing to an 8-0 win over the Windward Giants and closing with an 11-7 win over the Kahala Krusaders, Sunday.
The Bronco Brewers, settling for second in the regular season, opened with a 14-4 win over the MKYBL Giants, advanced to a 13-0 shutout over Maui and closed with an 8-0 win over the Manoa Diamond Backs, Sunday.
The Lihu‘e Bronco Diamond Backs opened with an 11-1 win over Koloa, moving to a 4-1 edge over the Mililani Warriors before closing with a 5-1 win over the Longhorns, Sunday.
The Mustang Yankees opened with a come-from-behind 9-8 nail-biter against the Aiea Orioles before moving to a 16-1 win over the HK Dodgers and closing with a 3-3 tie against the Lihu‘e Red Sox, Saturday evening.
Roger Taniguchi, coach of the Westside High Voltage Bronco team, was happy with the team’s 1-2 record, noting he is already making plans for next year.
“I’ll be back if the LBL people invite me,” Taniguchi said. “I’ve been coming to this tournament ever since my son got to play in it, and even if I have to pick up boys from the side of the road, I’ll get a team together to play in this tournament.”
Taniguchi said they did some fundraising for team uniforms, but after someone sponsored the uniforms, he used the money to make sure all the players were fed and hydrated each day they participated in the tournament.
Other Kaua‘i teams participating included the Hammaz which finished with a 1-1 record and results from its final game not available at press time.
Koloa ended 0-3, dropping a heartbreaker 9-8 to the Mililani Warriors, Sunday.
Cory Gokan, the chair for the 7th Annual LBL Da Bash said he’s already trying to figure out how to expand the tournament for next year’s Memorial Day weekend.
