LIHUE — Kauai High School pitching hopeful Tyler Manibog said the mound felt good Saturday at Vidinha Stadium. Manibog was one of nearly two dozen baseball candidates joined by the baseball coaching staff, parents and the booster club in sprucing
LIHUE — Kauai High School pitching hopeful Tyler Manibog said the mound felt good Saturday at Vidinha Stadium.
Manibog was one of nearly two dozen baseball candidates joined by the baseball coaching staff, parents and the booster club in sprucing up the baseball diamond in preparation for the upcoming season.
Dean Toyofuku, president of the Kauai High School baseball booster club, said the effort was coordinated with Lenny Rapozo, director of the county’s Department of Parks and Recreation.
“The county dropped off the rock dust and dirt needed for the improvements,” Toyofuku said. “Everyone else pitched in and did the work.”
The scope of work included filling in the home plate area to alleviate, or eliminate, the flooding which occurs during rain, tilling the outer infield, filling in the pitcher’s mound, and applying rock dust on the third base and first base paths, Toyofuku said.
“One of the major projects this year, is working on the bullpens,” Toyofuku said. “We’re redoing the two mounds, and hopefully make it usable by the time the season starts. A lot of the credit for this work goes to Milton Koga. Basically, we’re doing the same thing the Lihue Baseball League does at the Lihue County Park.”
A parent who was helping out said there are other teams who use the Vidinha Stadium diamond, and encourages them to help by raking the infield following play.
Greg Kileen, taking the helm as coach of the Red Raider baseball team, said the team is shaping up nicely.
“We’ve got 22 participants signed up for tryouts which start next week,” Kileen said. “A lot of the boys, between 18 to 20 a day, have been coming to volunteer workouts.”
Tryouts for the Kauai High School baseball team will take place from Jan. 26 – Feb. 1.
“Once the tryouts are done, we’ll have the team in place in time for the Waimea tournament,” Kileen said.
Following the Waimea Invitational tournament, which is scheduled Feb. 6 – 8 at the Waimea High School field and Hanapepe Stadium, the Kauai Interscholastic Federation opens the season on March 15 when Waimea travels to the Ron Martin Field on the Kapaa High School campus for a doubleheader starting at 10 a.m.
Kauai High School will play its first game on March 19 when it hosts Kapaa starting at 3:30 p.m.
