The Red Raiders and the Warriors will clash for the top prize in tomorrow’s Kauai Interscholastic Federation baseball championship game. Kauai (9-3 regular season, 4-2 second round) won the first round with a 5-1 record. The Red Raiders have been
The Red Raiders and the Warriors will clash for the top prize in tomorrow’s Kauai Interscholastic Federation baseball championship game.
Kauai (9-3 regular season, 4-2 second round) won the first round with a 5-1 record. The Red Raiders have been consistent all season and perhaps should have won the title if not for the season being split into two rounds.
“That’s always come into thought, but that’s the way it is,” said Kauai head coach Greg Killeen. “We all play by the same rules. What’s fair is fair.”
Killeen said the pitching and defense is why Kauai has been steady.
Junior Cal Koga and seniors Tyler Manibog and Nick Vallatini have done well for Kauai on the mound.
He did say, however, the team’s hitting still has room for improvement but saw progress in the team’s final game against Waimea on Wednesday.
“That’s one thing we’ve been working on. Putting a lot of time and effort into that,” the Red Raiders coach said. “Never going to be satisfied.”
Killeen said executing on the things that has brought his team to this point will give Kauai the edge.
“If we execute, we’ll be in a good place. Executing on all aspects,” he said. “It’s going to be a tough game. It’s evident over the last games we’ve had (against Kapaa). It’s going to come down to who will execute and make the least amount of mistakes.”
Kapaa (6-6 regular season, 5-1 second round) had a shaky start with a 1-5 record in the first round but surged back to win the second.
The biggest difference has been the return of senior starting pitchers Nick Tabura and Rashaan “Turtle” Kuhaulea.
“Having those two guys on the mound gave the rest of the team a boost,” said Kapaa head coach Bryan Aiwohi. “Having them back, they just executed better.”
Aiwohi added having experience from winning the KIF title last year can only help his team. He said he is not underestimating Kauai and is sure the Red Raiders will also be confident going into Saturday’s contest.
The Warriors coach said he’s had the team focused on fundamentals during practices leading up to the game and it’s working well.
“Back to the basics,” he said. “Working on bunting, fielding, hitting and game situations.”
He also said he hopes playing on the home diamond will help his team win the title match.
“Having home-team advantage helps,” Aiwohi said. “The two times we beat them, we played extra innings. It’s going to be tight.”
The championship game will start at 1 p.m. tomorrow at Kapaa High School.
