Keaau coach William “Boy” Wong didn’t care that Lohi Kamakea-Wong was making her first start as a pitcher. And that she was just a freshman asked to perform well in a meaningful softball game.
Kamakea-Wong showed Wong all he needed to see when the freshman warmed up less than an hour before Tuesday’s Big Island Interscholastic Federation semifinal at Kealakehe.
“Her fastball was moving, and she had a nice drop,” Wong said.
Kamakea-Wong didn’t disappoint against the Waveriders, striking out six batters in four innings, and the Cougars’ offense supported its pitcher with a nine-hit attack as Keaau advanced to the Division I championship game with a 10-3 victory over Kealakehe.
The Cougars (12-4) will host Hilo (12-4) — a 2-0 winner over five-time defending champion Waiakea in Tuesday’s other Division I semifinal — at 3 p.m. Thursday. The winner will receive a berth in the Hawaii High School Athletic Association Division I state tournament, which takes place May 2-5 at Honolulu’s Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium. The loser will host the Oahu Interscholastic Association’s No. 6 seed at 1 p.m. Saturday for a state tourney berth.
In Thursday’s BIIF championship game, Keaau will have an opportunity to earn its first state tournament appearance since 2004. The Cougars got to this stage thanks in large part to Kamakea-Wong, who admitted being nervous before Tuesday’s game.
“(I was thinking), I’m going to end up walking a couple batters and doing bad,” said Kamakea-Wong, who allowed one earned run and just two hits.
However, after the Waveriders (8-5) scored two unearned runs in the first inning, her frame of mind changed. She helped her own cause at the plate in the top of the second by roping a game-tying two-run triple to left-center.
“(After the first inning), I kept telling myself, I’m going to get this girl out,” she said.
Keaau senior Jacy Pagala followed in Kamakea-Wong’s footsteps in the top of the third, drilling her own two-run triple to left and giving the Cougars the lead for good at 4-2. Then senior Chelsey Pacatang-Hirai followed with an RBI single that chased Kealakehe senior Summer McEntee.
Waveriders coach Wesley Takimoto turned to a finesse pitcher in Kelina Palmer-Kahananui, hoping to disrupt the Cougars’ timing at the plate.
Palmer-Kahananui prevented further damage in the third inning, stranding two Keaau runners on base. However, Keaau’s offense came alive again in the fourth inning, scoring four runs on three hits to take a comfortable 9-2 lead. After Pacatang-Hirai and Shaniya Kamakea-Wong strung together run-scoring singles in the inning, McEntee returned to the circle.
Keaau’s Rylann Hacoba helped set up the Cougars’ big third and fourth innings, going 3-for-4 with two runs scored. Pacatang-Hirai finished 2-for-3, and Shaniya Kamakea-Wong was 2-for-4.
“I have no problem with my girls’ (effort) because hats off to Keaau,” Kealakehe coach Wesley Takimoto said. “The girls tried, but there’s not much you can do when a team hits that good.”
McEntee suffered the loss, allowing six runs — five earned — on six hits in five innings. She struck out four and walked two.
Kealakehe’s offense mustered just four hits, with senior Brooke Rivera going 2-for-3 and McEntee going 1-for-3 with a sacrifice fly.
The Waveriders still had opportunities to score thanks to five walks by Lohi Kamakea-Wong and three more by relief pitcher Momi Cariaga. However, the Keaau pitchers escaped trouble, stranding nine runners in the second through sixth innings.
Cariaga, who entered the fifth inning after Kealakehe’s Joyann Nena drew a leadoff walk against Lohi Kamakea-Wong, allowed two hits and three walks in three innings.
Before the game, Wong made his decision on a starting pitcher after watching both Lohi Kamakea-Wong and Cariaga warm up.
Pacatang-Hirai and Cariaga logged most of the innings in the circle for the Cougars this season, but the Keaau coach said he needed Pacatang-Hirai’s defense in center field.
Also, he remembered how Lohi Kamakea-Wong entered a bases-loaded, no-out jam against Waiakea earlier in the season and kept the Warriors off the scoreboard, letting Wong know Kamakea-Wong can handle pressure.
The Cougars will face more pressure on Thursday against a formidable Vikings team that has beaten Waiakea twice this season.
“It’s going to be a dogfight,” Wong said.
Keaau 023 401 0 — 10 9 3
Kealakehe 201 000 0 — 3 4 2