The 2015 World Masters Championship Softball Tournament will be one the Kona Legends will always remember. With a roster of only 11 players, the Kupuna League team set out to sunny Las Vegas with just one thing on their minds. Win a ring.
With a limited roster, the Kona Legends entered the tourney with the mindset to sweep the field in hopes of playing the fewest games possible. The team accomplished this feat by sweeping a field of teams from California, Oregon, Colorado and Maui in the double elimination tourney.
Winning five games in a row was one thing, how they did it was quite another.
In the first game, the Legends trailed the Base Hawgs of California by two runs going into the final inning. The team managed to rally and Alvin Sato’s blast over the left fielder’s head edned the game in a 15-14 victory. In the second game, the Legends managed to hang on to a one run win over the Stagecoach Saloon after blowing a 25-9 lead.
Against Scrap Iron in the third game, the Legends won another slugfest 25-20. Following that battle the Big Island based team squared off with Fresh Poke, an undefeated tourney team from Maui.
After 3 innings, Fresh Poke led 5-0. After falling down 7-2, The Legends rallied to tie the score heading into the last inning. The team from Maui was able to put two runs on the board, but the Legends scored three in the bottom of the seventh for a 10-9 victory.
In the championship game, the Legends faced Scrap Iron one more time. The Legends continued their hot hitting, winning the title by a score of 25-20.
The Kona Legends, led by head coach David Fukumoto, are in their second season as a team and finished the Kupuna League season 32-2.
While success has come to the relatively new team, the more important goal for the group is to find a way to stay in shape. They are also cherrishing the friendships that are forming with former and current teammates.
“We respect and admire the players who allowed us to play on their teams when we first started in the league and have built wonderful friendships with them,” Fukumoto said.
In prior trips, the Legends had supplemented their roster with a few players from other teams. This year, Fukumoto decided to go with only players from his Kupuna League roster. Since some of the players on the roster couldn’t make it, he decided to go with just the 11 players that could, and hoped nobody got hurt.
“Everybody told me I was crazy,” Fukumoto said, “but if they were good enough for Kupuna, they should be good enough for the tournament.”
The Kona Legends enjoy playing in the Kupuna League and plan on playing in the league for many years to come. However, before the next season starts, the Legends will focus on the the Tournament of Champions, which will be played February in Florida.
They will also need to order their rings.