KEALAKEKUA — Erin Kaimuloa Bates picked up five hits and Konawaena took advantage of several costly Kealakehe errors on the way to a 16-6, six inning victory Wednesday at Gabby Inaba Field.
The Wildcats did their damage on 18 hits, scoring at least one run in every inning and multiple runs in all but one inning. The Waveriders also had 18 hits in a battle of offense, but the Wildcat defense played well enough, though not perfect, to limit the damage, forcing several Kealakehe runners to get stranded on base.
“Our defense was a little rough but our bats came through today, thank goodness,” Konawaena head coach Shellie Grace said. “We are building a lot of confidence, but we still need to work on our errors. It has been a busy season.”
The Waveriders could not find an answer for Bates, who was batting sixth in the order. She went 5 for 5, including a double with three runs and four RBIs. Leadoff hitter Jenai Halemano followed with three hits, three RBIs and one run scored. Rachel Sato, Shaylann Marie Grace and Sierra Amor had two hits apiece. Amor was 2-for-2 with a double, two walks, two runs scored and two RBIs.
“This was a rough outing,” said Kealakehe coach Loni Mercado. “We had a lot of defensive errors, but all we can do is practice and learn from this loss.”
Konawaena catcher Teizha Kaluna worked with Shaylann Marie Grace, the Wildcats starting pitcher, who picked up the complete game victory. She allowed five earned runs while striking out five.
“We played really well today and our bats really came along,” Kaluna said. “We worked well as a team and helped pick each other up.”
Konawaena is off to a 7-0 start to the season, led by a veteran group of returning starters. Captaining the team are Kaluna and the shortstop, Amor.
“Teizha is an awesome catcher and a good strong hitter, and Sierra is a good shortstop and also a good hitter,” Shellie Grace said. “Both are good leaders and push the team to not give up, especially when a player makes an error. They are good at getting the team back on track.”
Getting back on track is something Konawaena had to do on Wednesday. The team fell into a 3-0 hole in the top of the first inning but did not panic. The Wildcats cut the deficit to one run in the bottom of the first, and then pushed three runs across the plate in the second inning to take a two-run lead.
Konawaena allowed another Kealakehe run in the top of the third, but the Wildcats scored two in the bottom of the inning, four in the fourth and one in the fifth. The Waveriders added two runs in the top of the sixth inning, but by that time it was too late for a comeback attempt. Konawaena put the game away in the bottom of the sixth with a four-run inning.
For Kealakehe, seven players earned multiple hits. Batting third and cleanup, Jamianna Tan and Verly DeCasa picked up three hits each, while scoring two runs. DeCasa added an RBI. Kesha-Ann Mori-Pucong also had three hits. Breianna McLeod, Zayanna Sanchez, Brittney Keaunui and Ka’anoi Carvalho had two hits each.
The Waveriders had several chances to score late in the game, but could not get the timely hit they needed or would hit the ball right at a Wildcat defender.
The fourth inning did a good job of summing up the differences of both teams on this day.
In the top of the inning, Kealakehe tried to rally with two outs when Sanchez singled to right and Tan reached on an infield error. DeCasa then hit a blast to center, but the Konawaena center-fielder, Sato, ran backwards and made a tough over the shoulder catch for the third out, saving at least two runs in the process.
In the bottom of the inning, Grace and Kaimana Manzano led off with a pair of singles to right for Konawaena and Kaluna was hit by a pitch to load the bases with no outs. Bates doubled to center, scoring Grace and Manzano. Amor then singled to right, and with two outs, Halemano also hit the ball to right field, scoring Kaluna and Bates. The inning put the game out of reach with the Wildcats taking a 12-4 advantage.