Heading into the the Pinto title game on Tuesday on Oahu, the Kona All-Stars needed just one win to claim the first title at the state PONY Championships for a West Hawaii team since Lil Soljahs did it in the Mustang 9 Division in 2014.
The 7-8 year old Kona squad met Ewa Beach in the title match, a team they had beaten earlier in the coach-pitch tournament. Ewa Beach stood at a disadvantage, with a loss already in the double elimination tournament, they had to beat Kona twice to claim the crown.
However, that is just what the team from Oahu did. The morning game was a battle, with Ewa Beach pulling out a 24-22 victory. Oahu then won the second game 10-0 in the afternoon.
“We wanted to win, but it was not that bad coming up on the short end,” said Kona Pinto All-Stars coach Kimo Kapela. “We were able to beat all the other Islands and we even beat the Oahu team once. We come from a small community and we were able to go to the big city with thousands and thousands of people and show them we could play. I could not be more proud of these kids.”
Kona had a chance to win the championship in the seventh inning of the morning game. According to Kapela, a ball landed about a foot foul that would have resulted in the winning run scoring. However, the game entered extra innings and Ewa Beach was able to score in the top of the eighth, and Kona was not able to tie it up in the bottom of the frame.
Coming out of such a hard fought loss, Kapela said his kids were both mentally and physically drained for the second game, which resulted in the 10-run loss.
“We are very young, but these games are only going to help us mature,” Kapela added. “This is the first time we played for a state title. Next time we get the opportunity, we will be ready.”