KAILUA-KONA — With time – as long as there is some left, anything is possible. That was certainly the case in the District 4 Minors Little League baseball tournament championship game at Old Kona Airport Park on Monday. ADVERTISING KAILUA-KONA
KAILUA-KONA — With time – as long as there is some left, anything is possible. That was certainly the case in the District 4 Minors Little League baseball tournament championship game at Old Kona Airport Park on Monday.
During the nearly four-hour affair, there were a lot of twist and turns, lead changes, pitching changes, near victories, and then finally a champion as the West Side all-stars defeated North Hawaii in a 21-18 extra-inning slugfest.
“This was the best game ever,” West Side head coach Ben Lorenzo said. “I always tell my boys ‘it is not how you start, but how you finish’ and today was the definition of that.”
Both squads started their aces, who had dominated the competition in their previous tournament outings. Aiden Joaquin started the game for North Hawaii. In the opening game of the tourney on Friday, Joaquin struck out seven Hilo batters in 2 2/3 innings. His team went on to win in a rout, 18-2.
From the opposite dugout, Rocco Williams toed the rubber for West Side. Williams led his squad to a victory over North Hawaii on Saturday, striking out five in three innings of work. West Hawaii handled North Hawaii in that game easily, 13-3.
However, Monday would be a much different story, but with the same ending.
Neither pitcher would be as sharp as they were in their previous outing.
Kainalu Palore led the West Side offense with three hits. Kingston Lee added two. Jake Ellis had a triple, while Williams picked up two RBIs.
Joaquin was the leading hitter for North Hawaii. He had three hits, including two triples an a double. He led the team with two RBIs. Leyton Neves also had three hits, with a double and a triple.
North Hawaii took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first. West Side took a 2-1 advantage in the top of the second only to see the lead slip away in the bottom of the inning as North Hawaii pushed across three more runs.
The underdog North Hawaii squad outscored West Side 3-1 in the following inning, taking a commanding 7-3 lead. However, the offense for both sides was just starting to pick up.
As the innings moved on, both Wiliams and Joaquin met their pitch count limits and had to be removed from the hill. Both teams took advantage of the new pitching.
West Side scored seven times in the fourth inning to retake the lead. North Hawaii battled back and the lead continued to change hands until the game was all tied up at 15 apiece heading into the final inning.
West Side was held scoreless in the top of the sixth inning, leaving an opening for North Hawaii in the bottom of the sixth. With one out, Gabe Key walked and moved all the way around to third on a pair of wild pitches. However, back-to-back strikeouts ended the threat.
West Side pounced in the first extra inning, pushing six runs across the plate for a 21-15 lead. North Hawaii tried to rally in the bottom of the seventh, pushing three runs across the plate on a walk and two extra base hits, but West Side pitcher Kainoa Lorenzo would get the next two outs to end the game and seal the title win.
“I had to use my son to close the game, and I didn’t really want to because if we had lost we would have needed him for the second game,” Ben Lorenzo said. “Everybody contributed in this win.”
Kainoa Lorenzo picked up the victory while North Hawaii’s Arel Urbenuzo took the loss.
“That was a very good game, and excellent game,” North Hawaii head coach Earl Hoshida said. “The turnout wasn’t what we wanted but this is just a game that kids play. It was very exciting.”
