The Big Island Interscholastic Federation (BIIF) baseball and softball season continued over the weekend with matchups on each side of the island. Season play will resume Tuesday — follow the paper for coverage.
Kona 5, Hilo 4
Konawaena baseball had its home opener Saturday against Hilo in Kealakekua, winning 5-4 to improve to 3-1 on the year. Hilo fell to 1-1.
The Wildcats finished with seven collective hits to the Vikings’ six. Kona center fielder A.J. Blanco finished with a team-high two hits, while left fielder Kolt Baptista, catcher Maika Akamu, designated hitter Kainoa Lorenzo, third baseman Aycen Blanco and second baseman Tate Garana all logged one hit each.
Koa Nakagawa was the Wildcats’ winning pitcher — allowing six hits, four runs, three walks and striking out eight across 102 pitches (7.0 innings).
Catcher Cole Hatayama led Hilo with a double, while shortstop Kamren Agpalza, third baseman Talus Sato, second baseman Logan Schlueter, right fielder Alex Akau and center fielder Brennan Woods all had hits.
The Vikings went through three different pitchers in the loss, as Jaydon Geraci was the game’s losing pitcher. In 1.0 inning of action on the mound, Geraci allowed three runs. Rory Crabbe and Ghage Daquep also saw time pitching, each throwing 42 attempts.
Despite the loss, Hilo committed one less error than Kona with two.
The Wildcats will be back on the diamond at 1 p.m. Saturday in Hilo against Waiakea. The Vikings will host Kamehameha Schools-Hawai‘i at 3 p.m. Tuesday in Hilo.
Honoka‘a 8, Ka‘u 6
After falling to Pahoa earlier in the week, Honoka‘a baseball got back on track with an impressive 8-6 road win over Ka‘u on Saturday in Pahala. The winning Dragons improved to 3-1, while the Trojans dropped to a winless 0-4.
Honoka‘a posted 10 hits to Ka‘u’s 10. Center fielder Josyah Umeda, shortstop Jayden Salazr, second baseman Isaac Derego and catcher Chrys Coelho logged two hits apiece for the Dragons. Third baseman Noah Erwin and first baseman Donovan Valera also added one hit each.
Salazar and Umeda also pitched on the mound for Honoka‘a — combining for five hits and six runs allowed to go along with 15 cumulative strikeouts. Umeda did the majority of the heavy lifting, throwing for 5.2 innings and retiring 11 batters at the plate.
Second baseman Riley Koch and catcher Ian Beck led Ka‘u with two hits each, including Koch smacking a two-run home run to left field. Third baseman Caleb Crook also had a hit.
Cook and Eli Crook both pitched on the mound for the Trojans, but Caleb Crook pitched for the majority of the afternoon. He allowed 10 hits, seven runs and struck out 14.
Both teams finished the day committing six errors each.
Honoka‘a next faces Kohala at 11 a.m. Saturday against Kohala. It will be the first matchup of a doubleheader. Ka‘u will face the Cowboys at 3 p.m. Wednesday in Kapa‘au.
KSH 11, Kealakehe 0
KSH baseball drove in at least two runs in four of the six innings played against Kealakehe on Saturday morning in Kea‘au. The winning Warriors elevated themselves to 3-0 in the early season, while the Waveriders are still in search of their first win at 0-2.
KSH got its offense going right from the start, as outfielder Keagan Pacheco doubled in the bottom of the first — driving in two runs. Outfielder teammate Kamaka Ili singled soon after, scoring another run.
In the following inning, the Warriors kept up their hot batting, as infielder Justin Kubojiri logged an RBI double, infielder Braden Gomes hit an RBI single and a Kealakehe error scored another.
For the remainder of the morning, KSH scored five more runs to seal the run rule by the conclusion of the sixth inning.
Ili and Pacheco led the Warriors with two hits each, followed by infielder Noah Palea, outfielder Shiloh Santos, infielder Kanai Nettrour and Kubojiri smacked one apiece.
Kaikoa Nobriga was the winning pitcher on the mound for KSH, going 3.0 innings allowing just two hits, walking two batters and striking out four. Gomes closed the game over the final three innings, allowing no hits and runs while striking out another four.
‘Riders center fielder Elijah Sunderman and C. Blake led the visitors with one hit apiece. Drake Kennedy was the team’s losing pitcher, while bullpen teammates Bec Castillo and Kaden Telles also saw time on the mound.
KSH will next face Hilo Tuesday afternoon, while Kealakehe next hosts Waiakea at 3 p.m. Wednesday in Kona town.
Honoka‘a 15, Pahoa 12
Keira Agdeppa logged three hits, five RBI and an inside-the-park home run in Honoka‘a softball’s 15-12 win over the Lady Daggers on Thursday in Pahoa town.
Both teams went back and forth to start, but Honoka‘a’s hitting wouldn’t let up, and the visitors began to break away down the stretch.
In addition to Agdeppa’s big afternoon, first baseman Jaycia Silva logged four hits, while shortstop Kanai Tolentino, third baseman Kayliah Kauahi and first baseman Keilee Dacquel had three each for the Lady Dragons. Center fielder Brandi Hoopai also added two hits, while left fielder Danica Valera and right fielder Kiarah Cacabelos had one each.
Honoka‘a earned 20 hits to Pahoa’s three.
Kauahi was also the game’s winning pitcher, throwing for 5.0 innings while allowing five runs and striking out six with no hits allowed. Silva also saw time in the circle, going 2.0 innings while allowing three hits and striking out three.
Kawena Alatino was the losing pitcher for Pahoa in the circle, giving up all 20 hits.
Pahoa 2, Honoka‘a 0
In a low-scoring affair, the hosting Pahoa Daggers baseball team was able to escape the visiting Honoka‘a Dragons on Thursday at home to improve to 3-0 on the season. Honoka‘a fell to 2-1, suffering its first loss of the early season.
The Daggers logged four hits to the Dragons’ three, scoring one run each in the third and sixth inning. Pahoa got on the board first after first baseman Braydon Conda singled, scoring one run. K. Clear scored the other run off a Honoka‘a error.
But perhaps Tripp Kahsen was the player of the game, as the pitcher went all 7.0 innings allowing two hits, no runs while striking out an impressive 13 batters. Kahsen also smacked in two hits to lead the Daggers.
Shortstop Jayden Salazar, catcher Isaac Derego and second baseman Chyrs Coelho all logged a hit each for the Dragons. Salazar also pitched 3.0 innings, allowing three hits and a run while striking out four.
While Pahoa’s next matchup is to be announced, Honoka‘a will host Kohala at 1 p.m. Saturday at home.
Other games
The paper could not obtain results from the following weekend games by deadline. If any readers have official scores, please email clangs@westhawaiitoday.com:
• 3/15 Konawaena softball at Hilo
• 3/15 KSH softball at Honoka‘a
