At the end it was a little unnerving, parents had flown in from the mainland, years of achievement on the Vulcans softball field were in their last stages Saturday and, oh yes, there were games to play. ADVERTISING At the
At the end it was a little unnerving, parents had flown in from the mainland, years of achievement on the Vulcans softball field were in their last stages Saturday and, oh yes, there were games to play.
It all worked out for the UHH softball team, with a sweep over Chaminade by scores of 4-3 and 12-6 in the second game, and if they weren’t the prettiest of the season, they might be the most memorable in years to come.
“I think all the festivities made it hard for them to stay focused,” said Vulcans coach Callen Perreira. “Our pitchers didn’t have a good day, we started slow, but we got the wins and we’re ready to finish strong.”
The afternoon boosted the Vulcans’ win total to seven in a row – 14th straight against Chaminade (6-34, 3-21 in the Pacific West Conference) – and featured some highlights for the five seniors, Amanda Lara, Cristina Menjivar, Samantha Lauro, Danielle Wilson and Danielle Pulido.
Wilson had been inactive for 16 days after leading the staff for much of the last two seasons and she admitted to being nervous in the circle with her father in attendance for her last home game, the second one of the day.
“The combination of my dad being here and it being the last game got to me a little bit,” she said. “It’s not how you want to finish, but I’m just glad we won.”
Wilson’s last start at home was going to be a struggle after an error allowed two first-inning runs. She started the troubles herself by hitting the leadoff batter and walking the second batter, but Wilson got two infield outs and dialed up a third when Nicole Erichsen lofted a soft popup to first base. Menjivar settled under it but Lara came over from second, they collided and the ball fell harmlessly to the ground, giving the Silverswords a 2-0 lead on two unearned runs.
The Vulcans (21-19, 12-12) struck back in the third when Wilson, in her first plate appearance, led off the inning with single to right, advanced to second when Kristen Ishii was hit by a pitch, then Mari Kawano reached on a throwing error to set up Bailey Gaspar.
Gaspar chased starter Luana Moreno with the longest single you’ll likely ever see at the Vulcans’ diamond when she slapped a ball that was about two feet from clearing the right field fence. The throw came in quickly and Gaspar stayed at first.
Menjivar and Kacie Freudenberger each reached on singles and Pulido tilted the game with a grunt of a swing that lofted a high, deep fly ball well beyond the left field fence for a grand slam that made it 7-2 and prompted a celebratory feel for what had been a struggle.
“Yes,” she said, “before a question was asked, “that was my favorite hit.”
Pulido isn’t a stranger to home runs — this was her fifth of the season — but it was her first grand slam since high school.
“Just being here for four years taught me so much,” she said, “I can’t begin to even say how much I learned, how much I appreciate Hilo and UHH, it’s been great.”
The celebration was short-lived as Wilson got herself in trouble in the fourth with two base hit, a walk on four pitches that caused Perreira to visit the circle for a conversation. With the bases loaded, Wilson issued another walk on four pitches though Perreira stuck his head out of the dugout and hollered over one call.
She left the pitching circle for the last time with tears but they were wiped away when her teammates picked her up and persevered for the win.
In came Leah Gonzales, who gave up a hit and two runs before getting the third out. It was 7-5.
Gonzales struggled again in the fifth, giving up a run on three base hits to close to score to 7-6, but the Vulcans nudged it back to 9-6 after Freudenberger was hit by a pitch, Pulido moved her up with a single and they both scored on a throwing error after Brinell Kaleikini singled.
They got back in the groove offensively in the sixth when Mari Kawano singled after one out and Bailey Gaspar launched her 11th HR of the season, a line drive shot to left that was over the fence almost as soon as she got out of the batter’s box.
Menjivar drew a walk, Lara came off the bench and slapped a single then Kaleikini came through again with a run scoring double to leave it 12-6.
Vulcans 4 Silverswords 3
It took a while to wake up, but when they did, they won a game.
UHH struggled early, fell behind 3-0, then roared back with four runs in the sixth.
With one out, Menjivar put a level swing on a flat pitch and sent it over the right field fence to break up the shutout bid by Silverswords starter Kali Kitsinis.
“I just feel a kind of relief,” Menjivar said after the games, “not to be going, but it felt like there was a lot going on today, but we got better as we went.”
Bill Derleth, playing designated player in the game, doubled to center, Pulido dropped a little bloop single down the line in right and Kaleikini got every bit of a high fastball and sent it over the right-centerfield fence for a 4-3 lead that ended that way.
“It took us a while to get going and I don’t know why,” Kaleikini said. “I think (in the sixth), when Cristina hit that home run it gave us all a charge, lifted us up.”
When Derleth and Pulido both reached base, the stage was set, and though it was her third at-bat, Kaleikini had no idea what to look for after swimming on the first pitch in her first two plate appearances.
“I could have had a better pitch selection, but I made up my mind to hit something hard and I got a good pitch,” she said. “It’s been quite an experience this year, especially as a freshman, adjusting to the schedule and all the stuff we ran into.
“I never had to experience anything like that (schedule), but the upperclassmen brought. me though, they explained things, showed us the way.
“This is their day,” Kaleikini said of the seniors, “so it was fitting that Cristina got us going, this is their time.”
Leah Gonzales (7-5), came in relief of starter Cyanne Fernandez and pitched the last 2 1/3 innings to get the win, while Luana Moreno (4-16), absorbed the defeat.
The Silverswords broke through in the second inning after Fernandez breezed through the first, using just 10 pitches. She gave up two singles in the second but appeared to be ready for a second shutout inning when she had two strikes on the No. 8 batter, Kiana Ulufale, but then Fernandez brought a pitch over the plate and up, about waist-high, that Ulufale met with a ferocity that drove the ball over the left-center field fence for a 3-0 lead
