Confident Kailua seeks second state title in row

By Wes Nakama
Advertiser Staff Writer

When it comes to winning the Wally Yonamine Foundation State Baseball Championship Tournament, No. 2 seed Kailua High School has been there, done that.

"When you get in a tournament situation, sometimes a team just gets hot," said Kamehameha coach Vern Ramie, whose Warriors (15-4) are seeded No. 1. "That's what happened to Kailua — their timing can't be better. But they won it all last year, and when those tough situations come up again, they feel confident because they've been there before."

No one played with more confidence than Kailua pitcher/utility player Kamaile "Doof" Santos. The OIA does not pick a tournament Most Valuable Player, but if it did, Santos would have been a good choice.

In a 13-0 first-round victory over Campbell May 8, Santos allowed only one hit in four innings and batted 4-for-4 with three doubles and three RBIs. The next day, he went 2-for-3 with two doubles and three RBIs and got the save in a 5-3 quarterfinal win at Wai'anae.

On Friday, Santos drove in the go-ahead run with a sacrifice fly in the third inning and pitched the final six outs of a 3-2 semifinal victory over Mililani. And in Saturday's championship game, he went 3-for-4 with a double and two RBIs to help the Surfriders defeat Roosevelt, 7-2.

Santos' four-day, four-game totals: nine hits in 13 at-bats (.692), with six doubles and nine RBIs, plus a win and two saves.

And all this after recently returning from a sprained right (pitching) wrist that kept him out of action for about three weeks.

"Doof plays well when the spotlight is on," Kailua coach Corey Ishigo said. "I think he's a different player since he came back — he found out how much he loves the game and he's seen what it feels like to be on the bench watching."

Another player who rose to the occasion for the Surfriders was senior Chad Kajiyama, who pitched a one-hitter with seven strikeouts against Roosevelt.

"Kaj always peaks late in the season," Ishigo said. "That's why he usually pitches better during the summer."

One could say Kamehameha has been at peak level all season. The Warriors made it through the rugged Interscholastic League of Honolulu regular season with a 12-2 record. They lost to Iolani twice in the ILH tournament, but came back to defeat Mid-Pacific, 6-4, for the overall league title.

"Man-for-man, our team last year may have had more talent physically," Ramie said. "But this group plays really well as a team, and that can make up for talent. It's a good mix of guys working toward a common goal."

Kamehameha's bulldog mentality perhaps is best exemplified by pitcher Shannon Kahale, a 5-foot-10 left-hander. In a 9-5 victory over Punahou that clinched the regular season championship, Kahale needed only 72 pitches through the first six innings before throwing 40 in the seventh to hold off a Buffanblu rally.

"He's a fiery competitor, and he has the heart of a lion," Ramie said. "He can be tired, but he'll stay in there and battle because he never wants to come out. We have a bunch of guys like that."

While the Warriors lost two players — shortstop Bronson Sardinha and pitcher Hubert Pruett — to last year's major league amateur draft, they are not exactly lacking for talent this season. Center fielder Tyler Perkins took second in the 100-meter dash at last weekend's state track meet with a time of 11.09 seconds and could be selected in next month's draft.

Third baseman/pitcher Zach McAngus has had a productive season at the plate and on the mound, and right fielder Nick Freitas is one of the state's top freshmen.

"Zach has really come through for us down the stretch, and Nick has had so many big hits for us all season," Ramie said. "He's started a lot of rallies, and he has phenomenal composure, especially for a freshman."

The other hot team in the tournament is No. 3 seed Baldwin, which upset regular season champion Maui three times last week to steal the overall Maui Interscholastic League title.

"What happened is we just started playing better," Bears coach Kahai Shishido said. "We're a young team and we're not going to overpower anybody. But we have some overall team speed, and we've been swinging the bat decent. We've been playing good defense, and our pitchers are learning to handle the pressures of playing at this level."

Shishido said junior catcher Meade Tabata and senior Chad Nikaido had good tournaments, and pitcher Ryan Racadio won two games last week. The middle infield of junior shortstop Gered Mochizuki and sophomore second baseman Shevis Shima also has come around.

"They've picked it up as of late," Shishido said.

Baldwin (14-6) won the MIL last year with a talented senior group, but lost eight starters and all three starting pitchers to graduation.

"We weren't even in the (title) picture at the beginning of the season," Shishido said. "But sometimes you get hot. That's baseball."