Kamehameha trounces Iolani to tie for ILH lead
By Leila Wai
Special to The Advertiser
Sophomore right fielder Nick Freitas sat on the bench last week, nursing a bulging disc in his back. His doctor told him to take it easy.
He returned last night and did the opposite, exploding for three hits, including a triple, three runs and two RBIs, to lead Kamehameha past Iolani, 14-3, in an Interscholastic League of Honolulu baseball game at Ala Wai Park.
"It feels good," Freitas said of his back, which he injured during pregame warm-ups last week. "I was really excited to play."
The victory enabled the Warriors to tie the Raiders atop the ILH at 9-2.
"We have a long ways to go, and everybody still has tough games to go," Kamehameha coach Vern Ramie said.
"We have to take each game one game at a time and play our toughest. We gained a little bit of confidence and now that we are tied for first with Iolani; we kind of control our own destiny, and that is what we were looking for."
The Warriors took control early in the game, when they scored five runs on six hits in the first inning. A two-run triple by designated hitter Matt Morgado helped chase Iolani starter Dustin Goto, who lasted two-thirds of an inning.
They followed that inning with two more runs in the second and two more in the third.
In the second, Baba Merino singled in two runs.
The Warriors built a 9-0 lead in the third on a leadoff single by Dayne Ogawa, two wild pitches, an error, a stolen base and an RBI single by Freitas.
The Raiders broke through against Kamehameha pitcher Isaac Kamai with three runs in the bottom of the third.
The Warriors scored five more runs in the fifth inning, sending up nine batters. They had five hits in the inning, including Freitas' triple.
The game ended after five innings because of the 10-run mercy rule.
"It's kind of been up and down the whole year," Iolani coach Dean Yonamine said. "We've had games where we've gotten lucky and we can make plays and we're on and the last couple of games have been like this — we've given up 28 runs in the past two games and that is a season's worth already.
"We have to pitch better. We were terrible today."
Kamai allowed no hits the final two innings, retiring the final four batters. He finished with five strikeouts and five walks.
"It felt good to knock off the No. 1 team, and to put our team back into contention," Kamai said.
KAMEHAMEHA (9-2) 522 05—14 15 2
IOLANI (9-2) 003 00— 3 4 3
Isaac Kamai and Baba Merino. Dustin Goto, Eric Muraoka (1), Andrew Inouye (5) and Kala Ka'aihue. W—Kamai. L—Goto.
Leading hitters: Kamehameha—Nick Freitas 3-3, triple, 2 RBIs, 3 runs; JP Kennedy 2-3; Matt Morgado 2-3, triple, 2 RBIs; Ryson Mauricio 2-3, 2 runs; Dayne Ogawa 3-3, triple, 2 runs.
• MID-PACIFIC 5, PUNAHOU 2: Ryan Asato and Grant Yamaguchi hit two-run doubles in the fifth inning for the Owls.
Harrison Kuroda and Blake Kaneshiro combined on a seven-hitter for Mid-Pacific.
Punahou (7-4) 010 000 1—2 7 1
Mid-Pacific (5-5-1) 001 040 X—5 8 1
Jared Pate, Kurt Fujitani (5) and Michael Kim. Harrison Kuroda, Blake Kaneshiro (7) and Jeff Mizokawa. W—Kuroda. L—Pate.
Leading hitters: Punahou—Kim 2-3; Landon Nakata homer; Kyle Cabe 2-3. Mid-Pacific—Keven Whalen 2-3; Ryan Asato 2-3, 2 doubles, 3 RBIs; Grant Yamaguchi double, 2 RBIs.
• MARYKNOLL 15, DAMIEN 2: Kody Seminara hit a two-run double during a 10-run fourth inning that propelled the Spartans to their first win of the season.
Seminara spaced six hits and struck out six in a game shortened to five innings.
Maryknoll (1-10) 023 (10)0—15 8 1
Damien (2-8-1) 000 02— 2 6 6
Kody Seminara and Brian Tabata, Scott Fukuhara (4). Chase Masuda, Brandon Baguio (4) and Nick Zieser W—Seminara. L—Masuda.
Leading hitters: Maryknoll— Ryan Matsumoto triple, 2 runs, 2 RBIs; Seminara double, 2 runs, 3 RBIs; Ian Yamashita 2-3, 2 runs, 3 RBIs; Brett Ikei double. Damien—Elijah Souza triple; Justin Cole 2-3.
• SAINT LOUIS 15, PAC-FIVE 2: The Crusaders scored six runs on seven hits in the second and eight runs on eight hits in the fourth in a game shortened to five innings by the mercy rule.
Shane Butcher, Chester Wilson and Ed Apostol all batted 3-for-3 for Saint Louis.
Pac-Five (4-6-1) 200 00— 2 7 1
Saint Louis (5-5-1) 061 8X—15 17 1
Tyler Inouye, Andrew Ontai (2), Cheyne Abbey-Chong (4) and Colby Holt. Dan Lee, Bobby George (5) and Jowen Murray. W—Lee. L—Inouye.
Leading hitters: Pac-Five—Jeris Nakamasu 2-3; Jacob Mellor 2-3; Paul Nishimura 2-3, double, 2 RBIs. Saint Louis—Shane Butcher 3-3, 2 triple, 3 runs, 2 RBIs; Chester Wilson 3-3; Ed Apostol 3-3, double, triple, 3 runs, 2 RBIs; Lee 2-3, 2 RBIs; Quinn DeSilva 2-2; George triple.
O'ahu Interscholastic Association
Junior Varsity
Castle 3, Roosevelt 2
Leilehua 13, Nanakuli 0
Pearl City 6, 'Aiea 6 tie (9 innings)
Kaiser 3, McKinley 2
Wai'anae 10, Campbell 7
Moanalua 6, Farrington 1
