Hawai'i squeezes past Air Force to gain final
By Stacy Kaneshiro
Advertiser Staff Writer
Freshmen saved the day.
Freshman Isaac Omura's one-out squeeze play in the bottom of the 10th inning scored freshman Matt Inouye from third to lift Hawai'i over Air Force, 8-7, last night in a semifinal of the Rainbow Easter Baseball Tournament at Les Murakami Stadium.
The Rainbows improved to 16-14, matching last year's win total, and advanced to tonight's 6:35 championship against Western Illinois. In Tuesday's opener, the Rainbows beat the Leathernecks, 9-1.
The Leathernecks sent 12 batters to the plate in a seven-run fifth inning to beat Lewis-Clark State, 9-6, in yesterday's first semifinal.
The Falcons (10-17) will play Lewis-Clark State in the 2:30 p.m. consolation game.
The dramatic game-winner came after UH rallied from a 4-3 deficit with a four-run eighth inning, only to blow it in the ninth by giving up three unearned runs, spoiling a victory opportunity for freshman Guy McDowell, who pitched a solid 4á innings, but was left in to finish despite trouble in the ninth. Clary Carlsen (2-3) got the final out of the ninth and pitched a scoreless 10th for UH.
In the bottom of the 10th, Inouye reached on an infield single to third for his fourth hit of the game (he also had two doubles). He moved to second when Kevin Gilbride dropped a perfect bunt between first and second and beat it out for an infield single. Both advanced a base on Schafer Magana's sacrifice. The Falcons brought their infield and outfield in and on a 1-0 pitch, Omura dropped a bunt down the first baseline and Inouye easily scored by the time first baseman Adam Howes could get off a throw to the plate. Scott Mears (1-1) allowed a run on three hits in 1á innings of relief.
"The guy I'm most proud of is Isaac, not taking anything away from Matt (Inouye)," UH coach Mike Trapasso said. "Isaac comes up his first at-bat and it was a terrible swing (he grounded out to third with one out with runners at second and third). It was very defensive. But he comes up his next time and he gets a couple of base hits. Then he makes an error in the ninth that hurts us, but he comes back and ends up being the guy who gets us the game winner. That's something he's going to build on and something he needed."
Omura, who was 3 for 4 with three RBIs, said he wasn't nervous.
"I knew what I had to do and I was really focused," he said. "I'm confident with my bunting so ..."
Air Force starter Jeff Tetrault took a 4-3 lead into the bottom of the eighth, when the Rainbows sent 12 batters to the plate to score four to take a 7-4 lead.
Brent Cook led off by getting hit by a pitch. Josh Green then grounded out to first, but first baseman Howes' throw to second was wild, allowing Cook to take third. But left fielder Josh Phifer fumbled the ball, allowing Cook to score the tying run.
After Brian Bock walked, he was lifted for pinch runner Tim Montgomery and Tetrault departed for Clayton Couch. Montgomery broke the tie when he scored on Inouye's hit-and-run double to left. He took third when Gilbride grounded out to the pitcher on a bunt, but Magana was hit by a pitch to put runners at the corners to set up Omura's RBI single to right to put runners at first and second. Brian Finegan's single to third scored Magana to make it 7-4.
McDowell was kept in until the Falcons tied the game because "he was dominating and I didn't want to mess with that," Trapasso said.
After one out, Nelson Prouty reached when Omura bobbled a high chopper. Prouty took third when Howes doubled to right. After a wild pitch scored Prouty and sent Howes to third, McDowell struck out pinch hitter Brett Tittle. Mike Rose followed with a single to short to score Howes, and after a wild pitch, Rose scored the tying run on Phifer's single to left. Only then was McDowell lifted for Carlsen, who got Daniel Petro to ground into a force at second.
