Game 4 of the Wally Yonamine Foundation/HHSAA Baseball State Championships in Division I pits ILH runner-up Kamehameha (14-6) against OIA fourth-place Kalani (10-5). The Warriors had to play for the ILH title on Monday and are entering the tournament after losing three times in a row to Saint Louis. The Falcons finished second in the OIA East in the regular season.
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Kalani Falcons (10-5)
Head coach: Shannon Hirai (21st year, 146‐132)
Tournament history: 9th appearance (8‐12, 1 title)
Honolulu Star-Advertiser ranking: No. 10
Kamehameha Warriors (14-6)
Head coach: Tommy Perkins (3rd year, 35‐22)
Tournament history: 17th appearance (39‐15, 4 titles)
Honolulu Star-Advertiser ranking: No. 3
LINEUPS
Kalani Falcons
Hunter Lau, SS
Kohl Suehiro, CF
Chad Kagawa, RF
Bronson Matsumoto, C
Micah Kawano, DH
Travis Toyama, 3B
Marquis Morgan, 1B
Harrison Moy, P
Logan Cabbat, LF
Kamehameha Warriors
Logan Salcedo, 2B
Kawai Takemura, SS
Nakea Hanohano, CF
Kalamaku Kuewa, DH
>> Li’i Pontes, RHP
Wilhelm Cordes, RF
Micah Kinoshita, LF
Jesse Awa, 3B
Dylan Salcedo, C
Hunter Fujitani, 1B
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Kamehameha 3, Kalani 0
Kamehameha (15-6) advances to play No. 3 seed and defending state champion Baldwin on Thursday at 4 p.m.
TOP 7
Hunter Breault, who threw 53 pitches on Monday, enters for the seventh inning in relief of Pontes. Breault likes to throw an inning of relief before he makes a start I’ve been told this season. Not sure if that means he’d throw tomorrow or Thursday. Breault with a three-pitch strikeout on a nasty slider. Curve ball gets the second batter looking for another K. Catcher Bronson Matsumoto with a two-out single for Kalani’s second hit of the game. Kawano is hit by a pitch and Kalani will bring the tying run to the plate. Breault with a five-pitch walk to Toyama and that’s it. Bases loaded and Breault is out after 19 pitches. He’ll be able to throw up to 91 pitches if he throws tomorrow. Francis Gora will come in with the tying run at first. Justin Gatewood to pinch hit. Nasty curveball by Gora gets the count to 1-2 in his favor. Gora with the same pitch and he gets the strikeout on a curveball. Warriors win 3-0. Falcons leave them loaded.
BOTTOM 6
Moy with a one-out walk — his second of the game. Mattingly Ho to run for pinch hitter Chase Miyasato. Moy with his ninth strikeout for the second out and Dylan Salcedo fouls out to first.
TOP 6
1-2-3 again for Pontes, who goes over the 65-pitch mark so he’ll have to sit out the next two days.
BOTTOM 5
Moy nabs his eighth strikeout before Hanohano reaches on a two-out infield single for his first hit of the game. Hanohano gets into scoring position with a stolen base. Kuewa pops out to third and that’s all for Kamehameha. Moy doing everything he can to keep his team in the game.
TOP 5
Quick 1-2-3 inning for Pontes with a strikeout to end it.
BOTTOM 4
Moy paints a 3-2 fastball on the outside corner for strike 3 to Kuewa and that’s SEVEN strikeouts for the senior right-hander. Cordes draws a one-out walk, but Moy gets a pop out to third for the second out. A two-out single by Awa puts runners on the corners for Salcedo, who led off the third inning with a double. Kamehameha pulls off the double steal and miss the tag so Awa gets to second. Cordes scores for a 2-0 lead. Grounder to short and Lau can’t field it cleanly. Awa rounds third and tries to go home and the throw looks like they get him but the ball slips out on the throw and Awa scores for a 3-0 lead. Nothing going Kalani’s way in this game. Fly ball to left ends the inning.
TOP 4
Pontes opens the inning with a strikeout on a curveball in the dirt. Pontes leaves a fastball up 3-2 and Kagawa draws the second walk issued by Pontes. Matsumoto with a grounder to third and Kagawa took off on the pitch so he goes to first for the out. Kagawa at second and Kagawa suddenly decides to jog back to first. The throw to second and Kagawa is out. No clue what is going on out there. Inning over.
BOTTOM 3
Kamehameha in business as Dylan Salcedo hits a leadoff double to left. Third straight inning Kamehameha gets the leadoff guy on. Hunter Fujitani rips a single to left and Francis Gora, the courtesy runner, scores easily. Bottom of the order does damage for Kamehameha. Fujitani took second on the throw home and goes to third on Logan Salcedo‘s groundout. Breaking ball gets Takemura swinging for Moy’s fifth strikeout. Moy blows an 0-2 fastball past Hanohano and that’s two strikeouts in each of the first three innings.
TOP 3
Moy, the pitcher, reaches on an infield single to third for Kalani’s first hit. Good play and throw from Awa, who did everything he can to get Moy, but he’s called safe. Travis Tagad will be the courtesy runner. Cabbat hits a chopper to short and they make the out at first but Tagad was in motion on the play and must have thought it was a pop up because he turns to run back to first and is doubled up. Pontes covers first to get Lau on a bang-bang play at first and the inning is over. Quick pace to this one.
BOTTOM 2
Cordes with a grounder to short that is stopped on a dive by Lau but he can’t come up with it. Infield single for Cordes. Moy records his third strikeout and then Cordes is thrown out trying to steal second by Matsumoto. Moy finishes off his second inning with strikeout No. 4. He looks settled in so far.
TOP 2
Matsumoto starts the inning with a good seven-pitch at-bat to draw a walk. Zachary Wong is the courtesy runner. Wong is off on the first pitch and slides in safely for the stolen base. After a flyout to center, Pontes starts a 1-6-5 putout of Wong at third after snaring the comeback and catching Wong between second and third. Not much the runner could do there. Curveball in the dirt and Pontes gets his first strikeout swinging to end the frame.
BOTTOM 1
Salcedo rips a solid base hit to left field. Interested to see how Kamehameha respond after losing the ILH title game to Saint Louis just 48 hours ago. A 1-2 slider from Moy gets Takemura swinging. Moy then strikes out the power-hitting Hanohano and gets Kuewa to hit into a fielder’s choice at second.
TOP 1
Pontes with a strike and we’re underway. Pontes gets the speedy Lau at first for the first out. Five-pitch first inning for Pontes.
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