Baseball
Maui's Dando caps Aloha All-Stars' 9th-inning comeback


Stacy Kaneshiro | ScoringLive
May 30, 2022, 10:31pm

 


LANAKILA — Zachary Dando's two-run single with one out in the bottom of the ninth rallied the Aloha All-Stars past the Hawaiian All-Stars, 13-12, in the second annual Chace Numata Senior All-Star Game Monday at Joey DeSa Field.

The game, which featured recent high school graduates from each league around the state, is named in the memory of Pearl City High alumnus Chace Numata, who died of injuries from a skateboarding accident in 2019 in Erie, Pennsylvania, where he was playing for the Detroit Tigers' Double-A affiliate, the Erie SeaWolves.

Mid-Pacific Institute's Chance Otsuka took home the Player of the Game Award after batting 3 for 3 with a two-run single in the third inning, solo home run in the fifth and RBI double in the eighth. Prior to the game, Kauai's Wailele Kane-Yates won the inaugural Chace Numata "Pop Time Showdown" award with a time of 1.82 seconds on a throw from home to second base. Both awards were sponsored by SportStan, a Waipio-based sporting goods store. Kane-Yates won a catcher's mitt and Otsuka got a trophy.

"It was fun," Otsuka said of the game. "It was fun playing against the other leagues, so I was super excited for this game."

Otuska plans to attend Loyola Marymount, which has a good Division I baseball program, but he won't be playing ball. "I'll probably be playing club ball," said Otsuka, who will major in accounting.

Down 12-11 entering the bottom of the ninth, the Aloha All-Stars' Sylvester led off with a single to left and took second on MPI's Karter Wong's single to right. After MPI's Kodey Shojinaga flied out to left, Saint Louis' Xander Sielken reached on an infield single to load the bases. Maui High's Dando drilled a single to right to score Sylvester and Wong with the tying and winning runs off Mililani's Zen Staszkow.

The Hawaiian All-Stars led by as much a 9-1, but the Aloha All-Stars continued to chip away. The Hawaiians had a 12-8 lead entering the bottom of the eighth, but Aloha pulled to within one with three runs on RBI doubles by Otsuka and Punahou's Kaikea Harrison, who later stole third and scored on the errant throw. Harrison also had a great game, batting 3 for 3 with an RBI walk.

The Hawaiians opened the game with a four-run first, highlighted by Staszkow's two-run double. Aloha got one of the runs back in the bottom of the first when Saint Louis' Nuu Contrades tripled and scored on Harrison's infield single.

The Hawaiians added two more runs in the second on Kalani's Christian Chinen's RBI double and Aiea's Raine Yoshida's RBI single. They added three in the third that was capped by Kailua's Orion Medeiros' two-run double that made it 9-1.

Aloha began to chip away in the third on Otsuka's two-run single and Harrison's bases-loaded walk to make it 9-4.

Aloha would score in the next three innings to pull to 9-8. In the fourth, Wong scored on Dando's sacrifice fly to left. In the fifth, Otsuka's solo home to right-center pulled Aloha to 9-6.

"It was a fastball outside," the right-handed hitting Otsuka said. "My power side is the opposite field. It worked out for the best."

 In the sixth, Harrison led off with a double and scored on a double by Saint Louis' Aiva Arquette, who later scored on an error to make it 9-8.

The Hawaiians padded their lead with two in the seventh on a two-run home run to left-center by Campbell's Jayden Flores. They added another run in the eighth on Mason HIrata's RBI double.

After Aloha pulled to 12-11 in the bottom of the eighth, Arquette pitched a scoreless ninth, highlighted by an inning-ending double play to set up the comeback in the bottom of the ninth.

The game showcased the versatility of the players, as they played multiple positions, such as when Kamehameha catcher Beau Sylvester played center field. Each pitcher tossed an inning, except for Pearl City's Devin Hayashi pitched two.


Reach Stacy Kaneshiro at [email protected].




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