Big inning aids Campbell's rout of Roosevelt, 9-3; on to title game


Campbell's Kainoa Ganancial attempts to field a ground ball against Roosevelt. Greg Yamamoto | SL

WAIPAHU - Campbell sent 11 batters to the plate in a seven-run fourth inning to rout Roosevelt, 9-3, Friday in the semifinals of the O'ahu Interscholastic Association Red baseball tournament at Hans L'Orange Park.

The defending champion Sabers (13-1), first in the ScoringLive/OC 16 Power Rankings, will play 2012 champion and No. 6 Kailua (11-3) for the Red title, 6:30 p.m. Saturday at the same site. As with Friday night, the game will be televised on OC 16.

Dorrien Villanueva-Hermosura had two of the Sabers' seven hits in the fourth. He led off with a single and eventually scored on Blayze Arcana-Llacuna's single. Hermosura capped the frame with a two-run double to right-center that chased Roosevelt starting pitcher Jarron Maemori (2-2), who was charged with nine runs, but only three earned because of two errors.

Campbell starting pitcher Kila Kapihe (4-1) survived a shaky first inning, when the first three hitters he faced got hits with two of them scoring to give the Rough Riders (9-5) a 2-0 lead. Kapihe settled, giving up another run, while scattering four hits and walking two over the next four innings. Sophomore Chad Samante pitched a scoreless sixth and freshman Markus Ramos added a perfect seventh.

"Kila didn't have his best stuff today," Pico said. "He settled down, but his pitch count was up there. (79 pitches). We felt, 'Why push 'em?' We were fortunate we got a bigger lead. We had other guys we felt could do the job."

Samante and Ramos were used in single-inning situations throughout the season.

"For us, the situation called for them to throw them," Pico said. "We have confidence in them."

Unlike their game against Kaiser's Kamalu Simeona, the Sabers were able to adjust to the left-handed throwing Maemori, who has a high leg kick from the windup.

"We started putting the ball in play pretty well and gave them tough plays," Pico said.

The two Roosevelt errors proved costly, leading to six unearned runs.

"The defense broke down," Roosevelt coach Les Loo said. "That was the key. We gave them extra outs and they took advantage of that. Against a good team like that, you can't do that."

The Rough Riders wasted little time getting on the scoreboard against Kapihe. Dustin Tsukano hit the first pitch of the game for a ground single to left. With Tsukano running on a full count, he scored on Kainalu Pitoy's line double to the right-center alley. Keola Tamanaha drilled Kapihe's first offering down the left-field line for a run-scoring double. Kapihe would settle down and retired the next three batters, stranding the runner at second.

After Maemori set down the Sabers in order in the first, he was victimized by an error that allowed Campbell to tie the game. Tryzen Rene Patricio doubled to right with one out and after Kapihe flied out to center, scored when Blayze Arcana-Llacuna reached second on second baseman Nick Matsuoka's throwing error. Jake Mendoza's double to left-center scored Arcana-Llacuna to tie the game at 2 before Zachary Recolan struck out.

The Sabers broke open the game in the fourth. Hermosura led off with a single and took second on Patricio's single. Kapihe tried to bunt the runners over, but instead beat it out for single to load the bases. Arcana-Llacuna's bloop single to center put the Sabers ahead, 3-2, and reloaded the bases.

With the infield playing in, Mendoza grounded out to short, scoring a run and moving the other runners to scoring position. Recolan squeezed home a run and reached on the bunt single that moved the other runner to third. After Ibana struck out, Recolan stole second. Bula Sprinkel hit a liner to shortstop Jonah Sasahara, who could not hold on to it, allowing two more runs to score. Himan's single moved Sprinkel to third. After Himan stole second, Hermosura drilled a double to right-center to score two runners to make it 9-2 and ending Maemori's night.

Settled down and armed with the seven-run lead, Kapihe gave up a run in the fifth. Tamanaha was hit by a pitch with one out, took second on Okura's single and scored when Aaron Emoto singled up the middle when the ball deflected off second baseman Mendoza's glove. After Sasahara popped out to the pitcher, Riki Kobayashi reached on a single to short, but the runner on second was called out for interference with Campbell shortstop Ibana to end the inning.

"They're a good hitting team," Kapihe said of Roosevelt. "I had to find the strike zone first. When my adrenaline keeps rushing, I get too pumped. I just had to pace myself."

Kapihe appreciated the run support.

"I have to give thanks to our boys," he said. "They did a hell of a job, bringing me up. I can't thank them enough for that."

Last year, Campbell beat Kailua, 3-0, in the semifinals en route to the Sabers' third OIA championship. On that Surfriders' team was Sabers' DH Himan. He grew up in Kailua and knows all of the players he will face Saturday night.

"We had to move out here ('Ewa Beach) so I had no choice but to transfer," he said. "It's not something I wanted to do; I just had to."

He stays in touch with his former teammates and they had been joking around about meeting in the title game.

"We've been talking the past couple days, playing around kine, saying, 'We'll meet you in the championship game,'" Himan said. "And it just happens that's what's going to happen."

Campbell is seeking its fourth league crown, while Kailua is looking for its 13th.

Preceding the title game at 3:30 p.m., Roosevelt will play Kaiser for third place. The game was moved from a school site because of the postponement of the White title game because of a rainout of Friday's semifinal between Nanakuli at Wai'anae.



Reach Stacy Kaneshiro at [email protected].