CJ Caraang | SL

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Kailua's Noah Auld was 2 for 3 with two doubles, two runs scored, and three RBIs to help the Surfriders claim their first OIA title since 2012. CJ Caraang | SL

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WAIPAHU – Drawing inspiration from a fallen teammate, No. 8 Kailua downed No. 9 Kalani, 7-5, Saturday to capture the Oahu Interscholastic Association Division I baseball crown.

The Surfriders (12-3), overcame a 2-3 start and the loss of senior second baseman Brendan Odo – he was hitting a sizzling .528 and 11 RBI when he broke his left fibula March 26 against Castle – to win their 10^th consecutive game en route to their first OIA title since 2012 and 13^th overall. As league champion, Kailua earned one of the seeded byes for the Division I state tournament May 4 to 7 on Maui.

The Falcons (12-3), the East champion and division's top seed, fell behind early and saw a sixth-inning rally fall short in their quest for the school's first title since 1971. The teams split their two regular-season meetings.

"Do it for BO," said winning pitcher Dustin Imanaka, referencing Brendan Odo's monogram.

"He was the hardest worker on this team," senior first baseman Noah Auld said of Odo. "That injury pulled us together. Everyday, he's the first one to practice and the last one to leave. He's the hardest working player I've ever seen."

Odo, who is still on crutches, sported eye-black even though he obviously wasn't going to play.

"It was a bummer because it was my senior season," Odo said of his season-ending injury. But I know these guys, they were going to pick me up. Coach always says, ‘Next guy has to step up,' and these guys stepped up for me."

Odo said the injury was a "freak accident" that occurred when he was pitching and he collided with another fielder.

It was Kailua coach Corey Ishigo's seventh OIA crown in his 18^th season.

"It's been a while," Ishigo said. "This group was four years in the making. They all were up when they were freshmen."

These Surfriders struggled out of the gates, falling to 2-3. They blew a 7-1 lead to Moanalua and a 4-1 lead to Roosevelt. They lost in the bottom of the seventh inning, 2-1, to Kalani.

"This one was tough," Ishigo said. "This group took a little longer to get ready for baseball. In the end, we started figuring it out, started playing the way they're supposed to."

Indeed they did.

Imanaka suffered the late-inning losses to Moanalua and Kalani in relief. His last outing on the mound was March 19, when he threw a scoreless inning of relief against Roosevelt. But for the title game, Ishigo handed him the ball.

"Coach Tom House always says to start the relievers in playoffs and (use in) relief the starters, so we did both of that in this game tonight," Ishigo said.

Imanaka, who helped himself at the plate batting leadoff by batting 2 for 3 with a walk and scoring three runs, gave his team 5 1/3 innings. He was charged with five runs, but three were unearned, and eight hits, while striking out five.

"I was stoked, I was pretty excited about it," Imanaka said of getting the start in the title game. "I knew all I had to do was throw strikes and I knew the defense had my back."

His defense, though, nearly failed him, as three of the runs he allowed were unearned.

Joey Cantillo, who started in right field, inherited runners at the corners with one out in the sixth inning. After allowing an RBI single to Hunter Lau, Cantillo five of the last six batters he faced to earn the save. A fielding error by second baseman Lawson Faria to start the seventh was atoned when he made an amazing over the head diving catch running toward center field to rob Kohl Suehiro, who drove home the winning run in Friday's semifinal win against Waipahu, of a rally-prolonging hit.

"Coming in that spot, it wasn't me, it was the whole team," Cantillo said. "Everybody made plays. We backed each other up and somebody was always ready for it."

For Kalani, which won the inaugural OIA championship in 1971, it battled despite falling behind 7-2 after four innings.

"Give our kids credit, they were down big," 20^th-year Kalani coach Shannon Hirai said. "We fought back. We gave ourselves a chance at the end. We got some breaks, didn't get some, but hat's off to them. They played a good game."

Kailua jumped on Kalani starting pitcher Micah Kawano early, driving him out of the game after 2 1/3 innings. He allowed six runs (five earned), five hits and two walks with two strikeouts.

Kawano walked the first two batters of the game – Imanaka and Dalton Kalama – before Auld ripped a two-run double to the right-center alley. Faria flared a single to center to move Auld to third, where he scored when Cantillo grounded to shortstop for a double play before Keiki Kanahele-Santos flied out to end the inning.

The Falcons pulled to within one in the bottom of the second when they got runners aboard with an infield single and an error that eventually led to runners at the corners. But Imanaka's throwing error on a pick-off attempt to first scored one run and Jarryn Wee's double scored the second before Reece Kakugawa struck out.

Kailua added three in the third on Auld's RBI double and when two scored on a fielding error by first baseman Noah Nakamura.

The Surfriders added a run in the fourth. Imanaka singled with one out and took third on Kalama's single. The Surfriders' scored on a delayed double-steal attempt. Kalama was caught stealing second, as Imanaka crossed the plate on the fielder's choice before Auld flied out to center.

The Falcons chipped away in the sixth. Payton Awaya led off with a double off Imanaka and remained at second when Suehiro beat out a single to third. Pinch hitter Travis Toyama  reached on a pop single toward first to load the bases. Kyle Sasano then grounded out softly to first, moving the runners, scoring Awaya in the process. Cantillo entered the game and gave up an RBI single to Lau that moved Toyama to third. An out later, Toyama scored on a passed ball before Cantillo struck out Kakugawa.

"We believed every second that we could come back and win this thing," Cantillo said of the season. "Feels good now. Three years, four years work for most of these guys. It really paid off now."