Kamehameha and Punahou play to a tie in ILH baseball opener

Punahou's Justin Matias slides into home safely to score a run for the Buffanblu. Evan Asato | SL

WAIPIO — Codie Paiva batted 4 for 4 with two doubles and scored the game-tying run in the top of the seventh inning to help Kamehameha rally to a 5-5 tie against Punahou in the Interscholastic League of Honolulu regular-season opener for both teams Tuesday.

The Warriors (0-0-1) came back from a 5-2 deficit with a two-run rally in the seventh before the game was called due to darkness after eight innings. A late afternoon crowd of about 150 at Patsy T. Mink Central Oahu Regional Park was on hand for the two-hour and 45-minute game.

"There were a little bit of butterflies in the beginning, but I like how our team fought back when we got knocked back," said Paiva, who played third base and pitched the final two frames to preserve the tie. "We came back and fought and we scored the runs."

Although it wasn't a win in his first game as Warriors' coach, Billy Pieper said the tie gives his team momentum going forward.

"It gives us a ton of momentum and I'm proud of them how they responded at that point," said Pieper, who replaced longtime coach Vern Ramie in the offseason. "In the preseason, we've been known to known to not really give in, but not respond the way we did, so to see the guys with the backs against the wall answer the call, to me, that makes me happy.

Kamehameha scored in the opening frame after leadoff hitter Matt Yokota worked the count full before drawing a walk off Punahou starter Bo Coolen. Yokota came around to score on a double to right center by Paiva to give the Warriors an early 1-0. They added a run in the second inning when Ethan Rosehill tripled to lead off and scored on a fielder's choice. He finished 3 for 4 at the plate.

The Buffanblu answered with a four-run third that was ignited by KJ Harrison's two-run double to left center. Drew Ogomori, who went in as a courtesy runner for Harrison, went to third on a balk and scored on a wild pitch. Cole Kanazawa then singled home Justin Matias, the courtesy runner for Coolen.

In the Punahou fourth, Beau Branton drove in another run on a single to center that plated Robert Straton.

"Those are our two horses," Buffanblu coach Kenny Harrison said of Brandon, his leadoff man and Harrison, his third batter. "If they hit, we'll probably be in games and we had a couple of opportunities that KJ didn't come through, so it's crucial that guys come through and perform, but it was a pretty solid offensive performance on our part, which is nice."

The score held until Keenan Lum led off the top of the fifth with a four-pitch walk and came around to score. He advanced to second on a throwing error and third on a fielder's choice. A balk call on Jacob Kam, who relieved Coolen earlier in the inning, plated Lum to cut the Punahou lead to 5-3.

Yokota led off the Warriors' seventh with a double to right that scooted past the right fielder. He reached third on a single by Paiva and came across to score on an RBI single by cleanup hitter Makana Arakaki to left field. One batter later, Paiva scored the game-tying run when a shot off the bat of Lum deep in the hole between third and shortstop was fielded by Branton, who opted to go to second, but the runner was ruled safe.

"We gave away three runs really," Harrison said. "One on a balk, one on a double play that we overthrew and then that last play that was a nice play in the hole, we didn't cover the base in time, so just those kinds of things hopefully we can iron out for the rest of the way. I'd like to say that it's first-game jitters, but all those things that happened we practice every day, but you know, these kids are teenagers, so you've got to remember they're going to make mistakes."

Branton said the result was a difficult one to take given the parity in the ILH.

"It's extremely tough, because it's the first game and you want to come out with a win and to play the way we did after we were up, it's tough," said Branton, who batted 4 for 5. "In the ILH every game means something, so all the games are going to be this close, so we've got to win every one we can. It's tough that we couldn't come out with the win."

Both teams return to the field Thursday. Punahou visits Iolani, while Kamehameha takes on Saint Louis at CORP. Both games start at 3:45 p.m.

Reach Kalani Takase at [email protected].