Campbell's Kiana Ulufale knocks home a run to invoke the mercy rule against Leilehua. Greg Yamamoto | SL

Purchase image 1 of 4

Campbell's Ashlyn Yagin slides in ahead of the tag against Leilehua. Greg Yamamoto | SL

Purchase image 2 of 4

Campbell's Kawehi Kanaha fields a grounder against Leilehua. Greg Yamamoto | SL

Purchase image 3 of 4

Campbell pitcher Elisa Favela threw a complete game for the third consecutive game, and picked up her third victory in the tournament with a shutout of Leilehua. Greg Yamamoto | SL

Purchase image 4 of 4

MANOA — For the third time in five years, the Campbell softball team will play in the final game of the season.

Elisa Favela threw her third two-hitter in three nights and drove in three runs to lead Campbell to a 10-0 win over Leilehua in a semifinal game of the DataHouse/Hawaii High School Athletic Association Division I Softball State Championships Thursday at Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium. The game was called in the bottom of the sixth due to the mercy rule.

The Sabers (15-4) pounded out 17 hits to beat the Mules (10-10) for a third time this season and advanced to Friday's 7 p.m. title game against Mililani, which defeated Mid-Pacific Thursday, 9-1.

"It's tough to beat a team three times and honestly, today I was pretty worried because Leilehua is a dangerous team," Campbell coach Shag Hermosura said. "They have big hitters, they have fast bunters and I needed to keep them off-balance, so we stuck to our game plan — hit-and-run, bunt-and-run, move the runners over into scoring position — and we got big hits at the right time."

Favela retired the first 15 batters she faced and had a no-hitter going until the top of the sixth inning. She surrendered a pair of singles, but ultimately got out of the jam.

"She's pitching the best she has all year," Hermosura said of Favela. "She's come on strong in the postseason and she threw a hell of a game today."

Favela wasn't overpowering — she struck out four Mules — but relied on her defense behind her. Sierra Mariano made a sliding catch in right field for the third out of the second inning and left fielder Ashlyn Yagin ended the fourth with another spectacular grab in foul territory.

Meanwhile, all nine of Campbell's batters reached base to spur the offensive outburst. Leadoff hitter Cydney Curran batted 4 for 4, drove in two runs and scored three times, Nashlynn Anguay went 3 for 4 with four RBI and Favela helped her own cause with a 3 for 4 day at the plate and three RBIs.

"Cydney's been a great leadoff hitter," Hermosura said. "All year she's been seeing the ball well, but I think today the ball must have looked like a volleyball to her. She had a great night."

Anguay hit a two-run double to cap a three-run third inning and added RBIs in the fourth and sixth inning.

"All I saw was middle-out and I knew that was my pitch, because that's what I was working on and I had to adjust because in my first at-bat I was a little early on my swing, so I knew that next time I had to wait on it and see the pitch through," said Anguay, whose single to right field in the sixth plated Caragh Morris to induce the 10-run differential mercy rule.

"Nashlynn's been a big hitter for us all year," Hermosura said. "She's a returnee that has a lot of experience, so I look for good things from her."

Campbell opened the scoring in the bottom of the first when Curran led off with a double and came home on a Morris single. The Sabers added three runs in the third and four more in the fourth, which was highlighted by Favela's two-run double to center.

The Sabers also won two previous meetings against the Mules, when the teams met in the regular season.

Leilehua, which finished sixth in the Oahu Interscholastic Association, had to beat Waiakea in a play-in game last week to even qualify for the state tournament. The Mules will play in the 3 p.m. third-place game Friday, were the first play-in team to reach the semifinal round since 1988, when Leilehua made it to the title game, but lost to Kailua.

Campbell, which finished third in the OIA and was making its fifth consecutive state semifinal appearance, returns to the title game for the first time since 2012, when it lost to Mid-Pacific. The Sabers, who are ranked sixth in the ScoringLive/OC16 Softball Power Rankings, finished third last year. They won their only state championship in 2010.