OIA Baseball
Lorenzo's RBI single sends Campbell back to the OIA title game


  



Thu, Apr 27, 2023 @ [ 4:00 pm ]


F/8TH 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 R H E
Mililani 0 1000400580
Campbell 4 0 0001016110

W: Kalaeloaloa Kalua    L: Dalton Iwamoto

CAMP: Ridge Choy 1-4 run 3 rbi dbl; Shaveh Sarono 2.0 IP 1 ER 3 K
MIL: Malosi Mataafa-Alferos 1-4 run 2 rbi dbl; Skye Hyun 3.6 IP 4 ER 3 K


MANOA — These cats are clutch.

Dayton Lorenzo's RBI single scored pinch runner Jayden Pacariem in the bottom of the eighth inning as No. 10 Campbell knocked off reigning champ Mililani, 6-5, in the first OIA Division I semifinal at Les Murakami Stadium Thursday evening.

The Sabers (12-2) will now try for their sixth league title on Friday when they take on Leilehua (9-5) in their first championship game appearance since 2019. First pitch is slated for 30 minutes following the conclusion of the Division II final between Kahuku and Waipahu.

It was Campbell's fourth walk-off win of the year, their second in as many days. The Sabers also defeated Mililani for the third time this season, with the Sabers taking the lead in the final inning of all the meetings with the Trojans.

"The kids have a way to come back and that's how we've been playing all season and I'm thankful for that," said Campbell coach Wayne Nagamine.

"They all work hard together and everyday there's a different guy coming through. Very fortunate to have these kids on our team. They work hard, they keep battling, they trust each other and they keep playing."

The Sabers storm the field to celebrate Dayton Lorenzo's walk-off hit as losing pitcher Dalton Iwamoto walks off the field. Greg Yamamoto | SL    Purchase image

The Sabers' earlier two meetings against the Trojans (9-6) were won through unconventional means. They won the first round matchup when they drew back-to-back hit-by-pitches to win the game with the bases loaded and they scored four runs on no hits in the top of the seventh in the following meeting to win 5-2.

Thursday's walk-off win was very much by the books.

Hunter Lindsey started to bottom of the eight with a single to center field with the count full. Pacariem took his spot on the bases and was moved over to second on a bunt by Shaun-Lee Saito. After Lanzon Nagum drew a walk, a groundout by nine-hole hitter Cason Eliptico-Quinata advanced the runners to set the table for Lorenzo's game-winning RBI to right field.

"It feels good to knock off a team that's just as good," said Lorenzo, who bats leadoff and plays third base. "We practice hard every day staying gap to gap, getting quality at bats and we pulled through."

It was a four-man effort on the mound for the Sabers, who tallied 11 hits while giving up eight. Kalaeloaloa Kalua picked up his third pitching win of the year in his longest pitching appearance, allowing three hits and no runs in 2 1/3 innings of work.

Shaveh Sarono got the start and went two innings before playing the rest of the game at center field. Carmello Fuller was the next Campbell player to see the mound, pitching 3 1/3 innings before Ismael Diaz relieved him.

"The good part about our pitching staff is everybody did their job," said Nagamine. "We got in trouble here, they lost to lead, but they came back. Bottom line is they did the things that they needed to do."

Cleanup hitter Ridge Choy had a bases-clearing double in the bottom of the first inning to give the Sabers an early 3-0 lead. Greg Yamamoto | SL    Purchase image

The Sabers jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. Lorenzo and Kayne Carlos started the game with back-to-back singles before Diaz drew a walk to load the bases. Cleanup hitter Ridge Choy then had a bases-clearing double to give Campbell a 3-0 lead. Choy would later score on an RBI single by Lindsey through the right side.

"It was very big for us to get the early lead," said Lorenzo. "It gave us that good momentum."

The Trojans got a run back in the top of the second before taking the lead in the top of the sixth with four runs to make it a 5-4 game. Campbell tied it in the bottom of the frame on an RBI single by Eliptico-Quinata that scored Saito.

Dalton Iwamoto, the third Mililani player to take the mound, took the pitching loss. Starter Skye Hun went 3 2/3 innings before giving way to Kayden Suma.



Reach Michael Lasquero at [email protected].




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