Honolulu falls in Little League West Region semifinal

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. » When Pacifica (Calif.) American pitcher Elijah Ricks surrendered five runs in Honolulu’s 10-5 opening-game victory, it might have seemed reasonable to expect he wouldn’t be much of a challenge a second time around.

Honolulu, after all, had scored 49 runs in its first four games.

Ricks turned in a brilliant performance, however, leading Pacifica American to a 1-0 semifinal victory on Friday in a Little League West Region semifinal.

Ricks, who has a shadow of a mustache, allowed two hits and outdueled Honolulu pitcher Caleb Markwith, who threw a one-hitter.

Pacifica American will play Mountain Ridge of Las Vegas in Saturday’s West Region championship game. The winner will go to the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa. Honolulu was eliminated from the tournament despite entering the game with a 4-0 record.

Ricks struck out eight and walked one. He retired the first 11 batters he faced before Honolulu shortstop Dante Park hit a bloop single to center in the fourth inning.

"He (Ricks) was phenomenal," said Honolulu coach Gerald Oda said. "I thought he had good stuff when he first faced us, but maybe he had an off night or was affected by first-game jitters."

Ricks said he noticed that the Honolulu bench, which had been loud and spirited for the first three innings, was quieter in the fourth and fifth.

"A coach who had helped me before saw my first start on television," Ricks said. "He told me I was pulling out my front shoulder and short-arming the ball. He said to keep (my) shoulder inside and drive the ball (in alignment) with my chin."

Markwith allowed only one hit, but Spencer Karalius’s single to right field drove in the only run. Two walks by Markwith in the second inning came back to haunt him. After that, he retired the final 10 batters he faced.

Ricks made an excellent defensive play to preserve the victory.

With one out, Ricks hit Honolulu’s Jake Braz with a pitch. Center fielder Aaron Tom singled to center. Second baseman Makana Murashige flied out to right for the second out. Both runners moved up a base on a passed ball.

Park followed with a hard-hit ball up the middle that seemed headed to center field. Ricks reacted quickly, snared the ball and threw to first for the final out.

"He made a nice play on the mound — he is a special player and very athletic," Oda said. "He mixed speeds well and kept us off stride."

Oda said he had called home every day to inquire about storms in Hawaii. He said he didn’t think the players realized how serious weather conditions were.

"Yeah, we wanted to win, but this was a great experience," Oda said. "We are in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and we don’t get to meet people from other places.

"The players got to see a world outside of Hawaii. The people in San Bernardino were so generous and nice to us."