Nanakuli wraps up second straight crown

Nanakuli didn’t win them all, but the Golden Hawks won the one they wanted.

Nanakuli avenged a regular-season loss to Kaiser with an 8-5 win in the OIA White softball championship game at Central Oahu Regional Park on Saturday.

Nanakuli (12-1) only scored once in that early loss, but had six batters drive in at least one run in the title game. Ashley Van Gieson and Keanani Chai each drove in two, and Precious Paulo-Myers, Alexis Paulo-Meyers, Emma Kawaiaea and Daria Kawaauahu each plated one.

"We changed our approach," Nanakuli coach Ricky Gusman said. "We started to learn how to swing the bats smartly, we changed it to go gap to gap. As a season progresses, we learn. Coaches learn and players learn and we teach each other."

The Golden Hawks could hit all season. The only time they scored fewer than five runs was in the earlier meeting with Kaiser, when they traveled to Hawaii Kai and were handcuffed by Crystal Ching-Lake. That turned out to be a mere blip for their season.

But Nanakuli’s offensive explosion almost wasn’t enough against undefeated Kaiser. The Cougars trailed 8-3 with three outs to go, but got their first four batters on, thanks to a leadoff double by Rainelle Matsuoka, two walks and an error in left field. That made it 8-4 with the sacks full and nobody out, so Gusman pulled starting pitcher Chyanne Koko. He brought in Kawaiaea, a sophomore, because she has a lot more movement on her pitches. Koko said she wasn’t tired, but may have gotten too comfortable with the lead. Koko improved to 8-1 this season, with her lone loss coming to Kaiser. Kawaiaea made her seventh appearance of the season in the circle, but none of them was more important than Saturday’s.

"All I wanted to do was not give up," Kawaiaea said. "I didn’t want everybody to keep downing us. Coming from a small school, I feel really proud of what we accomplished."

Kawaiaea got the first out on a grounder back to the pitcher, then forced Kyra Hoohuli to ground to short. Alexis Paulo-Meyers picked it up clean and stepped on second for the force and had Hoohuli dead at first for the double play but short-hopped the throw. Van Gieson chased down the ball at first base and saw Kaiser’s Lesieli Aholelei trying to score from second. She rocketed a throw home that caught the runner for the third out after a violent collision.

The Golden Hawks repeated as OIA champs and will go into the state tournament with the OIA’s seeded berth. The Golden Hawks lost to Waimea in the championship game last year.

"It means a lot, actually, for our community," Koko said. "It is, like, only the second time in history and everybody is very proud of us."

And how. Nanakuli fans filled the third-base line and lined the outfield and erupted when their girls finally got it done.