Kaiser’s Lincoln Lima turned the OIA East into a wide-open race with one swing of the bat.
The senior shortstop hit a game-tying solo home run in the top of the seventh inning and Kaiser tacked on seven more runs after that to secure a 9-3 victory over No. 6 Kalani on Wednesday at the Cougars’ field.
Antonio Omphroy hit the go-ahead RBI single and Kaiser used three Kalani errors to its advantage to knock the Falcons (6-2) out of sole possession of first place.
Five teams are now within two games of the lead heading into the final two weeks of the regular season, including Kaiser (4-4), which has won four of five.
“We’ve been playing really good baseball,” first-year Kaiser coach Kila Ka’aihue said. “We’ve come up a few hits short here and there but today our best player picked us up — tied it up in the top of the seventh inning — and he’s our heart and soul. He gets us going.”
Kalani held a 2-1 lead with one out in the seventh when Lima turned on a fastball from reliever Micah Kawano and crushed a ball over the fence in right center.
He took a couple of steps toward first before flipping his bat toward the Kaiser dugout realizing the ball wasn’t going to stay in play.
“He gave me a curveball and a fastball away and I think it was 2-1 when I went looking for my pitch and he gave it to me,” Lima said. “Fastball up and in and I turned on it.”
It was the start of a wild inning in which Kaiser sent 14 batters to the plate.
Omphroy’s RBI single made it a 3-2 game and Kaiser had the bases loaded with two outs when a pop fly was dropped in shallow right field, allowing two runs to score.
Two more runs came across on a throwing error and the Cougars added a bases-loaded walk by Keoni Pangan and an RBI single by Kainoa Craig for a 9-2 lead.
Kaiser allowed Kalani to get a run back as the first five Falcons reached base in the bottom of the seventh before Jake Nam recorded the final two outs to end it.
“We’ve got a really good ball club,” Ka’aihue said. “They’re learning and getting better every day, which is the most important thing. They’re learning the game of baseball and they’re a bunch of athletes that are turning into baseball players, which is really nice to see.”
The first six innings were a solid pitching duel between Kalani starter Harrison Moy, who gave up one run in five innings with three strikeouts, and Kaiser’s Tyler Dyball, who allowed one earned run in 52⁄3 innings.
Kalani’s first run came on a two-out throwing error in the bottom of the first inning.
Kaiser tied the game in the third when Pangan singled, stole second and scored on Kainoa Torres’ two-out RBI single.
The first five hitters in the Kaiser lineup had nine of the Cougars’ 10 hits.
“Everyone was in the game the whole game,” Lima said.
Kalani retook the lead in the bottom of the fifth when right fielder Chad Kagawa doubled home Kohl Suehiro, who drew a one-out walk and stole second.
Kaiser had the bases loaded with nobody out in the bottom of the sixth inning when Kagawa threw out a runner at the plate trying to tag up from third on a flyout.
The Cougars were 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position before the final inning.
“We’ve had bases loaded a bunch of times, we’ve had guys in scoring position, we’ve had the winning run on third and we just haven’t gotten that one hit that breaks it open,” Ka’aihue said. “We had three or four chances today to bust the game wide open and it’s been like that all season and today we got it done.”
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PREP SCOREBOARD
OIA EAST BASEBALL
No. 6 Kaiser 9, Kalani 3
At Kaiser
>> Kaiser (4-4) 001 000 8 – 9 10 3
>> Kalani (6-2) 100 010 1 – 3 7 4
Tyler Dyball, Jake Nam (6) and Kainoa Torres. Harrison Moy, Micah Kawano (6), Edward Lee (7) and Bronson Matsumoto. W—Nam. L—Kawano.
Leading hitters—Kais: Lincoln Lima 2-4, HR; Keoni Pangan 2-3; Antonio Omphroy 2-4; Kainoa Torres 2-3. Kaln: Kohl Suehiro 2 runs; Chad Kagawa 2-3, 2b.
No. 7 Kailua 10, Roosevelt 0, 6 inn.
At Kailua
>> Roosevelt (4-4) 000 000 – 0 1 2
>> Kailua (6-2) 000 352 – 10 13 2
Matthew Schewe, Hostas Pang (5), Noah Nakamura (6) and Kekoa Lima. Stone Parker, Ryan Inouye (5), Jalen Ah Yat (6) and Kalua Neves. W–Parker. L–Schewe.
Leading hitters–Kail: Matthew Kaleiohi 3-4, 2 runs; Dylan Kurahashi Choy Foo 2-4, 2b, 3 RBIs; Ah Yat 2-3, 2b, 2 RBIs; Neves 2-3, HR, 2 RBIs; Dakota Kadooka 2b, 2 RBIs; Bryson Ballesteros 2b.
Kalaheo 2, Castle 0
At Kalaheo
>> Castle (2-6) 000 000 0 – 0 4 0
>> Kalaheo (1-6) 001 010 x – 2 7 1
Keoki Gaspar-Takahashi, Kody Lizama (4) and Jabe Kahawaii. Curtis Chung Jr. and Lono Hussey. W–Chung Jr. L–Gaspar-Takahashi.
Leading hitters–Cast: Blake Hadama 2-2. Kalh: Noa Lapera 3-3; Marcus Nishimura 2b.
OIA WEST BASEBALL
Mililani 2, Aiea 1, 10 innings
At Mililani
>> Aiea (3-5) 000 000 100 0 – 1 9 1
>> Mililani (4-4) 001 000 000 1 – 2 9 1
Teron Kitashima, Bronson Nekamoto (6) and Jake Nakamoto. Ryan Ancheta, Cole Mayeshiro (8) and Korrey Siracusa. W–Mayeshiro. L–Nekamoto.
Leading hitters–Aiea: Ty Matsunami 2-5; Bronson Nekamoto 2-4; Casey Kitashima 2-4; Noa Ohara 2b. Mil: Bryson Arakaki 2-5; Siracusa 2-3, 2b; Bryce Yonemori 2-4; Austin Dela Cruz 3b; Micah Kaohu 3b.
Leilehua 2, Waipahu 0
At Leilehua
>> Waipahu (4-4) 000 000 0 – 0 2 0
>> Leilehua (2-5) 000 200 x – 2 7 1
Jaron Sugimoto, Gabe Ballesteros (4) and Cole Phillips. Christian Ontai, Raven Demmert (6) and Jaxon Hotta. W–Ontai. L–Sugimoto. S—Demmert.
Leading hitters–Lei: Jaku Hanohano 2-3; Nolan Tumacder 2-3, 3b.
Pearl City 2, Kapolei 1
At Pearl City
>> Kapolei (3-5) 010 000 0 – 1 5 1
>> Pearl City (4-4) 010 001 x – 2 5 2
Garrett “Kamea” Wong and Landon Kuroda. Marcus Boyles and Kaleb Nishijo. W–Boyles. L–Wong.
Leading hitters–Kapo: Andrei Stoyanow 2-3, 2b; Cobey Fujii 2-3. PC: Christian Onomura 2-3; Cade Halemanu 2-2.
OIA DIVISION II BASEBALL
Farrington 24, Kaimuki 5, 5 innings
At Kaimuki
>> Farrington (5-1) 520 1(16) – 24 13 1
>> Kaimuki (2-5) 010 3 1 – 5 6 5
Chasen Castilliano, Treven Isobe (4) and Caleb Sherman. KB Palsis, Jamon Young (3), Simon Ono-Federle (5), Lucien Finley (5), Jonah Fa’asoa (5) and Bailey Uehara, Palsis (3), Willy-Ray Kapier (5). W–Castilliano. L–Palsis.
Leading hitters–Farr: Isobe 2-3, 2 RBIs; Castilliano 4-5, 2 2bs, 3b, HR, 4 runs, 4 RBIs; Sherman 2-4, 2b; Brennan Caspillo 5 runs; Bishop Rapoza 3 runs; Reese Shioji 2-2, 2b, 3 runs, 4 RBIs; Trey Kaawa 2-4, 2b, 2 runs; Dindo Venzon 2 runs. Kaim: Kaulana Kaluna Jr. 2-2, 2 RBIs; Young 2 runs.
Radford 17, Nanakuli 1, 5 innings
At Radford
>> Nanakuli (3-4) 100 00 – 1 5 9
>> Radford (5-1) 580 4x – 17 9 1
Nainoa Banks, Lexsen Kunukau (2), Clyde Enos (4) and Chyson Hoopai. Richard Akana, Carter Ogino (4), Shane Vogt (5) and Cole Courtney. W–Akana. L–Banks.
Leading hitters–Nan: Banks 3b; Kaleo Banks 3b. Rad: Jack Dillon 2-3, 3 runs; Akana 2-3, 3 RBIs; Vogt 2 RBIs; Isaac Grant 2 RBIs.
Waialua 8, McKinley 7
At Waialua
>> McKinley (0-6) 010 042 0 – 7 11 5
>> Waialua (3-3) 020 120 3 – 8 3 2
Cameron Fernandez, Noah Diaz (4), Dennis Pearson (5), Koolau Anderson (7), Noah Omori (7) and Elijah Vincent. Rion Stromildo, Josh Muniz (3), Kyven Dicion (5) and Zane Dobecki. W—Dicion. L—Anderson.
Leading hitters–McK: Omori 2-5; Fernandez 2 runs; Diaz 2 runs; Keanu Bolkeim 2-3, 2 runs; Anderson 3-4; Eduardo Kho 2 RBIs. Wail: Jake Riviere 2 runs.
ILH DIVISION II BASEBALL
St. Francis 14, Hanalani 1, 5 innings
At Central Oahu Regional Park
>> Hanalani (0-11) 000 10 – 1 2 3
>> St. Francis (10-2) 625 1x – 14 14 1
Nick Reid, Louie Holt (3), Laramie Desoto (4) and Tanner Oka. Kiyo Perry, James Yamasaki (3), Reece Kadota (4), Bubba Akana (5) and Jared Yara, Christian Ignacio (5). W–Perry. L–Reid.
Leading hitters–StF: J.P. Tilley 2-2, 3 runs; Makana Poole 2-2, 3b, 2 runs, 4 RBIs; Shawn Ellis 3-3; Zach Alcos 2-3; Kadota 2 RBIs.
Pac-Five 5, Damien 4
At Central Oahu Regional Park
>> Damien (7-5) 010 012 0 – 4 5 1
>> Pac-Five (6-5) 200 000 3 — 5 8 2
Grayson Bueno, Javin Cortez (6) and Kana Schuman. Canaan Fernandez, Brandon Miyasato (6) and Jared Miyasato. W—B. Miyasato. L—Cortez.
Leading hitters–DMS: Jayden Cabbab HR; Pomei Kim 2b; Kaysen Kajiwara 2b; Shiloh Kaeo 2b. P5: Miyasato 2 runs; Lii Carvalho 2-4, 3 RBIs; Ryan Moritsugu 2-3; Zane Oshiro 2b.
ILH JV BASEBALL
>> Punahou 11, Kamehameha 1, 5 inn.
MIL BASEBALL
>> Baldwin 6, King Kekaulike 2
BIIF BASEBALL
>> Kamehameha-Hawaii 14, Keaau 2, 5 inn.
