Mark Liberato scored on an outfield throwing error in the bottom of the sixth inning as No. 10 Kamehameha edged No. 7 Saint Louis 3-2 on Thursday afternoon at Ala Wai Community Park.
The win boosted Kamehameha to 4-1-1 in ILH play. It came just 48 hours after a three-hour, 10-all tie with ‘Iolani.
“Just the fact that we’re playing better baseball now, we made a couple of mistakes communication-wise, but there were no errors,” Warriors coach Kahi Kaanoi said.
Liberato had reached base on a one-out bunt single. Jonny Shimabukuro followed with a line-drive single to right, where Crusaders freshman Mathew Saelua uncorked a high throw to third base. The ball bounced to the fence behind third as Liberato hustled home for the go-ahead — and unearned — run.
Shimabukuro was tagged out at third base attempting to advance on the play, but the damage was done.
Senior Vance Miyamoto, pitching in relief of Kamaha‘o Arita, retired the first two Crusaders in the top of the seventh. Noah Tory’s blooper to short right fell to the grass when right fielder Jace Borja and second baseman Chaesten Chon collided. Tory reached second base and Kaanoi opted to go with Kala‘e Holt in relief.
Holt faced pinch hitter Mana Kea, who worked the count to 2-2 before flying out to center, ending the game. Miyamoto got the win and Holt earned a save.
It was another heartbreaking loss for Saint Louis (2-4) and for starting pitcher Kanoa Meredith, in particular. The right-hander allowed just two earned runs on six hits in seven innings, striking out two with no walks.
“Right now, it’s the little things that have hurt us and continue to hurt us,” Crusaders coach George Gusman said. “It feels like we can play with everybody, but when we don’t play clean, everybody’s just too good. There are good players and good coaches.”
Gusman was ejected for the first time in 47 years of coaching after challenging and belaboring a no-call at second base in the third. With Kamehameha at the plate with one out and runners at the corners, Chon grounded to short. Charles Lopez flipped the ball to second baseman Tory, whose throw to first was high and late, allowing Borja to score from third base with the first run of the game.
Gusman asserted that the baserunner going to second base, Mattingly Ho, did not slide as required by rule. After the two-man umpiring crew conferred and told a Saint Louis assistant that the call would stand — no inning-ending double play for Saint Louis — Gusman then let the two-man crew hear about it from the dugout.
“I told the first-base umpire, ‘0 for 2’,” referring to the non-call and a previous questionable call in Gusman’s eyes. “The chief umpire said, ‘Knock it off,’ and I said ‘0 for 2’ again. He tossed me.”
Saint Louis tied it 1-1 in the fourth on Hunter Peneueta’s RBI groundout.
In the bottom half, Liberato led off with a double and scored on a single to right by Shimabukuro for a 2-1 Kamehameha lead.
The Crusaders tied it at 2 in the fifth on Cole Kashimoto’s RBI single.