Mid-Pacific edges ‘Iolani to stay in control

Jet Uechi’s sacrifice fly in the bottom of the seventh inning brought home pinch runner Breyndon Nakamura with the winning run as Mid-Pacific edged ‘Iolani 7-6 on a wet, windy Tuesday afternoon at Damon Field.

It was a big day for Uechi, who was 2-for-3 with a two-run triple in the third inning.

“It’s just about getting the win to advance to the championship game (of the tournament),” the Owls’ left fielder said.

MPI (14-3) is the only remaining unbeaten team in the Interscholastic League of Honolulu baseball double-elimination tournament. The Owls have already secured a state-tournament berth by winning the regular season. ‘Iolani (13-4-1) will play the winner of the Punahou-Saint Louis game that is scheduled today.

“I’m happy we scored six runs against Mid-Pacific after we went 14 innings without scoring against them,” ‘Iolani coach Kurt Miyahira said, referring to the regular season. “Our boys battled and I’m proud of them. We had our chances.”

MPI will face whichever team emerges out of the bracket of one-loss tourney teams. The Owls are in the driver’s seat.

Coach Dunn Muramaru pointed to key hits by Uechi — a two-run triple in Mid-Pacific’s five-run third inning — and the leadoff double by Micah Pi that set up the winning hit by Uechi in the seventh. The late-inning pitching of Shane Adams was also key.

“Shane closed the door. He threw strikes,” Muramaru said. “But this is not over.”

It is, however, getting quite close to a league title for Mid-Pacific, which continues to win most close games with a lineup that gets production from top to bottom.

“Maybe it’s not the best we played, but we trust each other,” Adams said after pitching the final 2 2/3 innings for the win.

He was penciled in to pitch on Friday, but with ‘Iolani scoring six runs against MPI pitchers Michael China and Matthew Valencia, Adams came through by retiring all eight batters he faced, striking out three of them.

Trevor Ichimura went the distance for ‘Iolani and took the loss despite making some big pitches to keep his team in the game. In the bottom of the seventh, MPI leadoff hitter Pi zoned in and sent the first pitch deep to right for a double.

“It was a fastball middle outside. I squared it up. I didn’t think it was going that far, but the wind carried it,” Pi said.

Three batters later, with the bases loaded, Uechi lofted a fly ball to left field, allowing Nakamura to score easily from third base.

The Raiders were aggressive at the plate from the start, and even with the loss, remain one of the hottest teams in the state.

“They’re good kids and they buy in,” Miyahira said.

‘Iolani had momentum early, but the home team scored five times in the bottom of the third, highlighted by Uechi’s big triple.

The visitors loaded the bases in the top of the fourth and scored twice. Matt Inaba’s sac fly brought Aaron Ujimori home, and a wild pitch by Valencia allowed Jordan Hara to score, cutting the score to 6-5.

In the top of the fifth, Cade Yonamine homered to center, tying the game. Then Adams closed out the final innings without permitting a hit or walk.