The final four in Division I of the Wally Yonamine Foundation/HHSAA State Baseball Championships is spread evenly among the major leagues.
Kailua was the last team to punch its ticket and is the only representative from the OIA after knocking off ILH champion Mid-Pacific 6-1 on Wednesday night at Les Murakami Stadium.
Dylan Kurahashi-Choy Foo broke a 1-1 tie with an RBI single in the sixth inning and Kalua Neves stamped Kailua’s first trip to the semifinals since 2014 with a two-run blast over the right-field wall in the seventh.
“That’s how our team is. If we’re not explosive from the first inning we’re eventually going to put together some runs,” Neves said. “I was just looking for something up in the zone — something I could definitely pull.”
Kailua (14-3) will face BIIF champion Waiakea in the first game of tonight’s doubleheader, followed by MIL champion Baldwin against ILH runner-up ‘Iolani.
Kailua’s Stone Parker and Mid-Pacific’s Shion Matsushita dueled their way into the sixth inning, when the Surfriders’ middle of the lineup came through against the sidearm-throwing Matsushita.
Jalen Ah Yat, who finished with three singles and was hit by a pitch, started it with a one-out single and Kailua had runners on first and second when Kurahashi-Choy Foo ripped a single to left-center to drive in courtesy runner Shane Kalawaia.
Bryson Ballesteros blooped a single behind the bag at first to load the bases and a Dakota Kadooka groundout brought in the third Kailua run.
“I felt like we were getting used to (Matsushita) and then at the end we were able to put it together,” Kurahashi-Choy Foo said.
Parker gave up his only run in the third inning when he walked two batters before Jacob Yoshino’s RBI single tied the game at 1-1.
Kailua struck first in the top of the inning when Matthew Kaleiohi singled, stole two bases and scored on Ah Yat’s two-out RBI single.
Ah Yat added a two-out RBI single to right in the seventh inning for a 4-1 lead before Neves’ blast.
It was the first home run hit in a winners bracket state tournament game at Les Murakami Stadium since Campbell’s Dewayne Sprinkel in the 2015 state final.
Parker, who signed with Kansas, finished with a three-hitter.
“I just tried to stay settled and grounded and focused on pitching,” Parker said. “This whole year we’ve been working hard and doing what we have to do. We deserve (this).”
DIVISION I SUMMARIES
KAILUA 6, MID-PACIFIC 1
At Les Murakami Stadium
Kailua (14-3) 001 002 3 — 6 9 1
Mid-Pac.(15-4) 001 000 0 — 1 3 0
Stone Parker and Kalua Neves. Shion Matsushita, Shane Adams (7) and Kyle Layugan. W—Parker. L—Matsushita.
Leading hitters—Kail: Jalen Ah Yat 3-3, 2 RBIs; Neves 1-2, 2-run HR. MPI—Kyle Layugan 2b.
