St. Francis comes through in pinch to win ILH D-II baseball title

The final season of St. Francis athletics will end with quite a few state tournaments.

The Saints’ baseball team ended three years of ILH tournament frustration with one swing of the bat by Jayden Simpliciano, whose walk-off single scored Bubba Akana with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning for a 2-1 victory over Damien on Wednesday at Hans L’Orange Park.

Simpliciano, who came on as a pinch hitter, drilled a ball over the head of the center fielder to deliver the Saints (13-4) their first ILH championship since 2016.

The baseball team will join the softball team and boys volleyball team in upcoming state tournaments.

“I’m overjoyed for the alumni that had the courage to stick it out at St. Francis,” coach Kip Akana said. “With it being the last season, this is the culmination of a lot of blood, sweat and tears from people who came before and we appreciate it. This is our gift to them.”

>> View more photos from the game in our gallery.

Akana’s son, Bubba, was on second base after a single and a sacrifice bunt in the bottom of the seventh. Damien’s River Iaea, who pitched a complete game, struck out Darian Kamibayashi for the second out before intentionally walking Kiyo Perry.

Akana sent up Simpliciano to hit for his son, Chase, and watched the sophomore hit a ball over the head of the center fielder to end it.

“Coach always tells us to be ready and I just waited on the side waiting for my opportunity,” Simpliciano said. “(The ball) just started to drift back and I knew it was over the (center fielder’s) head.”

St. Francis has won the ILH regular season in Division II in four consecutive seasons but had lost four times in a row to Damien in both 2017 and ’18 to miss out on the state tournament.

The Monarchs beat the Saints again this year, 9-8 in nine innings, to advance to the winner’s bracket of the double-elimination tournament before the Saints came back to win 9-0 on Tuesday and win again on Wednesday.

“Damien’s a tough team and they gave us a good game and it was just our day today,” said shortstop Bubba Akana, who finished 2-for-3. “We’re going to states.”

Akana, who signed to play for Hawaii, said his first thought on Simpliciano’s game-winning hit was extra innings.

“I thought it was a pop up at first,” Akana said. “I rounded third and I looked back and it was going over his head and I put my arms up and sprinted home to celebrate with my teammates.”

Kamibayashi replaced starter Brayden Nomura with one out in the fifth inning and got five of the six batters he faced out to record the win.

Reece Kadota tripled and scored in the first inning for the Saints and the Monarchs tied it on a wild pitch to score Iaea, who had two hits, in the top of the sixth.

The Division II state tournament begins on May 9 on Kauai.