After a dominant run in the SLS West Region Tournament, Honolulu is ready to open the Senior League Softball World Series in Lower Sussex, Del.
The West Region champions will begin pool play against Central Region champion Illinois today at 2 p.m.
Honolulu will compete with Calgary-Alberta (Canada Region), Czech Republic (Europe-Africa Region), Georgia (Southeast Region) and Illinois in Pool B to reach the quarterfinals on Aug. 4. The semifinals will be on Aug. 5, while the SLSWS Championship game will be on Aug. 6.
Other teams in the tournament include the Philippines (Asia-Pacific), Lower Sussex (Delaware D3 Region), New Jersey (East Region), Puerto Rico (Latin America Region) and Texas (Southwest Region) in Pool A.
Honolulu cruised through the regional tournament with a perfect 9-0 record. They scored a combined 160 runs throughout the tournament, including four games with at least 20 and seven games with double-digit runs. Conversely, they gave up just 26 runs on defense.
With a 7-0 record, top-seeded Honolulu took down No. Washington 16-1 in the semifinal round.
Honolulu took on host Montana District 2 Zootown-GCLL on Tuesday, July 25, in the West Region championship game. Kamehameha’s Haylie-Sean Reiny starred for Honolulu, batting 4-for-4 with three runs scored and a stolen base, while Punahou’s Tasiana Taufahema pitched seven innings to lead Honolulu to the 7-4 win and World Series Berth.
Honolulu is led by manager Michael Chung, who is assisted by coach Al Estes, Chad Peiler, and player advocate Michele Reiny. The members of the team are Kamehameha II’s Mya Kishida and Reiny, ‘Iolani’s Kyla Estes, Aiea’s Taja Souza, Damien’s Shelby Baguio, Kamehameha’s Nikki Chong and Kelsey Kaluna-Thomas, Sacred Hearts’ Destiny Tautofi, Taufahema, Punahou II’s Cayley Chung, Mid-Pacific’s Anuhea Wong-Barboza, Roosevelt’s Kelsey Kawamura and Maryknoll’s Amber Rayray.
Pearl City opens strong in World Series
Pearl City wasn’t fazed by a slow start on offense, turning on the jets and scoring in four straight innings to take down Ascension Parish (La.) 8-4 in its opening game of the Intermediate 50/70 Baseball World Series in Livermore, Calif., on Sunday night.
Pitcher Noah Propios was a two-way star for Pearl City. Propios threw a seven-inning complete game on 87 pitches, while driving in a run and scoring another. Propios was one of seven different Pearl City runners to score a run.
Trailing 1-0 after giving up a first inning run, Pearl City’s offense finally woke up in the top of the fourth. Tytan Takahashi reached on a single, then headed to second base on a wild pitch. An Ascension Parish throwing error sent Takahashi around third and home for the tying run. Later that inning, Ryley Omine’s well-struck triple to the center-field wall scored Boston Schwager for Pearl City’s first lead.
Ascension Parish scored two runs of their own in the bottom of the fourth to reclaim the lead, but it didn’t last long. Pearl City kept their offensive momentum going, plating a pair to take the lead for good. Noah Balderas scored to tie it at 3-3 as the Ascension Parish third-baseman failed to cleanly field a throw. The go-ahead run came soon after when Propios crossed the plate on a passed ball.
With the lead in hand, the rest of the game belonged to Pearl City. Cade Funai scored on an error in the sixth inning to make it 5-3 Pearl City. The seventh inning was Pearl City’s best. Omine scored on Justin Kamanao Bulosan’s RBI hit, followed by Luke Furutani scoring on a passed ball. Propios then added the proverbial cherry atop his stellar outing with an RBI single to score Balderas to make it 8-3 Pearl City.
Propios gave up a consolation run in the bottom of the seventh, but took matters into his own hands by fielding a hit straight back to the mound for the final out.
Omine finished with both of Pearl City’s extra-base hits.
Pearl City will move on to face Taylor, Mich., today at 3 p.m. Hawaii time.
