Chase for the Championship
Baldwin stuns Maryknoll in opening round


Baldwin's Raquel Palmeira comes home for one of her two runs scored against Maryknoll. Greg Yamamoto | SL

BALDWIN 10, MARYKNOLL 2
For the better part of the last decade, Baldwin struggled to make any noise in the state tournament, but the Bears earned their first state tournament win since 2011 with a stunning 10-2 win over Maryknoll Wednesday morning in the first of four DataHouse/HHSAA Division I Softball Championships opening round games at Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium.

Baldwin bunched together 17 hits and exploded for seven runs in the top of the third inning and never looked back as it will move on to face top-seeded Campbell in a 7:30 p.m. affair Thursday.

Saree-Ann Kekahuna led the Bears at the plate going 3 for 4 with a homer and a double for three RBIs.

Aliya Harmon went the distance in the circle for Baldwin, tossing six strikeouts and four walks. All the runs charged against her were unearned.

In the other opening round matchups: Iolani outlasted Waianae, 11-10; Leilehua outbattled Kapolei, 11-9; and Roosevelt blanked Kaiser, 10-0, in six innings.