Castle pounds Kailua, 11-5, in Red East showdown


Castle's Kaisha Dacosin attempts to beat out a throw at home plate against Kailua. Greg Yamamoto | SL
KANE'OHE -- Leisha Li'ili'i pitched a five-hitter and went 3 for 4 with a home run and two RBIs yesterday to help Castle rout O'ahu Interscholastic Association softball rival Kailua, 11-5.

The Knights improved to 10-1 in league play and clinched at least a share of the Red Conference Eastern Division title. The Surfriders fell to 9-2. The teams play again at 9 a.m. at Kailua in the regular season finale.

Castle was upset by Kaimuki, 8-3, on Tuesday, but came out swinging yesterday and scored all 11 runs in the first four innings.

The Surfriders took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning after Toni Damo-Agcaoili singled with one out, advanced to second on Jayna Hanawahine's walk, to third on Destinee Chang's groundout and scored on a wild pitch.

But Brittany Hawn led off the bottom of the first with an inside-the-park home run, and after two outs Kaisha Dacosin delivered an RBI double and Brooke Kaulula'au had a two-run single to make it 4-1.

Kailua closed it to 4-3 in the second after Damo-Agcaoili's two-run single, but the Knights answered with four more runs in the bottom half, highlighted by Li'ili'i's RBI single and Dacosin's three-run homer.

Castle then made it 10-3 in the third after Kaulula'au's single, a stolen base, an error and a wild pitch.

Li'ili'i, a senior left-hander who signed a national letter of intent to play for the University of Hawai'i next season, pushed the lead to 11-3 with a solo home run in the fourth.

Kailua closed it to 11-5 in the seventh after Hanawahine's RBI triple and a run-scoring single by Chang, but Li'ili'i induced a pop-up to second base to end the game.�

Dacosin and Kaulula'au each went 2 for 3 and Hawn finished 2 for 4. Damo-Agcaoili went 2 for 4 to lead the Surfriders.