OIA Baseball
Moanalua walks off with 5-4 win over Radford


  



Wed, Apr 22, 2015 @ [ 3:00 pm ]


FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
Radford 0 030001462
Moanalua 0 2 00003564

W: Skyler Yamamoto    L: Nickolas Martinez

MOA: Kenji Yamaguchi 3-3 run rbi dbl; Tanner Inouye 6.0 IP 2 ER
RAD: Jacob Gonzalez 1-2 run 3 rbi HR; Landyn Bartness 3.6 IP 2 ER


SALT LAKE — Nicholas Enrico refused to go down without a fight.

The senior shortstop drove in the winning run with his seventh-inning single to left field to help Moanalua walk off with a 5-4 win over Radford in a first-round game of the Oahu Interscholastic Association Division I baseball tournament Wednesday afternoon.

Na Menehune (8-5), the third seed out of the Eastern Division, rallied from a two-run deficit with three runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to turn back the West's sixth-seeded Rams (3-10) before a crowd of about 120 fans on a blistering hot day at their home field.

Enrico lined a 1-1 pitch between the third baseman and shortstop, which scored Adam Tanoue from third base to complete the comeback.

"I just saw a fastball and I just geared up for that," said Enrico, who was 0 for 3 in his first three at-bats. "I just wanted to do something small, because I knew that if I tried to do something big, I probably would have just popped it up."

Radford held a 4-2 lead after plating an insurance run in the top of the seventh on a Gavin Watabayashi RBI single to score Dez Munar and was three out from an upset.

However, Moanalua got its first two batters aboard in the bottom of the frame. Andrew Oasay drew a bases-loaded walk and Dilan Casupang doubled to the right-center gap to put runners on the corners with no outs. Adam Tanoue then hit a ground ball toward second base — which allowed Oasay to score — but was booted, bringing in Casupang for the tying run before Enrico's heroics.

"I was put in a clutch situation," said Enrico, the clean-up hitter. "The inning before I just had a feeling in my body that He was watching over us and I just can't thank my team and coaches enough. They didn't give up on us. Last game we had a tough one against Kalani and we just stuck through it, so today we told the team that this could be our last game, so why not just go 110 percent?"

It appeared as if Na Menehune let a golden opportunity go by the wayside when they left the bases loaded to end the bottom of the sixth, but Enrico said their faith never wavered.

"No, no way," Enrico said. "I had faith in my team that if we shut down Radford, we'll come back in the next inning and we'll fight until the end."

Moanalua coach Scott Yamada the experience his team gained in the regular season helped it pull off the comeback Wednesday.

"I was thinking, ‘Just give us another chance,' " Yamada said. "The boys were due and we were given an opportunity again when we got the first two guys on (in the top of the seventh), which opened the door for us and gave us a little confidence. All year we've been playing like that in the sixth and seventh inning and I think that's the character of this team this year; They're a late-inning team."

Tanner Inouye started for Na Menehune on the mound and went six innings. He allowed three runs (one unearned) on five hits and did not factor into the decision. Three pitchers were used in the top of the seventh, with Skyler Yamamoto picking up the win.

Kenji Yamaguchi batted 3 for 3 from the sixth spot in the lineup, including an RBI double that opened the scoring in the bottom of the second. He also scored in the inning on a Cody Isa RBI groundout.

"I've been kind of in a slump lately and after practices I've been working with my hitting coach and we've just been working on pushing the ball with my right hand," said Yamaguchi, a senior first baseman. "The thing he told me was, ‘Just do you. Nevermind the mechanics and stuff, just do what you feel is right,' so I did it. I felt good. I was in a groove."

Yamaguchi also flashed some defensive skills when he initiated a double play in the top of the sixth. He made a diving grab of a ball off the bat of Tayvis Passos and erased the lead runner by throwing to Enrico at second, who fired to Inouye covering the bag at first.

"That was kind of a dream play," Yamaguchi said. "They had that big lefty (Passos) come up, so he kept pulling balls fouls, so I was thinking, ‘This gotta be mine, anything, anyway.' So I just dived for it, played two and my pitcher had my back. We've been working on that, so I'm glad it happened."

Radford got on the board in the top of the third when clean-up hitter Jacob Gonzalez belted a two-out, three-run home run over the fence in right field to give his team a 3-2 lead.

OIA DIVISION I PLAYOFFS

FIRST ROUND

Moanalua 5 - Radford 4
Leilehua 10 - Castle 0 [F/6]
Pearl City 3 - Roosevelt 2
Kalani 9 - Waipahu 0

QUARTERFINALS - 4/23

Kalani at Campbell - 3p
Pearl City at Kaiser - 3p
Moanalua at Mililani - 3p
Leilehua at Kailua - 3p

Landyn Bartness went 3 2/3 innings and allowed two runs on two hits before giving way to Nick Martinez, who threw the final 2 1/3 innings. He surrendered three runs (one unearned) on four hits and was saddled with the loss.

"Our guys threw strikes — that's the main thing — and that's what these two guys have been doing all year is throwing strikes," Rams' coach Jacob Sur said. "It's nothing overpowering, so they're going to hit the ball and they got timely hits when it mattered. We had a costly error at the end, but that's the way the game goes. Moanalua did what they had to do and they did a good job."

The Rams, who competed in Division II last year, saw their season come to an end with the loss, while Na Menehune will visit West runner-up Mililani (10-2) in a 3 p.m. quarterfinal Thursday. The winner will secure one of sixth OIA berths into next month's Division I state tournament.



Reach Kalani Takase at [email protected].




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