Mid-Pacific's Sammy Sakihara slides safely into third base against Punahou. Sakihara was 2-for-3 at the plate with 3 runs scored, 2 RBIs and a triple in the win over the Buffanblu. Greg Yamamoto | SL

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Mid-Pacific's Marissa Allen connected with this pitch for a grand slam home run in a win against Punahou. Greg Yamamoto | SL

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MAKIKI — The third time around proved to be a charm in more ways than one for the Mid-Pacific softball team Wednesday afternoon.

The unranked Owls (7-8) avenged two previous losses to Punahou this season by rallying to a 10-5 win over the fifth-ranked Buffanblu (10-5) before a crowd of about 100 fans on a blustery, overcast day.

With the win, Mid-Pacific keeps its state-tournament hopes alive and can punch its ticket with a win over second-ranked Maryknoll in the final game of the Interscholastic League of Honolulu Division I postseason tournament. The Spartans defeated Iolani, 5-4, in the other semifinal Wednesday.

"We try not to get too ahead of ourselves, because we knew that we had to keep our composure in order for us to play this game and we knew that it was a clean slate, so we just had to give it our all and we knew that (Punahou was) going to give it their all, too, and they did," said Owls' senior Kaili-Ann Akimseu, who was the game's winning pitcher. "It was a very challenging game. They played their hearts out and so did we."

Punahou held leads of 2-0 and 4-1 before allowing nine Mid-Pacific runs over the final two innings. Senior pitcher Nicole Nishizawa, who had a no-hitter going into the fourth inning, saw things unravel in the sixth when the Owls sent 10 batters to the plate.

"She was on it, she was totally keeping all of us off balance and I think because we saw her so many times already, we just knew that we just had to put our bats down because she has so much power behind her ball that if we just tapped it, it would at least get into the playing field," Akimseu said of Nishizawa. "We just needed to slow down, adjust to her pitch, because she was owning the plate the entire time. She was doing great."

Mid-Pacific coach Alan Inaba said he reminded his team of the scouting report on Nishizawa, a two-year starter for the Buffanblu.

"From last year we knew her out-pitch was her riser, so I guess maybe it was the excitement of the game early on and the girls kind of lost track of that and they were a little too aggressive, but they made their adjustments," Inaba said. "We told them to just look down, because her pitch is her riser, so look down and she's going to be forced to keep the ball down."

The Owls had five of their 12 hits for the game come in the sixth inning. None were bigger than Marissa Allen's grand slam that turned a three-run deficit into a one-run lead on one swing of the bat.

"I wanted to come through for my team at that time and I just saw a good opportunity and if it happens, it happens, if it doesn't, it doesn't," said Allen, slugged a 2-2 pitch from Nishiwaza well over the left field fence. "I didn't think I hit it. I actually thought I popped it up."

Inaba said Allen possesses a surprising amount of power for a freshman.

"She's strong, so she doesn't really have to swing hard to hit the ball hard," Inaba said. "We've just kind of been working with her on timing and getting the bat head on the ball, but it's just amazing because she doesn't really get fazed out by anything; There's no pressure in her mind."

Allen, grounded out to shortstop in her first at bat and struck out swinging in her second, said the Owls' had made their adjustments against Nishizawa by the third time around the lineup.

"The first time it was a little hard and it was about settling the nerves," Allen said. "The second time it's, ‘let's get on base, let's keep it going,' and then the third time it was, ‘okay, I'm used to her speed, I'm used to her movement.' "

Punahou coach Bob Makahilahila couldn't help but wonder if Nishizawa, who had been dealing with a lingering shoulder injury, was at 100 percent, but credited Mid-Pacific for its part.

"They did a great job of adjusting to where she was throwing the ball and then they starting hitting her, but I don't know, it just didn't look the same as earlier in the game when she was hitting spots and the ball was moving a little bit more," Makahilahila said. "She's a competitor and I think the bottom line is Mid-Pac just hit the ball well."

The Owls sent eight more batters to the plate in a four-run seventh inning to stretch their lead to 10-4. The Buffanblu managed one run in the seventh, but left the bases loaded to end the game. They stranded a total of 12 runners on base.

"They got themselves going, they're a great hitting team and they've done that all season," Makahilahila said of Mid-Pacific. "We knew coming into the game that they were going to be a tough team to beat, especially three times in a row, and we just played them last Wednesday, too, so it was hard enough just trying to do all of those things, but hats off to them, they came in and did what they needed to do."

Punahou won both previous meetings between the teams this season, including a 10-7 win in eight innings last Wednesday.