HHSAA Softball
Kapaa defeats KIF-rival Waimea in D2 title game


ScoringLive staff
May 14, 2022, 10:10pm

  

Sat, May 14, 2022 @ [ 7:00 pm ]

Kapaa

13

Waimea

5

FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
Kapaa 3 04024013142
Waimea 0 0 30200593

W: Seijia Makanani    L: Taelor Camelo

WAIM: Ryleah Torres 3-4 2 runs 2 rbi dbl; Taelor Camelo 7.0 IP 6 ER 9 K
KAPA: Savanna Simons 2-2 4 runs 2 rbi HR; Seijia Makanani 7.0 IP 2 ER 4 K




For the first time in school history, Kapaa is the Division II state softball champion. 

Savanna Simons batted 2 for 2 with a two-run home run and four runs scored to help Kapaa to a 13-5 win over Waimea in the title game of the DataHouse/HHSAA Division II Softball State Championships at Patsy T. Mink Field at Maui High School Saturday night. 

"It's amazing," Kapaa first-year coach Alani Silva said via phone Saturday night.

"It's quite an accomplishment that these girls have done. I have seven seniors on this team and they were a big part of it — and they just carried this team all the way through. It's an awesome feeling and quite an amazing accomplishment and to do it with a great bunch of girls like this is pretty amazing."

The Warriors rapped out 14 hits, including three apiece by Kaia Davis-Caberto (3 for 4, double, two stolen bases, three runs scored), Kai-Lee Kupihea (3 for 4, two RBI, three runs scored) and Tira Ann Kaui (3 for 5, RBI, run scored). Simmons, who was selected by the HHSAA and working media as the tournament's most outstanding player, reached base in all five of her plate appearances; the senior catcher was hit also by a pitch three times.

"Our hitting was outstanding. We left a few runners on base, but when they were on-hase they came through in the clutch," Silva said. 

Seijia Makanani went the distance in the circle and got the win for Kapaa. The senior allowed five runs — just two of them earned — on nine hits, with four strikeouts and four walks. She improved to 10-3 on the year and closed out the spring with an earned run averaged of 2.33. 

Ryleah Torres and Kalea Huihui-Caberto each batted 3 for 4 in the loss for the Menhunes. 

Taelor Camelo was the losing pitcher. She allowed six earned runs on 14 hits with nine strikeouts and two walks in a complete game. 

Kapaa, the No. 2 seed in the 12-team tournament, improved to 12-3-1, while unseeded Waimea dropped to 12-6-1. 

The Warriors and Menehunes finished first and second place in the Kauai Interscholastic Federation, respectively. 

"I knew it was gonna be Waimea from the beginning. Waimea's been tough all season," Silva said. "I mean, it could have gone either way, but I'm glad it went our way, but I knew my girls and believed in them and they just believed in themselves that they could win this whole thing."

The teams faced off a total of nine times this spring, with Kapaa holding a 5-3-1 advantage on Waimea. 

Kapaa defeated Aiea and Waipahu in the quarterfinal and semifinals rounds on Thursday and Friday, respectively, while Waimea was playing its fourth game in as many days; after it beat Damien in a play-in game last Saturday, Waimea defeated Hawaii Prep and PAC-5 on its way to the title game. 

The Menehunes were seeking their third state championship in program history and second in D2 (2012). 

In addition to Simons, the rest of the all-tournament team was made up of pitchers Makanani (Kapaa) and Camelo (Waimea), catcher Kendalyn Cordeiro-Felise (Waipahu), infielders Milan Ah-Yat (PAC-5), Kailee Gorospe (Kapaa), Huihui-Caberto (Waimea), Syan Yamamoto (Waipahu), outfielders Hunter Akita (Waimea), Kau (Kapaa) and Kristy Kitabayashi (Waipahu) and utility Miki-Ann Mochizuki (PAC-5).


DataHouse/HHSAA Division II Softball All-Tournament Team
as selected by the HHSAA and working media

P — Taelor Camelo, Waimea
P — Seijia Makanani, Kapaa
C — Kendalyn Cordeiro-Felise, Waipahu
INF — Milan Ah Yat, PAC-5
INF — Kailee Gorospe, Kapaa
INF — Kalea Huihui-Caberto, Waimea
INF — Syan Yamamoto, Waipahu
OF — Hunter Akita, Waimea
OF — Tira Ann Kaui, Kapaa 
OF — Kristy Kitabayashi, Waipahu
U — Miki-Ann Mochizuki, PAC-5

Most Outstanding Player: Savannah Simons, Kapaa




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