LIHUE — The Kauai Interscholastic Federation baseball playoffs that were scheduled for today have been postponed to Tuesday.
That decision was announced Thursday night by Kapaa High School Athletic Director Greg Gonsalves following the conclusion of a marathon 19-inning baseball game. The extra time will allow Kapaa High School time to rebuild its pitching staff that went the depth during the two days of baseball between Kapaa and Kauai high schools.
The Central Pacific Bank KIF baseball playoffs for the championship will play on Tuesday starting at 3:30 p.m. at the Ron Martin field on the Kapaa High School campus between the Warriors and KIF first round champs Waimea High School.
Playing to a 4-4 tie over a span of 15 innings at Vidinha Stadium, Wednesday night’s contest was finally suspended as the clock teased the midnight hour.
Play resumed Thursday afternoon. In the 19th inning, Kapaa made its move when Kaleb (listed with no surname on the ScoringLive.com website) broke the 4-4 deadlock by scoring Iden Kaui on his Runs Batted In single. Kapaa added insurance to the run when Kawika Kupihea beat out the throw to first base, and scored off a hit from Kapaa lead-off hitter Kaitin Mundon for the 6-4 win.
Action started early as Kapaa scored a run in the first inning only to have Kauai High respond with two runs for a 2-1 bulge.
Mundon was able to cross the plate on a ball bobbled at third base, and Kauai leadoff hitter, Jacob Andres, tied the game, 1-1 when he crossed off an RBI hit by Colten Banquel. Red Raider starting pitcher Kaden Itamura followed off a Kapaa error.
The Warriors deadlocked the score 2-2 in the third frame when its pitcher Pierce Rosario marked an RBI by scoring Kazee (no last name listed on the ScoringLive.com roster).
An error in the fifth inning proved costly to the Red Raiders as Kawika Kupihea and Kazee scored to break the 2-2 deadlock and take a 4-2 bulge that Kauai answered in its home half.
Red Raider Chaz Corona scored off an Andres RBI whack, and Andres crossed on a Noah Ibaan RBI to deadlock the contest at 4-4 until the tie-breaking 19th inning.
During the wait where both sides had opportunity that eluded capitalization, Waimea High School Athletic Director Dino Pabre, attending the game to witness the playoff decision as well as being the AD in charge of baseball, noted that according to Hawaii Prep World website, the record for the longest high school baseball game played in the United States was for a game in Hawaii on March 25, 1967.
That was the day Kamehameha Schools beat McKinley High School, 9-7, in 25 innings played at the Honolulu Stadium. The contest was played in a single day and took six hours and 12 minutes. The losing pitcher, Martin Borja, faced more than 100 batters in the outing, allowing 14 hits and walking 11.
The KIF game that started on Wednesday and concluded on Thursday occupied nearly seven hours, playing for than five hours on Wednesday and two hours on Thursday.
