HANAPEPE — The Kauai Senior Softball league packed as much as action as possible into an eight-game marathon. The Rookies trimmed the Wally Sonoda Softball Park in Kaumakani for four games while Hana Hou set up a four-game series at the Hanapepe Stadium softball diamond.
In Hanapepe, Hana Hou ran into a buzzsaw taking on the Aloha Kia Lihue A’s in the opening contest. The A’s responded to a disappointing loss a week ago, lighting it up at the plate with the entire lineup delivering hits. Hana Hou is figuring out how to deal with multiple injuries and came up empty handed in what was expected to be a fight to the finish. Lihue cruised to a 13-1 rout to end the game early.
West Kauai took on Ohana in the second game. Al Magno has been getting more hitting from West Kauai coming down the home stretch of the season. Frank Bukoski has Ohana rolling along near the top of the league standings. West Kauai came out swinging and stung Ohana with one of their most impressive outputs of the year, knocking in 17 runs. Ohana responded with a bigger outburst and pounded the ball around the field. When the dust settled, Ohana outslugged West Kauai, 23-17.
Solid Steel was next up with the East Kauai Legends on hand. Tom Christy continues to add to the Steel’s roster to get back into the winning ways. Skippa Holt has guided the Legends to a series of great games in the second half. The Legends hammered away for 12 runs but were outhit and outscored as Solid Steel ran away with a 16-12 decision.
Ohana and the Aloha Kia Lihue A’s stayed around the park to play a make-up game from a previous rain out. After the close encounter with West Kauai, Ohana was primed at the plate. Lihue was going to be up against a tougher foe than their earlier game. This time around, defense came through to hold down the hits and rallies for both teams. Ohana cashed in on their opportunities to knock in eight runs. Lihue came up short with just four runs to cross the plate. Behind the 8-4 victory, Ohana moves in front of the A’s by a half-game in the standings with both clubs at 17 wins and a single loss separating them.
At the Wally Sonoda Softball Park, the Rookies started a busy schedule going up against Kuku’s Aces. The Rookies opened up the home-half of the first inning with back-to-back home runs by Nelson Chiba and John Pimental to ignite a run-away offense. The Aces were able to get runners on the bases in every inning but found it hard to get them around the bags with the stingy Rookie defense. The Rookies bombarded them with multiple home runs and extra base hits in a rout. The Aces put one run on the board, but the fifth inning found them down 20-1 for an early knockout.
The Hanamaulu Hillsiders took on Goliath with just nine players in the starting lineup against the league-leading Keonimana Gents. The Gents methodically got runners on the bases and brought them home using the open slots in the outfield. The Hillsiders got to 10 players in the third inning, but the damage had been done by that time of the game as the Gents rolled to a 14-0 shut out in five innings.
The Islanders got set to tangle with Kawaihau in the third game. Joe Bertucci had his best lineup coming to the plate and was set to put up a few runs. Kawaihau stunned the Islanders, spraying the ball around the field and was able to take advantage of a few costly errors. The Islanders found being the home team was going to pay off as they were able to stay even in the game and match the challenge. Kawaihau racked up seven runs, briefly holding the lead in the game. The Islanders were able to hold off the assault, topping Kawaihau in a 9-7 win.
The Ohana Motors Rebels and Da Kruzers wrapped up the day in the fourth game. Duane Girard had a limited game roster for Da Kruzers with just nine players. The Rebels showed no mercy, peppering the three-man outfield with 25 hits. Da Kruzers did mount a rally in the second inning with two outs coming up with five straight hits to post five runs. The Rebels knocked in their 17th run in the bottom of the fifth for the 12-run margin to close out the game with a 17-5 victory.
The Keonimana Gents maintain their control of the league standings with their 23-1 record. The Ohana Motors Rebels and the Rookies remain tied in second place. Ohana is a half game on top of the Aloha Kia Lihue A’s for fourth place. Barteks’ 16-8 record has them alone in sixth. Solid Steel and Hana Hou are knotted in seventh. The Islanders have been moving up in the standings with their ninth win of the season. Da Kruzers are enjoying their finest season to date and are tied with Kawaihau with seven wins each. The East Kauai Legends fell to 6-17 followed by the Hanamaulu Hillsiders with Kuku’s Aces and West Kauai to close out the league standings.
The Senior Softball League will play its next games at the Bryan J. Baptiste Sports Complex in Kapaa and Isenberg Stadium in Lihue. The Aloha Kia Lihue A’s will welcome three contests to their home field. The A’s will take on Barteks in the opening contest. The Rookies are up against Ohana in the second game, and the Ohana Motors Rebels will take on Hana Hou in the final game.
The East Kauai Legends will have their arch-rival Kawaihau on tap as they host a quadruple-header in Kapaa. The second game will feature Kuku’s Aces and the Keonimana Gents. Solid Steel with have Da Kruzers across the diamond in the third contest, and the day will end with the Islanders and the Hanamaulu Hillsiders going at it.
