LIHU‘E — Kaua‘i High School first base Jadyn Naka‘ahiki powered into a grand slam, Thursday night during the Kaua‘i Interscholastic Federation softball game against Waimea that was re-scheduled from Wednesday.
Naka‘ahiki’s grand slam fueled the Kaua‘i Red Raiders to a 6-4 edge over Waimea before an audience that braved the threatening weather to honor five of its senior players during Kaua‘i’s Senior Night. She finished the night leading the Red Raider bats, going a perfect three-for-three in the box and batting in four runs.
Trailing 4-0 in the third inning, Waimea responded with a two-run homerun from Kayla Prigge that drove in its shortstop Sianni Sakai who finished the night by scoring twice for the Menehune.
Sakai provided Waimea with its second homerun, a two-run event, in the seventh inning when Waimea pulled to within two runs, 6-4.
Prigge, getting hit by a pitch to get first, was taken out on a fielder’s choice at second base for the Menehune’s second out. Kaylen Banquel, representing the Menehune’s tying run, singled.
With two outs, Waimea’s batter lost track of the count following her second healthy swing, returning to the Menehune dugout. That move prompted a pause in the game as officials deliberated the play with the KIF arbitrators, and eventually, the state arbitrators that ruled the batter out, and the game over.
The result of the Wednesday contest set up at least one playoff contest against Kapa‘a that will be played Monday starting at 5:30 p.m. at the Waimea Canyon Park.
Kaua‘i, with its big win on Senior Night, will play a double-header, Saturday at the Kapa‘a High School diamond. The first contest starts at 10 a.m. followed by the second game starting following a 30-minute break at the end of the first match.
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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
