Hurricanes Face Sabers In A Pre-OIA Playoffs Match
By Jack Danilewicz
E-mail this story | Print this page | Comments (0) | Archive | RSS | Share
Del.icio.us
Kapolei High School senior Ciara
Acierto practices her pitch. Photo
by Byron Lee, .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
The Oahu Interscholastic Association playoffs may still be a week away, but the Kapolei High School softball team is already in post-season mode.
Indeed, there can be no better tuneup for the Hurricanes than on Wednesday when OIA Red West-leader Campbell visits.
“We use the big games to gauge ourselves,” Kapolei coach Tony Saffery said.“They’re the front-runner, so it would definitely be a boost for our kids (to beat the Sabers). We aim as high as possible. We expect our kids to play well.”
Kapolei, which entered the weekend with a 5-4 record, has never missed the OIA’s post-season and has advanced to the state tournament every year it has had a program. This year was supposed to be a reloading year for the Hurricanes after losing 12 seniors from last year’s team, but Saffery’s team has quietly had a solid year, albeit in the shadow of Campbell, which has already established itself as one of the top stories in local softball circles. In a league where parity is the order of the day, however, Saffery stops well short of saying the favorites will have an easy run come tournament time.
“Around the league, we coaches talk a lot among ourselves, and (the consensus is that) it’s anybody’s game - it really is,” said Saffery, who led Kapolei to OIA titles in 2004 and 2005 as well as a state title in 2004. “It should be quite a state tournament.”
Campbell had taken a 9-0 mark into the weekend and will present the Hurricanes with a significant challenge on Wednesday. The Sabers won the earlier meeting 6-2 on Dec. 16, but the Hurricanes were within striking distance for most of the game. Campbell’s success is hardly a surprise to Saffery.
“They’ve always been tough,” Saffery said of Campbell, whose roster has been heavy with under-classmen the past couple of seasons. “Now they’re mature and tough. They’re hitting the (bleep) out of the ball. I watched them knock off four or five runs against Mililani the other night in just one inning. They have good pitching, and they’re very good defensively.”
Self-inflicted wounds plagued Kapolei in the earlier meeting, but Saffery has seen his team grow over the course of the season.
“The routine plays have to stay routine against them,” Saffery said of Wednesday’s matchup. “If we do that, the kids will be right in there, and we’ll be at least competitive. Offensively, we were able to hit the ball against them last time - we just hit to them. We have to find the gaps, and some of that is luck.
“We also have to answer them (scoring-wise),” he added,“and we have to defend their hits because one of our biggest problems (in the first meeting) was defensive errors.”
Sophomore left-hander Kishti Kamaka will pitch for Kapolei on Wednesday, with Ciara Acierto scheduled to take the mound for the Hurricanes in their regular-season finale against Pearl City at 4:30 p.m. Saturday at Central Oahu Regional Park. Acierto pitched the first five innings of Kapolei’s last encounter with Campbell, but Saffery favors starting a different pitcher against the same team in the second round of the Red West slate. He’s confident in both players’ abilities as the playoffs approach.
“It (alternating the two) has been working well for both,“Saffery said. “They’re ready for the post-season. The regular season has been good training.”
Saturday’s game with Pearl City will mark the second time to date this season that the Hurricanes appear on statewide television. Oceanic 16 will broadcast the game.
“It’s a good deal for all the kids,” Saffery said of televised games.“It not only gives exposure to the sport, but it’s nice for the seniors who would like to go on to (and play softball in) college. They can tape the game and use it for recruiting purposes, so the timing is perfect.”
The OIA playoffs open with first-round action on Jan. 17. Pairings for the tournament will be announced over the weekend.
E-mail this story | Print this page | Comments (0) | Archive | RSS
Most Recent Comment(s):
