Kailua Girls Building On Skills
By Jack Danilewicz
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Del.icio.usKailua’s game plan for Saturday’s season-ending doubleheader is much as it was during Week One last month:“It’s the same thing - hit the ball, hit the ball,“longtime Surfrider softball coach Bernard Victor joked. “The only way you’re going to score is if you hit the ball.”
The Surfriders, who took a 5-3 record into the weekend with four games to go in OIA Red East play, are currently hitting .284 as a team. While that number may be down by Victor’s program standards, the team has nevertheless maintained its winning ways, splitting doubleheaders with both Castle and Roosevelt, the two teams Kailua is locked in a battle with for the season title. An upset loss to Kaimuki was Kailua’s only other defeat. It was the only team to hand either Castle or Roosevelt a loss as of last Friday.
As for offensive woes, they haven’t come from a lack of emphasis on their hitting, to hear Victor tell it.“We’re batting a lot - it’s just not showing up (in the box scores). We hit in the cage, and we hit against live pitching every day. We’re not hitting at the right time. We’re spreading it around, so no one has been outstanding. A little bit here and a little bit there, but we know we can play better, and that’s the part that is tough.”
At the plate, Shelby Lono, one of the top two starters in the pitching rotation along with Jaelleen Johnson, leads the way at .417. Johna-Lynn Pedro is hitting .393, and Sage Manatad is batting .364.
“Shelby’s been pretty consistent, and Sage has been consistent, but we’re all a little up and down now,” he said. “I think if the other team has a good pitcher, you’re not going to get many hits, too.”
At 5-3 with four games to go, the East title is still within reach, but the Surfriders are clearly needing to run the table, Victor said. Kailua was to play Kahuku over the weekend in a doubleheader before Saturday’s 10 a.m. twin-bill at home versus Moanalua. Kahuku was 1-6 heading into the weekend, while Moanalua had a .500 record at 5-5.
“On paper, I feel like we can still be the champ,” Victor mused. “I think we have to win our last four games.”
All three of Kailua’s losses came in the second game of a doubleheader after they already had claimed Game One. Johnson and Lono have rotated in all of the team’s doubleheader Saturdays.
“When both pitchers are having a good day, we’re all right,” said Victor, who has led Kailua to six OIA titles and four state championships, most recently in 2003. “Against Castle, one pitcher had a good game and one didn’t. (Overall) we’re doing OK.”
A big post-season by lead-off hitter Tiffay Pereza could go a long way in helping them be a factor in the coming weeks. A four-year starter, she was an all-conference selection last year as a utility player and has had a solid senior season.
“Tiffany sets an example by the way she works out,“Victor said.“She has speed, and she’s one of our better players. She’s played well this year.”
The Surfriders are hoping to earn either the No. 1 or No. 2 seed out of the East for the upcoming OIA playoffs. The top five teams from the OIA earn the league’s berths for the State Softball Championships, which will run May 12-15 at various sites on the island.
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