Red Raiders Hungry For Baseball Showdown With Waipahu
By Jack Danilewicz
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Del.icio.usOf all the factors that drive the Kahuku baseball team as it prepares for Wednesday’s OIA Division II playoff game versus Waialua (3:30 p.m. at Kahuku District Park), there’s no doubt which remains at the forefront.
“We want (to play) Waipahu,” coach Roger Van Ness said of the Marauders, who are the tournament’s top seed and defending champion.“Hopefully, the boys will be mentally ready.”
It was Waipahu, lest anyone forget, that handed Kahuku (8-2) one of its two losses this season by an 8-5 count on March 11. The Red Raiders’ only other setback came to McKinley (13-11) in their second-to-last game, a loss that led to a coin-flip between the schools to decide the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds in the East. The Tigers won the coin flip, sending Kahuku into the same bracket as Waipahu as a No. 2 seed, but the Red Raiders aren’t entirely dissatisfied with the result of the flip as it positioned them for another shot at Waipahu on Thursday.
“My son (DII player of the year candidate R.J. Ness) is usually quiet and is one who just does what he’s asked,“the coach said.“He’s never asked me for the ball in any game, but the other day he said to me, ‘Dad, I want the ball against Waipahu.’”
Of course, they must win today’s game first versus Waialua to create a showdown on Thursday at Waipahu. On paper, that would seem a safe bet, given Kahuku’s 24-0 win over the Bulldogs in the regular-season meeting. Kekoa Hughes threw a no-hitter in that game with nine strike-outs, but won’t get the call today versus Waialua to ensure that he’ll be available on Thursday and Friday should the team move on to the semifinals and championship games, respectively. Van Ness expects to go with either Justin Van Ness or Justin Nozawa against Waialua.
Should Kahuku advance, then R.J.Van Ness is the likely starter against Waipahu, although Hughes also could see significant action. Also available is A.J. Kubota, the team’s center-fielder when not pitching in relief.
“We could go with R.J. for four innings and Kekoa for three both days,” Van Ness said of Thursday’s and Friday’s potential games.
Pitching has carried Kahuku throughout the season, and Van Ness calls his team’s defensive play this week as “our key.”
“We have to execute on defense,” he said. “We think we can score with anybody. We’ll go hard against Waialua and try and be as focused as we can be.”
Offensively, their attack begins with lead-off hitter St.
John Lessary, a fleet-footed running back on the football team in the fall, and No. 2 hitter Justin Van Ness, who is only a freshman. Lessary leads the team with a .564 average, while Van Ness is hitting .518.
“They get on base, and as they go, our team goes (offensively),” said Van Ness, who also praised the offensive output of Hughes, who hits in the No. 5 spot, and Tima Tapusoa, the team’s clean-up hitter.
As they begin the post-season,Van Ness hopes they can maintain the poise they showed during the regular season.“Our kids have stayed humble throughout this,” said Van Ness, whose team won all of its preseason games except for a loss to Division
I power Kamehameha.
“One thing about being a Red Raider, they’re competitive kids. Hopefully, we can do our thing.”
Friday’s OIA DII Championship game is set for 3:30 p.m. at Central Oahu Regional Park. The top three finishers at the OIA Tournament earn the league’s berths for the state baseball tourney, which will run May 6-9 at various sites on Oahu.
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