No. 3 ‘Iolani shows some pop in hammering No. 6 Punahou

‘Iolani unleashed is bad news for the rest of the ILH.

Catcher Mia Carbonell belted a grand slam as No. 3-ranked ‘Iolani routed No. 6 Punahou, 10-6, on Wednesday.

The road win on Punahou’s slightly sloped diamond on a cloudy afternoon improved the Raiders to 7-1 in league play (11-2-1 overall) under first-year coach Chad Cordero.

“We’re really excited. It’s a new program and a new coaching staff, and we like it a lot,” Carbonell said. “There’s a lot of room for improvement, but we’ve jelled as a team very well.”

Punahou dropped to 4-5 in league play (11-11 overall).

“I’m a little frustrated. We see signs of a lot of good things throughout the year. It’s just trying to put it all together. Hopefully, we can do so here in the last few weeks of the season and make a run,” Punahou coach Dave Eldredge said. “‘Iolani plays a very disciplined game. All the girls do what they need to do. It’s not eye-popping. They just do their jobs and that’s kind of what we hope to be.”

Since somewhat discarding their traditional small-ball approach, the Raiders have scored 36 runs in the their last four games, all wins, over a 10-day span. The sac bunt is still a valuable part of the offense, even on the slope at Punahou, where the ball tends to roll a bit toward the third-base line.

“We still got down a couple of sacs, which led to our big innings. We told them get it somewhere in the middle of the field, don’t be too fine and move our runner up the runner 60 feet,” Cordero said.

Starting pitcher Molly Dyer went four innings, permitting two runs on four hits with two strikeouts and three walks issued. Kiana Baba took the circle for the last three innings, allowing two earned runs and three hits. She struck out four and walked three.

“I like catching them. They always have a smile on their faces. When one is down, the other one picks them up. It’s always good energy between them,” Carbonell said.

Timely hitting, patience at the plate and a solid defense have been winning elements. So has the fairly consistent pitching of Dyer and Baba.

Punahou struggled in the circle. Three pitchers issued a combined 10 bases on balls. Dyer and Baba issued a moderately low five walks.

“You just have to have them have confidence in themselves and their defense. We have a very good defense out there. We minimize our defense, especially since the Kamehameha loss,” Cordero said. “Trust your defense and don’t give the hitters too much credit. Go right at them.”

Punahou broke the ice in the third inning when Aliya Hashimoto singled and Taryn Ho homered to left. Her soaring fly ball landed near the left-field line beyond the 200-foot portable fence.

The lead was short-lived. ‘Iolani plated five runs in the top of the fourth inning and five more in the top of the fifth.

In the fourth, Hunter Salausa-Galletes led off with a home run to center off Punahou starting pitcher Justice Tiberi. Harley Acosta singled and advanced to second base on a sacrifice bunt by Madisyn Ueyama. Natalie Ching singled to center, scoring Acosta from second.

After Julia Mizo singled, Keely Kai singled to center off new pitcher Tasi Taufahema, bringing Ching in from second base to for a 3-2 Raiders’ lead.

Milla Fukuda singled to load the bases, and Taufahema got Kennadie Tsue to pop out for the second out. Taufahema then walked Carbonell, forcing in Mizo from third base for a 4-2 ‘Iolani lead.

Salausa-Galletes then batted for the second time in the inning and was hit by a low pitch on a 2-2 count. That brought Kai in from third base and extended the lead to three runs.

In the top of the fifth, Natalie Ching drew a one-out walk, and after Julia Mizo flew out, Tasi Taufahema walked Keely Kai and Milla Fukuda to load the bases.

Kennadie Tsue walked, forcing Kai in for a 6-2 lead. Carbonell then belted a 1-1 pitch over left center for a grand slam, opening the lead to eight runs.

Punahou scored in the bottom of the sixth. Austen Kinney reached base on an error by Acosta, the third baseman, and after Baba walked the bases full, Shayla Yamashita drew a bases on balls to bring Kinney home from third. Baba then retired Hashimoto on a fielder’s choice ground out to end the frame.

In the seventh, Ho singled, Shonty Passi walked, and Camello smashed a two-out, three-run homer to center. Baba then struck out Mia Hashimoto to end the game.

Punahou will host Kamehameha on Thursday, its fourth home game in a row. ‘Iolani will entertain Mid-Pacific on Thursday.

“They have a lot of heart and they don’t give up, and that’s what I love about this team,” Cordero said. “We don’t have anybody who really sticks out. We don’t have a Shonty (Passi). We don’t have a Taryn (Irimata) or a Nelly (McEnroe-Marinas) or a Jenna (Sniffen). So we have to figure out ways to get those wins. We have one of the smallest teams around, but we’re scrappy and they have heart. They don’t care what the situation is, they never give up.”