Loren Iwata pumped his seventh and final strikeout through the zone to strand the potential winning run on second in the bottom of the seventh inning, popped off the mound and ran to his Waiakea dugout.
He could feel it.
“Hell, yeah,” Iwata said. “We were hyped up, we got the energy and we’re going to carry it into offense and it happened.”
You know things are returning back to normal when Waiakea and Hilo are going at it again at Wong Stadium in front of a big nighttime crowd after an obligatory weather delay. The game even went extra innings, ending after 11 p.m., in part because of a 30-minute lightning
Win or lose, everyone could feel it.
“It’s definitely a night to remember, this is the game we’ve been waiting for,” Warriors junior Devin Garza said after the Warriors’ 9-7 victory in eight innings.
It was the long-awaited renewal of a rivalry that had been on delay since the 2019 BIIF championship game. Back then, Iwata had yet to contribute to a Hilo Pony 13s team that would win the World Series later that summer.
A sophomore, he pitched four scoreless innings of relief, keying a game-tying rally in the sixth with a walk.
“He really stepped up,” Waiakea coach Chris Honda said. “He played like a senior. He played with confidence and composure.”
This being an even year, Waiakea is supposed to win the BIIF Division I title this season.
Remember: Hilo has odds, winning titles in 2013, ‘15, ‘17 and ‘19, while Waiakea, since winning the HHSAA crown in 2012, has had evens.
Of course, everyone has been away for so long, who’s counting?
“A lot of energy on both sides of the field, it felt really good to be out here tonight,” Honda said.
And in rallying for three runs in the sixth to tie the game and scoring four more in the eighth, his team laid down it’s blueprint for success this season.
“They played with resilience,” Honda said. “We have to have good approaches at the plate, put the ball in play and move guys over. We have to play team baseball.”
Garza had a key at-bat in each rally.
In the sixth, the Warriors (3-0) loaded the bases with one out on a hit batter, Dylan Honda’s hit and a walk. They tied the game as Iwata walked, Mason Hirata singled and Garza hit a sacrifice fly.
“I was in that situation before, full bases, one down, and I couldn’t get the job done,” Garza said. “I felt like it needed it to be done.”
Iwata extinguished the Vikings’ threat in the seventh, and then the Warriors went to work again. With one out, pinch-hitter Kaden Oshiro walked, Hirata singled and Garza sent a ball through the left side to give Waiakea the lead. The Warriors added three more insurance runs, which became key when the Vikings (2-1) scored twice in the bottom half of the eighth before Kyson Wada wiggled out of further damage by recording the final two outs.
Hirata finished with three hits and two RBIs. Iwata walked four and allowed three hits in victory.
“It just feels natural,” Iwata said of the team chemistry.
Hekili Robello pitched five solid innings and struck out nine on 92 pitches for Hilo but was tagged with a no-decision when two Vikings relievers struggled at times with their command.
Trailing 2-1, Hilo scored four times in the bottom of the third, getting a two-run single from Legend Lancaster. Higen Hatayama finished with two hits.
“I’ll take the blame for this one,” Vikings coach Baba Lancaster said. “Could have made changed earlier, could of made changes later.”
The teams are scheduled to meet again in the regular season, April 12 at Waiakea.
Garza admitted that he and some of his teammates figured the Vikings entered the season as the favorite.
“They’re a super strong team,” he said, “but if we can come together like we did tonight … it’s baseball, you just never know.”