Saint Louis coach George Gusman planned to use all three of his starting pitchers in Monday’s ILH championship game against Kamehameha at Ala Wai Community Park.
He then watched left-hander Dawson Yamaguchi paint a 1-2 fastball on the inside corner to strike out Kamehameha leadoff hitter Kawai Takemura and those plans immediately went out the window.
Yamaguchi took a no-hitter into the sixth inning against Kamehameha for the second time in nine days and combined with Dylan Lum on a one-hitter in a 5-1 victory over the Warriors to give the Crusaders their first ILH championship since 2011.
“We were going to cap (Yamaguchi) at 45 (pitches) and cap Lum at 45 (pitches) and whatever was left was going to go to Chase (Meilleur),” Gusman said. “(The ball) was fluid and moving and we said all right, let’s cap it off at 60 and then we said he’s absolutely not throwing more than 85 and that’s as far as we went.”
Yamaguchi threw 80 pitches in 5 2/3 innings with no walks and four strikeouts. He allowed a one-out double to Jesse Awa in the sixth inning and gave up the only run on an RBI groundout by Takemura on his final pitch before exiting. Lum got the final four outs in order with two strikeouts to lead off the seventh.
Yamaguchi must sit out the next two games but could pitch in Saint Louis’ state tournament opener on Thursday, although with Meilleur rested, Yamaguchi, who was a freshman on the Crusaders’ 2014 state title winning team, is more likely to pitch Friday should the Crusaders advance to the semifinals.
Saint Louis received the No. 1 seed in the state tournament that begins Wednesday. Saint Louis will have a bye before taking on the winner between Maui and Mililani in Thursday’s quarterfinals. Kamehameha will open with Kalani on Wednesday night at 7 in the first round. OIA champion Kailua is the second seed, followed by MIL champ and defending state champion Baldwin as the 3 seed and BIIF champion Hilo as the four seed.
Wally Yonamine Foundation/HHSAA State Baseball Championships
Division I
| Match # | Date | Matchup | Time/Scores | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Apr. 26 | Waiakea vs. Moanalua | Waik, 4-3 | Les Murakami Stadium |
| 2 | Apr. 26 | Campbell vs. Kaiser | Camp, 5-4 | Les Murakami Stadium |
| 3 | Apr. 26 | Maui vs. Mililani | Maui, 12-2 (5) | Les Murakami Stadium |
| 4 | Apr. 26 | Kalani vs. Kamehameha | KSK, 3-0 | Les Murakami Stadium |
| 5* | Apr. 27 | Kaiser vs. Mililani | Mil, 5-3 | Hans L'Orange Park |
| 6 | Apr. 27 | (4) Hilo vs. Campbell | Camp, 5-4 | Les Murakami Stadium |
| 7 | Apr. 27 | (2) Kailua vs. Waiakea | Waik, 3-1 | Les Murakami Stadium |
| 8 | Apr. 27 | (3) Baldwin vs. Kamehameha | KSK, 6-1 | Les Murakami Stadium |
| 9 | Apr. 27 | (1) Saint Louis vs. Maui | Maui, 8-6 | Les Murakami Stadium |
| 10* | Apr. 28 | Moanalua vs. Kalani | Moan, 7-3 (6) | Hans L'Orange Park |
| 11* | Apr. 28 | Hilo vs. Saint Louis | StL, 9-2 | Hans L'Orange Park |
| 12* | Apr. 28 | Kailua vs. Baldwin | Kail, 7-2 | Hans L'Orange Park |
| 13 | Apr. 28 | Waiakea vs. Kamehameha | Waik, 2-0 | Les Murakami Stadium |
| 14 | Apr. 28 | Campbell vs. Maui | Maui, 6-4 | Les Murakami Stadium |
| 15* | Apr. 29 | Mililani vs. Moanalua | Mil, 4-3 | Hans L'Orange Park |
| 16* | Apr. 29 | Saint Louis vs. Kailua | StL, 6-2 | Hans L'Orange Park |
| 17* | Apr. 29 | Kamehameha vs. Campbell | Camp, 9-2 | Les Murakami Stadium |
| 18 | Apr. 29 | Waiakea vs. Maui | Maui, 6-1 | Les Murakami Stadium |
| * — consolation | ||||
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