KANEOHE, O'ahu, Hawai'i – Fresh off an 18-day road trip that exhibited strong pitching, the Chaminade University softball team was hoping that coming back home would give them a chance for the bats to catch up.
Instead, they ran into equally strong Hawai'i Pacific University pitching.
The Silverswords were held to just five total hits in Sunday's doubleheader against the Sharks, dropping the first game 2-1, then 2-0 in the nightcap.
Bailey Jacobsen (Buena Park, Calif./Cypress) and
Keaolani Takemura (Pearl City, O'ahu, Hawai'i/Mid-Pacific Institute) combined for four of Chaminade's hits on the afternoon.
The 'Swords fell to 12-21 overall and 8-16 in the Pacific West Conference while HPU is 17-25 and 10-14.
Game 1: HPU 2, CUH 1
Chaminade got base runners in the first two innings but could not get them across. They loaded the bases in the top of the third then a wild pitch allowed
Taryn Fujioka (Pearl City, O'ahu, Hawai'i/Pearl City) to scamper home for the game's first run.
HPU got a pair of one-out singles in the fourth but the 'Swords turned their PacWest-leading 22nd double play of the season to end the inning. Meanwhile starter
Jaeda Cabunoc (Kaneohe, O'ahu, Hawai'i/Roosevelt) held the Sharks' bats in check, retiring 15 of the first 19 batters she faced.
However, it was a series of fortunate or unfortunate bounces – depending on who you root for – that turned the tide of the game.
An error on a sinking liner to the outfield in the bottom of the sixth rolled all the way to the fence, allowing Noel Saunders to get to third base. She eventually scored the tying run on Hoku Ching's sacrifice fly.
In the bottom of the seventh, a comebacker by Savan Salyer-Kovacs took a high hop which ricocheted off Cabunoc's wrist and bounced into shallow right field. That allowed to Poliahu Aina to move from first to third on the play.
Tiari Hernandez then hit a one-hop worm-burner to second where
Cheyne Obara (Pearl City, O'ahu, Hawai'i/Pearl City) made a clean pickup. But the high bounce allowed Aina enough time to beat Obara's throw home for the walk-off run.
Cabunoc went the distance, scattering seven hits while issuing just one walk. One of the two runs was unearned. Jacobsen had two of Chaminade's three hits while
Kailah Gates-Coyaso (Waianae, O'ahu, Hawai'i/Waianae) had the other.
Taylor Thompson got the win for HPU, improving to 9-13.
Game 2: CUH HPU
After two scoreless innings, HPU was again on the receiving end of fortune. With a runner on second in the bottom of the third, Tita Saunders hit a fly ball to center which was misread and rolled to the fence, allowing the first run to score. Two batters later, Kanoe Tanigawa hit a bleeder which landed just inside the right field line to plate Saunders for the Sharks' second run.
Meanwhile Chaminade was held hitless by Malia Torres for three innings until Takemura hit a scorcher to third base for their first base knock. It allowed Fujioka, who reached on an error, to move to second. But the 'Swords were unable to push a run across.
The Silverswords also put runners at second in the fifth and sixth innings but both were stranded. Torres tossed a perfect seventh to send the 'Swords to their fourth straight defeat to the Sharks dating back to the end of the 2021 season.
After allowing the pair of runs,
Taylor Genera (Norwalk, Calif./Whitney) retired nine of the last 10 Sharks she faced but suffered the hard-luck loss. She allowed five hits and walked one. Takemura accounted for both of the Silverswords' hits in the game.
Cabunoc and Genera have held opponents to three runs or less in Chaminade's last eight games but, unfortunately, have just two wins to show for it.
Torres improved to 8-12 after her two-hitter. Like Chaminade's hurlers, HPU's staff has also been stingy in the circle as of late, allowing three runs or less in 10 of their last 12 contests.
The Silverswords will host Academy of Art in their final four-game series of the season on Monday, April 18 scheduled for Okita Field with a 1 p.m. first pitch start.
