Thunder Zwaked by Mariners, 4-0

Nobody in the Mountain Thunder batting order had an answer for Joel Zwak's pitches in the morning game on Father's Day. On the other side of the diamond, Mountain Thunder's hurler Sam Hori was also quite good, plagued only by a hit batsman and wild pitch in the second inning, each of which came around to haunt him when Dusty Bauer and Matt Buxton punched home RBI's with singles. That was all that the Mariners needed to blank the Mountain Thunder, even though Gabe Harris and Larry Strozyk provided insurance runs later in the contest.

For Zwak, he now adds a no-hit shutout to his list of KonaBaseball.com League achievements, including previous seasons' top pitcher and League Most Valuable Player honors. The game fell short of being perfect in the fifth inning when the Thunder's Hammerin' Cameron Smay hit a viscious grounder into the hot corner where it glanced off Mariner third-baseman Donovan Aiona's glove for an "E-5" ruling.

For the victorious Hurricanes, the play of Eric Simbeck exemplified the image of a field general, leading by example. He displayed defensive hustle all game as catcher and showed offensive prowess, as well, with a pair of eardrum-shattering doubles and three plate crossings.

Winning pitcher J.R. Mori, the veteran known heretofore for his middle-relief role, is making a name for himself as a starter in 2006. Previously a bull-pen pillar for other teams in the league, including the Canardlys and Kona Crush, J.R. seems to be right at home. The free agent signed during the off-season with team manager John Vaughan and the Bubba Gumps Hurricanes. It looks like shrimp and and a box of chocolates agree with him.

Mariners remain perfect over Black Sox, 6-3

The underdog Black Sox played well Sunday morning, but were no match for Joel Zwak and the Kona Headz Mariners who both remain perfect this year. Jeff Bailey led all scorers for the Mariners with extra-base hits contributed by Larry Strozyk, Keao Fessenden and Ric Cespedes. Dusty Bauer, head coach of the Makua Lani High School baseball team, picked up his second save of the season to lead the league in that department.

For the Southbound LLC Black Sox, the outing was a vast improvement over the pounding that the Mariners handed them earlier in the season. Sox' offensive highlights were provided by Renkio Hanato-Wells and Mailo Blair. There is good reason for optimism among the Black Sox players, a group that will get another opportunity to face the Mariners on July 29th.

Exemplifying the multigenerational spirit of the Kona Baseball.com League (where each team has a few youth players and several senior members), player/coach Pete Emsley thrilled the crowd when the pentagerian stole second base, then came around to score the night-capper for Mountain Thunder. Shadow Diessner eclipsed all scorers with three crossings of home plate.

In each inning, the Steelers put runners on base and advanced them to third, loading the bases on more than one occasion, only to see Vaughan rediscover the strike zone and escape without harm. His "Houdini" luck seemed to run out in the fourth inning when Sharkys scored the game's first run. A pitching change left the starter as the losing pitcher of record until the fifth inning when the Hurricanes tied matters at one run apiece.

Steelers' Bryant Komo, who had previously fanned with the bases loaded to end the third inning, was not about to be denied in his next at-bat in the sixth. After smashing a double off the base of the left centerfield fence, Komo came around to score the game-winning run on Hondo De La Cruz's base hit.

Vaughan remained the "Houdini", and the "who-done-it" turned out to be Chris Wiseman, an "L" posted alongside his name in the scorebook. But in the end, despite all the illusiveness, the Hurricanes' captain did go down with his ship.

Mariners outlast Steelers, 6-5

The Sharkys Steelers felt that they could be the team to upset the Mariners, and it almost happened Sunday morning. But, it is tough to beat both teams: the umpires as well as the opponents. And there may be some who feel that, had a call or two gone their direction, the Steelers would have been the ones celebrating at game's end.

The offensive attack for the Kona Headz Mariners was led by Jeff Bailey. On the mound, Keegan Lerma recorded the victory while the Steelers' Kai Miller took the loss.

Excitement abounded late in the game when the Steelers attempted a hidden-ball trick to pick off the Mariners' runner at third. Unfortunately for the Steelers, the event occurring immediately after a fouled pitch, the ball was dead, and no "out" could be recorded.

After being handcuffed all day by Perez, the Bubba Gumps Hurricanes came to life in their final at-bat, scoring four runs. But the rally, sparked by Will Carr's base hit, was too little, too late. The Hurricanes' J.R. Mori was tagged with the loss.

Hurricanes survive Black Sox surge

The Southbound LLC Black Sox, the neophyte team that is comprised mostly of free-agent players, is starting to play more like a team, taking the Bubba Gumps Hurricanes to the limit Sunday morning, finally falling short by the slimmest of margins, 7-6.

The Hurricanes started strong, posting all seven of their runs by the end of the second inning at the expense of Black Sox' player/manager Atlee Riddle, saddled with the pitching loss. Fortunately for the Sox, reliever Royden Leong was considerably more effective, giving up only one hit to the opponents for the duration of the game.

With the bold winds of the Hurricanes in harness, the Black Sox began to stir up the weather themselves, mounting rallies in both the third and sixth innings. Defensively, the Sox executed a triple play, the first in KonaBaseball.com League history. However, despite these moments of fanfare, the Black Sox left Simmons Field at game's end still searching for their first win.

For Bubba Gumps, player/manager John Vaughan recorded the victory, and Chris Wiseman picked up a save. Offensively, the Hurricanes' Keane Ikeda scored twice to lead the team.

Eardrum-shattering triples by both Ryan Landis and Shadow Diessner sent Guzman to the bench, even before the third out could be recorded. Facing a possible blowout, Angels' reliever Gerardo Ibarra successfully settled matters down and continued to pitch well for the rest of the game. However, the damage had already been done.

Across the diamond, a confident team of Mountain Thunder players put their faith in new-to-the-league pitcher Alika Bantilan. He definitely lived up to the pre-game high hopes, earning the win in his league debut. The 7-0 victory was, perhaps, the most meaningful triumph of the entire season. Looking ahead to the playoffs, the Thunder now holds the tie-breaker in its rivalry with the halos - likely to be a major factor in post-season seeding. In addition, for the first time in its history, Mountain Thunder sits all alone in first place. But, let's not get too comfortable, boys. Look at who's next on your schedule ... the Mighty Mariners.

Game Day 11 - July 15, 2006: First ever KonaBaseball.com League action on a Saturday

Steelers squeek past Angels, 6-5

The Sharkys Steelers took an early lead over division rivals Hawaii Suncoast Realty Angels Saturday morning, and despite numerous challenges, kept in front of their opponents for the rest of the game. Jireh Trost was the top scorer, aided by fellow Steeler Sky Valenzuela, contributing a pair of doubles - one to each alley.

For the Angels, Jorge Perez batted 3-for-4 with a base-clearing triple in the sixth inning. Unfortunately for him however, he was the man on the mound in the seventh inning when Kai Miller's base hit produced the game-winner for Sharkys. Bryant Komo picked up the win, his first in a 2006 Steelers' uniform.

Normally-invincible, league-leading pitcher Joel Zwak (7-0) yielded his season-high eight hits to the Mountain Thunder, a team led offensively by Ryan Landis and Dustin Marin. Still, the Thunder faced an uphill battle all day, one in which they were never a serious threat to the top team in the league. Sam Hori was charged with the loss.

Steeling breakfast again

The Steelers found that the Super Weekend #1 schedule of back-to-back morning games suited them just fine - resulting in a pair of desperately needed wins. On Sunday, the victory was especially rewarding for team co-managers Ray Uribes and John Marshall, the win coming against Mauka Division leading Mountain Thunder. It was a highly entertaining game for the fans to watch, the lead changing hands several times over a full nine innings.

For Sharkys, Jason Hurst and Kai Miller shared mound duties, the former leaving in the bottom of the sixth with a slim lead, erased only a few moments later when Mountain Thunder woke up, smelled the coffee and tied the game. Subsequently, when the Steelers regained the lead, it was Miller who was placed in the winning pitcher's slot. The name Kai Miller shows up again in the scorebook for offensive leadership in his team's relentless pursuit.

Mountain Thunder pitcher Ian Glass, undefeated heretofore, hurled approximately 150 pitches, displaying control and stamina to the very end, striking out five of the last ten Steelers that he faced. He and his teammates played well, even though a few wild defensive snafus, scattered throughout the game, may have spelled their eventual downfall.

As was the case Saturday afternoon, the Mountain Thunder's Ryan Landis may have been the player of the game, despite his team's ultimate defeat. In the end, the glass cracked, but it didn't shatter. For the Steelers, a crack was good enough, winning by the final score of 8-7.

A defensive dual ensued, both offensive teams barely nibbling at the scoreboard. By the middle of the fifth inning, the game was deadlocked at two runs apiece. Just in time, Hurricanes' starter Dmitriius Ludwig handed the ball over to J.R. Mori, the reliever who was eventually tagged with the loss when the winning pitcher Andrews scored on Bailey Dattengill's walk-off base hit.

The victory was the first in Black Sox' team history, and after effectively executing a triple play only a week ago, there is good reason for excitement amongst the men of the league's newest team.

Game Day 13 - July 29, 2006: Mariners burst Black Sox' bubble

Mariners send the Sox out for darning, 11-1

After finally breaking into the win column for the first time in team history, the Black Sox got the smiles wiped off of its players' faces by the Mariners on this Saturday morning. Keegan Lerma earned the win over Tyler Tveit.

Sox it to me?

The Black Sox jumped back into the win column, this time over the Mountain Thunder, 9-2. Beau Chang was the winning pitcher, with a save being awarded to Bailey Dattengill. Sam Hori suffered the defeat for Mountain Thunder.

For the Hurricanes Chris Wiseman took the loss.

Mariners we roll along

Matters appear to be fully settled in the Makai Division now that the Mariners have distanced themselves from the second-place Bubba Gumps Hurricanes with an 11-1 victory Sunday morning. Mariners' pitcher Keegan Lerma had his curve ball and slider working well as he dominated the Hurricanes. For Bubba Gumps, the nightmare of having to face the Mariners in back-to-back fashion is finally over. Yancey Derringer was surprisingly effective as the starter for the 'canes, but the old guy only lasted a couple of innings in the Kona sunshine.

Steelers let Mauka Division crown slip away

With the opportunity to control their own destiny, it looked as though the Sharkys Steelers' end-of-season burst might earn them the Mauka Division title. Instead, the 2006 season's spoilers, a team known as the Black Sox, came from behind to stun the iron men, 11-10.

The surprising Black Sox, winless through their first seven games, bounced back to grab 4-out-of-5 at season's end, wrapping up matters by defeating each of the teams in the Mauka Division. Tyler Tveit, in relief of Beau Chang, picked up the win for the Sox, while Jason Hurst took the loss for Sharkys.

KonaBaseball.com League tie-breaking rules called for the champion to be the team that gave up the fewest overall runs during the season. In that tally, the Angels prevailed by only 3 runs over the Thunder. The Steelers were a distant third (a result of being blown out by the Mariners earlier in the season).

Interestingly, had losing pitcher Jorge Perez and the Angels allowed only three more runs in the final game of the season, Mountain Thunder would have been declared champs. Instead, the Thunder ironically dropped to third place, the Steelers holding a head-to-head advantage in that 2-way tie-breaker (having beaten the Thunder twice during the regular season).

Meanwhile, with all of the attention focused on the Mauka Division, it deserves more than a footnote that player/manager Michael Harris led the Kona Headz Mariners to an undefeated regular season in 2006, an admirable feat in any league in any sport. Once again, Joel Zwak was excellent in claiming the pitching victory, while Morgan Kruger-Burgess picked up the save.

Mountain Thunder eliminates Steelers, 20-5

The men of Mountain Thunder stamped their authority over the Sharkys Steelers with six of the first seven Thunder batters scoring runs. From there, they were on their way to a rout, capping matters with an eight-run final at-bat. Sam Hori scored an incredible four runs, the last one thanks to the Thunder's clean-up hitter Cameron Smay, delivering a sixth-inning triple to put the Mauka Division wildcard game on ice.

There was hardly a scratch on winning pitcher Ian Glass for the Thunder, and the loss was charged to the Steelers' Daniel Pang, whose pong got pung all game. But in fairness to him, the team's defensive support was simply not there either. Furthermore, the opponents were just too good on this day.

Relief pitcher Shiloh Chenoweth picked up the victory while J.R. Mori, after a solid performance, took the disappointing loss. Bryan Young smacked the game-winner, plating Bailey Dattengill (the Sox' highly-effective catcher) who led all scorers on the field.

Mariners dominate Black Sox, 10-2

The Black Sox cracked the game open by bringing the first two batters (Trent Murphy and Shiloh Chenoweth) around to score, and the underdogs looked as though their spoiler reputation might even extend to the mighty Mariners. But by the end of the first inning, the undefeated Mariners had put those pie-in-the-sky ideas to rest, besting the visitors by scoring an amazing eight out of their first nine batters, themselves.

Perhaps one of the crispist games all season, free of the torrent of errors that often haunts one or both teams, Sunday afternoon's contest was worthy of its divisional championship series billing.

Winning pitcher Jorge Perez was on his game all day, going the distance. The only time that the opponents got to him was in the second inning when Dustin Marin produced a two-out single to score Shadow Diessner (who, himself had singled with two outs and had advanced to second with a stolen base).

The one-zip score prevailed until the fourth inning when the Angels put back-to-back-to-back hits, scoring Kurtis Hawkins, Oscar Delgado and Adrian Villanueva.

And as the "Dear John" letter goes, "that's all she wrote". The Angels had let it be known that they were deserving of the tie-breaker that made them the top seeds in the divisional playoffs. Nevertheless, the Mountain Thunder still has a chance to come back in the best-of-three series.

Mountain Thunder rises above Angels, 16-11

It was a "wild" one, and the net result is that the men of Mountain Thunder stay alive in the Mauka Division playoffs, staving off the Angels, the final score sounding like that of a football game.

Despite multiple runs being scored by each of several Angels, (including a whoppping four plate-crossings by Klifford Hawkins), they just could not quite measure up to the offensive barrage by the Mountain Thunder's high-5: Andrew Emsley, Ryan Landis, Sam Hori, Cameron Smay, and Shadow Diessner.

Perhaps the Angels had become too complacent with the 10-3 lead that they enjoyed midway through the third inning. But when the morning air gave way to the midday sun, starting pitcher Gerardo Ibarra was suddenly rocked, prompting the Angels to turn to Jorge Perez to get them out of the fourth. Normally a starting pitcher, Perez was not in his element on this particular outing, and the blood-thirsty men of Mountain Thunder sensed an exposed juggular vein. The mountain men went on to score seven unanswered tallies, running out winners and keeping their hopes alive for the 2006 KonaBaseball.com League championship.

Don't let the score fool you. This was a close game, one in which the upstart Black Sox almost snatched perfection from the Mariners' 2006 season. Both pitchers: Joel Zwak (for the victorious Mariners) and Shiloh Chenoweth (for the almost-victorious Black Sox) can hold their heads high after this one.

Even though the Mariners began the scoring with Tyler Roy touching home in the first inning, their bats were all but silenced in this game. Instead of "rock'em, sock'em" offense, the Mariners were forced to use small-ball strategies, eventually squeeking Dusty Bauer across the plate in the fourth.

Well, two can play that game, so the Black Sox promptly answered by plating John Brumbaugh. By the end of the fifth, the undefeated Mariners held only the slimmest of margins (2-1) over the league's most notorious team of spoilers, and anything seemed possible.

But, let's be practical about this, shall we? This group of guys adorned in black footwear could not, over the longhaul, keep pace with the well-oiled baseball machine known as the Mariners, could they. Well, the proof of the pudding was in the last inning when the Mariners recorded three insurance runs. That marked the final, season-ending blow to the Southbound LLC Black Sox. However, there is little doubt that the Sox is a team that has what it takes to be very competitive in 2007.

11-1 and little doubt: Angels are in ... Thunder is out

Despite being rattled at the start of the game, Angels' pitcher Jorge Perez went on to yield only two more hits, shutting out Mountain Thunder in the process. Offensively, Gerardo Ibarra and the always-dependable Adrian Valenzuela led the charge. The victory now propels the Angels into the league championship series against the Mariners.

Sounds like a football score, 16-3

By the end of the first inning, the Mariners had batted around, scoring nine runs in the process. In fact, Jorge Perez and his Angel teammates yielded seven scores to their opponents before recording the very first out. For the Mariners, Tyler Roy, Donovan Aiona, and Larry Strozyk's bats dominated, but it was easy to find holes in the Angels' outfield on this day.

Mariners' sluggers: Tyler Roy, Donovan Aiona & Larry Strozyk

Mariners' winning pitcher Joel Zwak & Angels' losing pitcher Jorge Perez

M's reign supreme - go undefeated in 2006

The Kona Headz Mariners, finishing 16-0 under the leadership of manager Michael Harris have now completed a perfect season, an admirable feat for any team in any sport in any league. Pitcher Joel Zwak showed why he was voted the league's most valuable player, ending the season with an unblemished record of 13-0. Boasting a stellar lineup from top to bottom, this week the Mariners called upon the bats of Aaron Shapiro, Jeff Bailey and Donovan Aiona to seal the deal. As for the Angels, even with a guy named "Jesus" on their team, they didn't have a prayer.

Kona Headz Mariners - 2006 KonaBaseball.com League Champions

All Star Game and awards ceremonies

The Championship trophy and other awards will be presented, including overall league MVP Joel Zwak and MVP of each team: Jorge Perez - Angels, Eduardo Andrews - Black Sox, JR Mori - Hurricanes, Donovan Aiona - Mariners, Mike West - Steelers, Ian Glass - Thunder, and cake will be served. In addition, special events including the pitch-thru-tire and long-ball derby are scheduled.

All KonaBaseball.com games are played at Simmons Field, behind Kekuaokalani Gymnasium, in the Old Airport sports complex, a short stroll from Kailua-Kona town. Admission is free, making men's hardball a favorite of West Hawaii residents and visitors alike. And, at the All Star Game you might even get a piece of cake!

Pitchers - 2006

Joel Zwak, Mariners ___________ 9-0            + 4-0 [in playoffs] 	  
Keegan Lerma, Mariners ________ 3-0
Eduardo Andrews, Black Sox ____ 2-0
Cameron Kawai, Angels _________ 1-0 
John Vaughan, Hurricanes ______ 1-0  	  
Alika Bantilan, Thunder _______ 1-0  	  
Bryant Komo, Steelers _________ 1-0 
Beau Chang, Black Sox _________ 1-0
Ian Glass, Thunder ____________ 3-1            + 2-1 [in playoffs] 
Jorge Perez, Angels ___________ 4-3 (1 save)   + 2-3 [in playoffs] 
Dusty Bauer, Mariners _________ 0-0 (3 saves) 	  
J.R. Mori, Hurricanes _________ 2-2 (1 save)   + 0-1 [in playoffs] 
Bailey Dattengill, Black Sox __ 0-0 (1 save)
Daniel Pang, Steelers _________ 0-0 (1 save)   + 0-1 [in playoffs] 
Shiloh Chenoweth, Black Sox ___ 0-0            + 1-2 [in playoffs] 
Jason Hurst, Steelers _________ 1-1 
Eric Simbeck, Hurricanes ______ 1-1  
Tyler Tveit, Black Sox ________ 1-1
Kai Miller, Steelers __________ 3-4 
Chris Wiseman, Hurricanes _____ 1-2 (1 save)
Sam Hori, Thunder _____________ 1-4
Gerardo Ibarra, Angels ________ 0-1  	  
Andrew Emsley, Thunder ________ 0-1
Beau Chang, Black Sox _________ 0-1 
Paxton Chatfield, Steelers ____ 0-1 
Kliff Hawkins, Angels _________ 0-1
Dmitriius Ludwig, Thunder _____ 0-1
Sean Fujii, Steelers __________ 0-1 
Oscar Delgado, Angels _________ 0-1  	  
Jesse Guzman, Angels __________ 0-1  	  
Yancey Derringer, Hurricanes __ 0-1
Shadow Diessner, Thunder ______ 0-1            + 0-1 [in playoffs] 
Atlee Riddle, Black Sox _______ 0-2
Royden Leong, Black Sox _______ 0-4