KAILUA-KONA, Hawai`i— Hawai`i Hilo ran their winning streak to six games with a 5-1 win over Academy of Art in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader at Kealakehe High School, but the Urban Knights earned the twinbill split with a 9-0 mercy-rule victory in the nightcap.
The Vulcans still won the series (3-1) and are now 28-15 on the year and list 21-9 in the Pacific West Conference. Academy of Art will head back to the bay area after 12 games in Hawai`i at 14-15 on the year and 10-9 in conference games.
In the opener,
Isabelle Mejia had a one-hitter through five innings and
Kiarra Lincoln led off with a home run in a game in which the Vulcans never trailed. In the nightcap, the Urban Knights pieced together a five-run rally with two outs in the fifth inning to run away with the win.
Lincoln went yard to left-centerfield with her fifth homer of the year to give the Vulcans a 1-0 lead in their first at-bat. The Vulcans wouldn't get another hit until Lincoln singled in the fourth, but UHH scored twice in the third on four walks and a hit by pitch (3-0).
Meanwhile Mejia was dealing. She didn't give up her first hit until the fourth and didn't have any trouble until the sixth inning. Two singles and a pair of stolen bases caused trouble then, but
Rayla Jacobs-Kea threw out a runner at home plate from centerfield to keep the Urban Knights off the board.
The Vulcans added a run in the fifth on Jacobs-Kea's RBI-double and another in the sixth when Mejia helped herself with an RBI-single to make it 5-0.
But ART U didn't fold. In the seventh, they put runners on base via a hit and walk and scored the first run versus Mejia on the day. But another double-play on an outfield assist, this time from
Vevesi Liilii in right field to
Chloe Domingo at third, stalled the rally and Mejia got the final out on a fly ball.
Lincoln went 2-for-3 in the game, and
Maria Steadmon was 2-for-2 with two runs scored. Mejia drove in a pair of runs at the plate, and improved to 10-2 in the pitcher's circle with the complete game—allowing one run, four hits, one walk and she fanned six.
The second game settled into a pitcher's duel early between
Billi Derleth (UHH) and Cecilia Lopez. Derleth gave up just one hit through the first three innings and Lopez allowed two in a 0-0 game.
Things changed in the fourth when ART U's Nikki West doubled to lead off the inning and Brenna Youngquist followed with a home run over the center field fence to give the Urban Knights a 2-0 lead.
The Urban Knights added more in the fifth during a two-out rally.
Valerie Alvarado had come out of the bullpen and gotten the first two outs, but two walks and a hit batter followed, filling the bases for Youngquist. She delivered a run-scoring single and Katie Tablada followed with a single for two RBI to make it 5-0.
Lopez would single and Alyssa Brundage added to the rally with a single up the middle that brought home two more runs to make it 7-0. Lauryn Henderson added a two-run bomb over the left field fence in the sixth to put the Vulcans in mercy rule danger at 9-0.
At bat, the Vulcans couldn't solve Lopez. They had just two hits in the game, and none after the second inning. It was just her second shutout of the season, against one of the top hitting teams in the conference. The left-hander improved to 8-5 on the year.
The Vulcans next host Chaminade in their Senior Day games, next Saturday (April 20) at noon.
