LA MIRADA, Calif.—A pair of one-run games went the direction of each team on Friday afternoon at the Eagle Diamond, as UH Hilo and Biola split contests on the final day of the 2019 baseball season.

The Vulcans captured the first game 6-5, and the Eagles won a pitching duel in the late afternoon clash, 2-1. UH Hilo ends the regular season at 26-19, while Biola is now 29-19. Both teams await their post-season fate, as the Vulcans have a very faint shot at an NCAA tournament berth, while the Eagles (who are not yet NCAA eligible) hope to qualify for the National Christian College Athletic Association tournament.

Regardless, with the 26-19 record and second place finish in the Pacific West Conference (21-11), the 2019 season will go into the books as best year for the program since the 1989 Vulcan team went 28-17-1 and qualified for the NAIA World Series.

In the game of baseball, sometimes match-ups are everything. Biola won three of four in this non-conference series, and took six of eight games against the Vulcans on the year.

In the first game, the Vulcans used a four-run fifth inning and closing performance by John Kea to claim the 6-5 win. In the nightcap, Kyle Alcorn pitched brilliantly only to fall one run short to an equally outstanding outing from fellow left-hander Dallas Burk.

In the opener, Mana Manago, playing in his first full game in nearly a month because of injury, had a pair of hits and two RBI. He drove in a run during that four-run fifth, and knocked in what proved to be the winning run in the top of eighth.

The Vulcans fell behind early (3-1) until the fifth. A triple by freshman Nick Lugo got the ball rolling for the visitors, and RBI-hits by Manago, Casey Yamauchi and a two-run base knock by Kobie Russell gave the Vulcans the 5-3 lead. UHH had five total hits in the inning.

A Biola home run by Joey Magro in the seventh tied the contest at 5-5, as UHH starting pitcher and workhorse Travis Burleson finally left the ball game after 112 pitches and 6.1 innings. The Vulcans gained the edge again in the eighth when Jaryn Kanbara singled, moved to second on a bunt and scored on Manago's hit up the middle.

Devan Elson and Brandyn Lee-Lehano stepped in for Burleson to close the door on Biola, setting up Kea for the ninth. The sophomore fanned the first two batters he faced, as he had done Thursday during a walk-off loss to the Eagles. Again, Biola made it interesting with a two-out base hit and a Vulcan error, which put runners on first and second, but Kea induced a pop up for the final out of the game to secure his tenth save of the year, breaking his own UHH Division II-era record of nine (2018).

UH Hilo had just eight hits in the nine-inning game, two of them by Manago. Russell had three RBI. Elson got the win in relief, his first of the year (1-3).

In the second game, the two lefties gave batters fits when Alcorn and Burk squared off. Biola was the first team to get on the board, scoring twice in the third inning but they used a pair of UHH errors to go with their three hits to gain the 2-0 lead.

Those would be the only hits the Eagles would get all day against Alcorn, but the Vulcans couldn't muster much against Burk either.

UH Hilo scored their lone run in the fourth, also helped by an Eagle error. Base hits by RJ Romo and Jaryn Kanbara brought home a run, but the potential tying run was thrown out at home plate on Kanbara's single.

The Vulcans wouldn't get another hit the rest of the day in the seven-inning game as Burk won his second game of the year (2-2). He didn't allow an earned run, gave up just four hits and was effective all day without registering a strikeout.

Alcorn deserved better but took the loss (4-4). He gave up just the three hits, walked one and fanned five. Kanbara had two of UHH's four hits in the contest.
It was likely the final game for head coach Kal Miyataki's senior class, the largest of his six seasons. The 2019 senior class includes Nick Asuncion, Marcus Calamese, Elson, Coryn Iwamasa, Manago, Kamalu Neal, Mikey Rita, Romo, Theron Shigematsu, Dylan Sugimoto, Jordan Tagawa, Thomas Warren and Kyle Yamada.