In typical fight-and-scratch opportunistic style, Kailua earned a spot in the Wally Yonamine Foundation Baseball State Championships Division I title game last night with a 6-2 victory over Moanalua at Les Murakami Stadium.

The O'ahu Interscholastic Association runner-up Surfriders improved to 14-4 in the regular and postseason and will face Punahou in the title game.

First pitch is set for 7 tonight, and the game will be televised live statewide on OC16.

It's a chance at redemption for Kailua, which lost a 2-1 heartbreaker to Pearl City in the OIA title game on April 27.

"It took us a couple days of team bonding to get back into it," said Ryan McMonigle, a sophomore infielder/ pitcher who went 2 for 4 with a double and RBI last night. "We knew we didn't want that feeling again, and states is way bigger than the OIA."

The Surfriders wasted no time getting started last night, manufacturing a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning after leadoff batter Jared Iha was hit by a pitch. Kale Sumner followed with a single to left, and Iha and courtesy runner Kory Sasaoka advanced on Reyn Matsuki's sacrifice bunt.

Iha then scored on McMonigle's groundout to second and Sasaoka came home on Alika Ramseyer-Ho's single to left.

Na Menehune (13-5) cut it to 2-1 in the fourth after Ryan Cortez walked and scored on Landon Yoshikawa's double to right-center field. But Kailua came back with two runs in the bottom half, after McMonigle's double, a throwing error and Bob Lastimosa's three stolen bases — including a delayed steal of home after Elia Lono induced a rundown between first and second.

"We didn't execute on the defensive side," Moanalua coach Scott Yamada said. "We had enough arms (pitching-wise); we just didn't make all our plays on defense."

The Surfriders made it 5-1 in the fifth after Keoki Reis-Moniz's bases-loaded single, but Na Menehune cut it to 5-2 in the sixth after James Higa's RBI pinch-single. Kailua then stretched it to 6-2 in the bottom half on Iha's run-scoring double.

Three Surfrider pitchers — Gavin Kido, Bryson Gauthe and Ramseyer-Ho — combined to scatter seven hits and were backed by an errorless defense.

Kailua coach Corey Ishigo said teamwork is becoming the Surfriders' strength.

"A water cooler spilled (in the dugout), and the whole team got up to help clean," Ishigo said. "We had our OC16 'Team Player' (senior reserve catcher Aaron Tai) ask if everybody else could be in the picture, too. Everything they do, they want the whole team to be all together.

"I guess that's what makes this team special, it's a big part of it."

MOANALUA (12-5) 000 101 0—2 7 1

KAILUA (14-4) 200 211 X—6 7 0

Bronson Shim, Todd Takabuki (5), Jacob Fukuyama (6) and Chris Liu-Saguid. Gavin Kido, Bryson Gauthe (3), Alika Ramsayer-Ho (6) and Kale Sumner. W — Gauthe. L — Shim.

Leading hitters — Moanalua: Daniel Sugihara 2-3; Landon Yoshikawa double. Kailua: Jared Iha double; Ryan McMonigle 2-4, double; Keoki Reis-Moniz 2-3.

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