Shyanne Higa-Gonsalves pounded out three hits to spark a 14-hit attack as Hilo fought past Konawaena 10-5 on Friday.
Shyanne Higa-Gonsalves pounded out three hits to spark a 14-hit attack as Hilo fought past Konawaena 10-5 on Friday.
The Big Island Interscholastic Federation softball game between divisional contenders was played at Victor Stadium.
Higa-Gonsalves, a versatile senior infielder, went 3-for-4 and had a run batted in as the D-I Vikings improved to 3-0. The visiting D-II Wildcats dropped to 2-1.
Hilo freshman Moana Pinner had two hits and three RBIs, while teammates Aliesa Kaneshiro (2 RBIs), Reisha Hoopii-Haslam and Amber Vaughn each added two hits.
Shyla Victor was the only Wildcat to pair hits off the hard-throwing Kaneshiro.
The Viking ace went the distance, holding dangerous Konawaena to just five hits and earning the victory. She struck out four and walked five.
Wildcats starter Jayssa Grace ran into early trouble, allowing Hilo to score three runs in the first inning and three in the second before being relieved by Victor, who finished.
Grace was saddled with the loss.
The Vikings held a 7-2 lead heading into the top of the fourth inning, when Konawaena scored three runs off Kaneshiro. But the Hilo senior right-hander settled down and got out of the inning. She held the Wildcats scoreless the rest of the way.
The Vikings tacked on three more runs in the eighth to stretch their lead to 10-5.
“We definitely struggled today,” Hilo coach Leo Sing Chow said. “We had a disconnect, but we played hard and fought through it.”
Both teams struggled on defense. Konawaena had six errors in the contest while the Vikings had four.
Konawaena 101 300 0 — 5 5 6
Hilo 331 003 x — 10 14 4