HONOLULU—“Bullet Proof,” Maui’s all-star softball team, beat both Oahu longshore’s “Po‘ola” (McCabe, Hamilton & Renny) and the Big Island’s Mauna Lani to take the 18th Annual ILWU Slow Pitch Championship title.

The round-robin tournament was held at hot and shadeless Keehi Lagoon Park on Saturday, September 27. In the first game, which pit Maui against Oahu, Maui took the lead early and despite a rally by McCabe in the 6th and 7th innings, held on to win 17-11.

The second game between Oahu and Hawaii was a high-scoring squeaker that seemed to be a runaway for the Big Islanders at first. But the longshoremen refused to quit, and despite playing two games in a row, first closed the gap from eleven runs to one run, then moved ahead to win 18-17.

In the third game Hawaii scored first against Maui and held the lead for several innings. But Maui, rested and relaxed, battled back and in the 6th inning overtook Hawaii on the strength of their hitting. “Bullet Proof” seemed to be just that, and captured the state title on their 13-11 win over the Big Island.

“This was a hitter’s tournament,” said Randall Prieto of Unit 4405-Hawaii Logistics, who often volunteers to help keep score at ILWU Oahu sports events. “Whoever hit consistently and didn’t make errors won.” Also volunteering as scorekeeper was Kenneth Ige of Unit 4412 - Servco Pacific, Inc. The tournament and awards luncheon were organized by Oahu sports co-coordinators Brian Tanaka and Brandon Bajo-Daniel.

Maui’s team “Bullet Proof” took the state slow pitch championship in a tight game against the Big Island’s Mauna Lani Resort. Maui also won the 2001 state slow pitch tournament held on Kauai.

Oahu’s team from McCabe, Hamilton & Renny was called “Po‘ola,” (lit. sun head) which means “stevedore” in Hawaiian. Oahu took runner-up honors by edging out Mauna Lani by one run.

Mauna Lani Resort suffered tough losses—first by only one run against Oahu and then by two against Maui. Team members hail from Unit 1516 - Mauna Lani Resort and other ILWU hotel units on the Kohala coast.

A stand-up triple means two runs heading home for Maui’s “Bullet Proof” in the round-robin championship game.

All Tournament Team: 
James Pestana (Oahu), Glen Kimura (Hawaii),
Ivan Sombelon (Maui), Cris Dizon (Maui), 
Stanley Pacheco (Maui), Ray Alnas (Hawaii), 
Sonny Poindexter (Hawaii), Dale Pacheco (Maui),
Desmond Kekiwi (Maui), Ian Caravalho (Hawaii), 
Callen Hirashi (Hawaii), Blake Kalama (Oahu).