Suzuki’s two RBI performance helps HPU rally by Cal State East Bay, 4-2

WAIPAHU — A slow start did not deter the Sharks from victory.

After giving up two runs at the top of the first inning, Hawai’i Pacific rallied for a 4-2 win over Cal State East Bay on the second day of the Oahu Baseball Classic Friday afternoon at Patsy T. Mink Central Oahu Regional Park Baseball Complex.

Senior outfielder Kota Suzuki led the way with two RBIs, which included the go-ahead RBI in the bottom of the seventh inning. He also knocked in an RBI double in the bottom of the first inning.

The score would hold at 2-1 in favor of CSU East Bay up until the fifth inning when first baseman Daniel Johnson tied the game with an RBI of his own.

Nicholas Jio would extend the Sharks’ lead in the bottom of the eighth inning with an RBI of his own for the final run of the game.

Senior Mac Leisher got credited for the win after relieving freshman Jeremy Kahle in the fourth. Scott Armstrong, a 6-foot-5 senior, closed out the game on the mound in the eighth inning to earn the save.