Overview

• Okinawa Shogaku rallied after an early deficit, with run-scoring hits in the sixth and eighth innings backing starter Yuito Arakaki, who held Nichidai Third to one run into the eighth.
• The champions advanced through multiple close contests, including two shutouts, an 11-inning tiebreak win, and one-run games that highlighted their depth on the mound and sure-handed fielding.
• The title is the school’s first in the summer tournament and the second summer championship by a team from Okinawa, following Konan’s 2010 triumph.
• Head coach Koya Higa credited large support from Okinawa and said he planned for Arakaki to pitch five innings before the right-hander exceeded expectations by working to two outs in the eighth.
• In a separate development, Hiroshima’s Koryo High School accepted the resignation of longtime coach Tetsuyuki Nakai after an internal violence case, installed Kengo Matsumoto as coach, and received conditional clearance to enter autumn qualifiers pending a third-party probe.