'Iolani School senior Breland Almadova earned a baseball scholarship to the University of Hawai'i mainly because of his hitting and fielding, but last week his relief pitching proved crucial in helping the Raiders win their first Interscholastic League of Honolulu championship since 1997.

Almadova, a 6-foot-2 left-hander, was credited with a win and two saves as 'Iolani won four games in six days, including Saturday's 4-2 victory over Kamehameha in a winner-take-all playoff at Ala Wai Field.

Moving from center field to pitcher with no outs and runners on first and second in the top of the sixth, he threw two shutout innings with three strikeouts to help the Raiders (18-4 ILH) secure a No. 2 seed and first-round bye in this week's state tournament at Les Murakami Stadium.

"Breland's been a huge fireman for us," said 'Iolani senior first baseman Reyn Nagamine. "When we need him, he's there."

Almadova entered Saturday's game batting .459 in ILH play, with a league-leading nine home runs. His bat stayed hot last week, with a double and two RBIs in a 6-4 victory over Saint Louis on April 27, a three-run homer in a 10-3 win over Kamehameha on Thursday and a 2-for-4 day in Friday's loss to the Warriors in the ILH tournament final.

But with the Raiders playing 11 games in a 16-day stretch, their pitching staff needed all the help it could get.

So Almadova pitched in, earning the save against Saint Louis by throwing a scoreless seventh inning after 'Iolani rallied for five runs in the bottom of the sixth. He then tossed two-plus innings of relief and got the win against Punahou, combining with four others on a five-hitter before Saturday's relief effort against Kamehameha.

Almadova said the ILH title is especially meaningful since head coach Dean Yonamine announced in January that this season — his 13th at the helm — would be his last.

"I'm glad Coach can go out with a bang," Almadova said.

Reach Wes Nakama at wnakama@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2456. Read his blog on high school sports at preptalk.honadvblogs.com.