One after another, as if part of a carefully orchestrated regimen, the Hilo Bronco 11s stepped to the plate, patiently waited for their pitch and made solid contact to reach base.
One after another, as if part of a carefully orchestrated regimen, the Hilo Bronco 11s stepped to the plate, patiently waited for their pitch and made solid contact to reach base.
It could have been the the sight of Hilo having its way, or the hot, predatory sun, but a Windward fan finally lost his cool, shouting, “Come on, let’s get out of here.”
Yes, coach Shon Malani’s bunch does have a way of getting under an opponent’s skin.
“Too much small-ball,” Malani said.
Just too much hitting period.
One day after they came up one hit short against Mililani, the Broncos 11s went on overload, overwhelming Windward 22-11 to reach the finals of the state PONY League tournament at Walter Victor Stadium.
Hilo faces Mililani at 11:30 a.m. Monday and needs a win to force a winner-take-all in the afternoon.
The Bronco 11s spread their 19 hits, with leadoff hitter Blane Baclig leading the way with four. He scored four runs.
“I think we still have some hits left in us,” assistant coach Grant Baclig said.
While Hilo and Mililani don’t share much of a history, Hilo and Windward do. Malani’s Mustang 9s won states two years ago by beating Windward, which returned the favor last year and knocked Hilo out of the 9-10 tournament.
Malani, Grant Baclig and Windward coach Bobby Medeiros go way back. They were teammates on Hilo’s High’s 1991 state basketball championship team, coached by Larry Manliguis.
“I remember that we used to win in everything — football, baseball, basketball,” Medeiros said. “I see the same thing happening here with these Hilo teams. It’s great to see.
“(Today), we just ran out of arms.”
And that doesn’t fly against Hilo. Many of Malani’s youngsters have been playing with him for more than half of their lives.
He passed down the No. 25 he used to wear at USC to his son, Brock.
“We have good chemistry,” said Brock Malani, who doubled. “Just getting on base and keeping it going.”
After homering in the first two games of the tournament, he finshed with three hits, as did catcher Kawehi Ili, the No. 9 hitter.
Hilo unleashed three left-handers, winning pitcher Dylan Honda, Carson Kawaguchi and Trenston Kepano, before Kedren Kinzie pitched the seventh.
Brock Malani was warming up at one point, but Hilo’s hit barrage allowed him to remain fresh for Monday.
“I’ll be ready (to pitch),” he said.
Hilo scored four times in the first, added three more in the second, and it put up five runs in the seventh. But its biggest inning was the fifth, when it circled the bases six times, highlighted by Tobey Jackson’s two-run double.
It was all too much for the Windward fan to take.
Jackson, Kinzie, who had an RBI double, and Spencer Yoshizumi did their part, each finishing with two hits, while Kawaguchi tripled.
Earlier in the day, Windward eliminated Kona 14-4. Kamrin Kam and James Kapela each had two hits for Kona.
Medeiros’ son Orion hit four home runs in the tournament.