Louie Ondo looks like a cross-country runner. The Waiakea senior is 5 feet 4, slender and has fairly long legs for his height.
He’s got pretty good endurance, too. Ondo had more in his gas tank after he won a BIIF boys meet on a scorching Saturday at the Kamehameha campus.
Ondo covered the three-mile course in 16 minutes and 46 seconds to run away from Hilo’s River Brown (16:58) and Konawaena’s Cody Ranfranz (17:00) to claim his second straight race.
At the BIIF season-opener at hilly Hawaii Prep, Ondo won in 18:08, a whopping 30 seconds ahead of runner-up Ranfranz.
Rather than talent or strong lungs, the reigning BIIF champion pointed to intangibles as the biggest reason he wins by such wide margins.
“It’s more mental and preparation,” Ondo said. “You need a positive attitude. That’s what you should have to be a good runner.
“I liked how my legs didn’t feel tired. I felt like I could run some more.”
For the second straight meet, Hilo won the team title with 39 points, followed by defending champion Kealakehe, 68; Waiakea, 80; Hawaii Prep, 103; Konawaena, 134; Makua Lani, 160; Kamehameha, 173; Honokaa, 179; and Keaau, 219.
After Brown, the other scoring Vikings to follow were Steven Chung, fifth (17:12); Kai Shumway, ninth (17:58); Steven Baca, 11th (18:24); and Aris Aynessazian, 12th (18:34).
Hilo’s last BIIF championship was in 2005, and the one before that was historic. When the Viks won in 2000, that snapped HPA’s 20-year title reign.
The Vikings have extra incentive because Brown, Shumway, Steven Baca, Aynessazian and Brandon Baca, who was 13th in 18:47, are all seniors.
The BIIF championships will return to Kamehameha, so the second race of the season served as a measuring stick, especially for Ondo.
He’s on Lance and MJ Tominaga’s Sunrise Athletics running club. Ondo is hoping with their help, he can land a scholarship somewhere.
“They’ve taught me how to pace myself, and how to prepare myself for runs,” he said. “I’ve improved my grades a lot. Now, I’ve got a 3.2 GPA. I’m shooting for lower times in cross country, 15:30 to 15:40.”
Perhaps the most promising runner in the BIIF is Chung, who’s just a freshman. At the HPA meet, he was sixth in 19:11.
He’s competing against a seasoned field. Out of the top 20 BIIF runners at the Kamehameha meet, he was the only freshman and eight were seniors, including Ondo who keeps showing the mental toughness of a champion.
