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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Friday, May 7, 2010

MPI beats Hilo in 10 innings, 8-5

 •  Punahou pummels Pearl City, 8-1


By Wes Nakama
Advertiser Staff Writer

WAILUKU, Maui — Ryan Muraoka hit a three-run homer with two outs in the top of the 10th inning yesterday to lift Mid-Pacific Institute to an 8-5 victory over Hilo in the Wally Yonamine Foundation Baseball Championship quarterfinals.

The Interscholastic League of Honolulu runner-up Owls improved to 16-4 in the regular and postseason and will face six-time defending champ Punahou (13-5-1) in today's 7 p.m. semifinal at Iron Maehara Stadium.

MPI led 5-3, with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, but made an uncharacteristic three errors to allow Hilo (12-1) to send the game into extra innings.

Justin Protacio and Nik Alarcio then drew two-out walks in the 10th, setting up Muraoka's towering home run over the left-field fence off a 2-1 inside fastball.

"That's what I tried to do the whole game, stay back and hit the fastball," said Muraoka, a senior pitcher/first baseman. "I thought I let it come in too much, but it worked."

Reliever Marcus Doi set down the Vikings in order in the bottom half.

Hilo went up, 2-1, in the second on Ridge Ho'opi'i Haslim's RBI single and 3-1 in the third on Bradley Waiki's home run to left.

Mid-Pac closed to 3-2 in the third when Jordan Obata hit a line drive to center that was misplayed and rolled all the way to the wall, allowing him to touch all four bases, and then took a 5-3 lead in the fifth after a run was balked home and Obata slammed a two-run double to right-center.

MID-PACIFIC (16-4) 100 130 000 3 — 8 10 5

HILO (12-1) 111 000 200 0 — 5 9 3

Ryan Muraoka, Marcus Doi (8) and Dane Fujinaka. Dustin Tagawa, Sidney Wong (6), Ridge Ho'opi'i Haslim (10) and Chayce Ka'aua. W — Doi. L — Ho'opi'i Haslim.

Leading hitters — Mid-Pacific: Ryan Muraoka 3-6, home run, 3 RBIs; Jordan Obata 3-4, double, 3 RBIs; Nik Alarcio 3-5; Justin Protacio 2-5. Hilo: Bradley Waiki 2-5, double, home run, Ka'aua 2-5, RBI.

Read his blog on high school sports at http://preptalk.honadvblogs.com