Makana Aiona doesn’t have a favorite baseball tale with his dad like throwing a ball in the back yard.
Instead, Aiona, a recent Kamehameha graduate, and Daylan Asuncion share their best moments on the family couch.
Aiona’s favorite show is CNN’s “Forensic Files” while his dad’s is “Law & Order,” which always has a predictable ending.
That’s because Asuncion, a police sergeant, is calling out the bad guys and outcome before the first commercial break.
“He knows his stuff,” Aiona said.
Aiona, a third baseman, signed to play ball at Saint Martin’s, a Division II private school in Lacey, Wash., in large part because of the influence of Asuncion.
“Ever since I was a baby, he was there and raised me,” Aiona said. “He took me in as his own son. I don’t consider him my stepdad. He’s my dad. He’s always been there for me my entire life.
“He leads by example. He’s shown me compassion and how to have a good outlook on life.”
Aiona attended a showcase during the winter break and caught the attention of the Saints’ coaching staff.
He plans to major in criminal justice at Saint Martin’s, where there’s more than a handful of Hawaii players on various sports teams.
Darien Calicdan, a 2015 Waiakea graduate, is a pole vaulter on the Saints track and field team. She’s the cousin of Aiona’s teammate, Daylen Calicdan.
“I want to follow in my dad’s footsteps but take a profession different from him,” Aiona said. “I want to become a forensic scientist and join the Federal government one day.
“He’s the one who showed me how to become a good leader and lead by example. Everything he does I tend to follow. He’s instilled good morals in me by leading by example.”
Aiona finished his season year batting .317 with a .469 on-base average for the five-time BIIF Division II champion Warriors, who also won their first HHSAA title.
But Kamehameha coach Andy Correa will remember Aiona for something other than his contributions with the bat and glove.
“He was an emotional leader,” Correa said. “He was pretty much the spiritual leader of the team.”
Aiona’s younger brother Dustin Asuncion will be a sophomore at Kamehameha, where he’s also a third baseman. His sister Halia Asuncion will be a sixth grader at Christian Liberty and plays basketball.
His oldest sibling is Cyerra Aiona, who’s a manager at Jamba Juice, where parents Daylan and Ellen Asuncion take the family and keep the place in business.
Aiona credits coaches Kaha Wong and James Hirayama for polishing his baseball skills as well as his dad.
“I started at 5 years old, and my dad helped coach me a lot of years,” Aiona said. “He was always there in the stands. I always consider him my coach because after games he would always tell me what I needed to work on.”
Aiona’s positive outlook will come in handy at Saint Martin’s. The Saints last had a winning season in 2011.
The Saints play in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, which is part of the West Region. The PacWest and California Collegiate Athletic Association are the other members of the West Region.
There’s a chance that Saint Martin’s could visit UH-Hilo and give Aiona a homecoming. The last time the two played was in 2008. But that was in Lacey.
Maybe a return trip is in order.
According to Wikipedia, Saint Martin’s has a $12.8 million endowment. The school could probably afford a road trip. Plus, the Saints have two other Hawaii players, both from Oahu, on the roster.
It might be more fun for the Saints to fly to Hilo and Oahu to also play Hawaii Pacific, than drive nine hours to Nampa, Idaho to battle GNAC foe Northwest Nazarene.
“The coach (Ken Garland) was talking about hooking up with UHH and HPU and flying down to have a series over there,” Aiona said. “It would be nice to have family in the stands if we can hook that up.”
His family was in the stands at Wong Stadium when Kamehameha prevailed over Kapolei 4-3 in eight innings to win the state championship.
Aiona is batting 2 for 2 with his baseball wishes. He won an HHSAA title and landed a scholarship.
“It can’t get any better than that, winning a state title,” he said. “Everything now is icing on the cake.”