HILO — Kallen Hiraishi didn’t bring a shovel to take home any dirt, nor did he leave with the deed.
But he very well could have. Hiraishi, his father and the rest of West Hawaii owned Walter Victor Complex for four days straight.
Hiraishi also could have used a broom Monday after West Side made it a clean sweep at the Little District 4 tournaments, beating Hilo 9-3 for the Majors (ages 10-12) crown.
“I don’t know. I’m speechless,” said Hiraishi, standing on the middle field at Walter Victor, the same one he and some of his Majors celebrated on two years ago after winning a PONY 9s state title.
His father, Jerry Hiraishi coached West Side’s Juniors (13-14) to a district championship Sunday after leading Gold Coast to a Majors softball district championship Saturday.
“I’m just proud of them,” Kallen Hiraishi said. “They played hard. They made some mistakes, but they worked it out.”
Third baseman Kupaa Elarionoff launched two home runs and doubled, and Kayden Alcoran also went deep for West Side, which got effective innings from pitchers Elijah Martin, Zesden Tolentino and Keyshawn Lorenzo. Tolentino was credited with the victory.
The ultimate prize at this age group is the famed Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pemmsylvania. West Side’s next stop is the state tournament, which begins July 22 on Kauai, giving some West Side players a second chance to play baseball on the Garden Isle this summer.
Xaige Lancaster pitched 4 2/3 innings and struck out six for Hilo.
With the imposing Martin striking out the side in each of the first two innings, Hiraishi scolded his fielders for being too relaxed in back of the hard-throwing right-hander, reminding them that this wasn’t a regular-season game.
“I think they expected me to strike everyone out,” the 5-foot-11 Martin said, “but nobody can do that.”
Tyler Halemanu hit a run-scoring single down the right-field line in the second for Hilo, and Lancaster singled and scored on Kaimana Kuamoo’s hit in the third as West Side fell behind 3-2.
“We weren’t mentally in it,” Elarionoff said, “but the bats helped us out.”
Especially his.
Elarionoff ripped a two-run shot in the first inning and a solo shot in the fifth as West Side pulled away and scored four times. Alcoran’s home run was a solo blast in the fourth.
West Side took a 4-3 lead in the third. Lorenzo, walked, moved over on Elarionoff’s double and scored on a single by Martin. Keanu Alokoa brought in a run with a groundout.
Elarionoff and shortstop Tevin Hiraishi, the coach’s son, played sure-handed on the left side of West Side’s infield.
Hiraishi has been coaching both since they were 5, and they were on the PONY team that seemingly left its bats at home and finished 0-2 during a state tournament on Kauai at the end of June.
“We have to hit this time,” Kallen Hiraishi said.
Elarionoff joked that Martin “didn’t do anything” at the plate at the last state tournament.
“I’m going to do everything this time,” Martin said.
He finished with three hits and scored twice, striking out seven in 2 2/3 innings. He also made a nice running catch in left field to end the fifth, preserving a two-run lead.
He said his height, not to mention his long hair, makes many players his age scared of him.
“I try to show them a reason to be scared,” he said.
Notes
Also on West Side are Manu Fujihara, Kasey Gacayan, James Kapela, Kieran Meyer, Lae’ulu Starkey, Trez Uemoto and Ethan Yamaguchi. Kallen Hiraishi is assisted by Brad Uemoto and Phillip Fujihara …
While West Side’s team at districts included many players who were members of a PONY All-Star team, Baba Lancaster-coached Hilo didn’t have the same luxury due to a Hilo PONY rule that prohibits players from participating in other leagues until “their PONY obligations are fulfilled,” league coordinator Wayne Yamauchi said.
Yamauchi said he instituted the rule after one summer in which players were members of PONY and Little League teams that advanced to simultaneous postseason tournaments and had to drop off of the PONY team.
