Kailua's Joey Cantillo makes a throw to first against Kalani. Cantilo scored two runs and drove in another in a win over the Falcons. John Lujan | Special to SL

Purchase image 1 of 1

KAILUA – Staked to a 5-0 lead in the first inning with its ace on the hill, it was looking like No. 8 Kalani was on its way to clinch the top seed in the Oahu Interscholastic Association East.

But Kailua, which has lost early leads in all of its losses, sent 13 batters to the plate in a seven-run second inning to rally by the Falcons, 10-5, Saturday at the Surfriders' field.

The Falcons (8-1) still own a two-game lead on the second-place Surfriders  (6-3). But Kailua, though it still could catch Kalani mathematically, put itself in a better position for the second seed with three games left. The top two teams from each division draw a first-round bye for the 12-team OIA D1 tournament.

The Surfriders-Falcons affair was literally a wild one, as the teams' pitchers combined for 17 walks, five wild pitches and a balk.

Winning pitcher Matthew Hanano overcame a shaky start in six-plus innings of relief to settle the game for the Surfriders, who quickly backed him with the seven-run second.

Losing pitcher Connor Zalewski lasted 1 2/3 innings. He was charged with seven runs (all earned), four hits and four walks with no strikeouts. He had allowed four earned runs in 28 innings before the game.

"Connor is a tough pitcher, one of the better ones in the state," Kailua coach Corey Ishigo said. "I'm glad our boys never gave up, down five in the first. I'm happy with the result, got by with a win today."

The rule of thumb is when a pitcher is staked to an early big lead, he just has to throw strikes, force contact, make the defense work.

"It's a learning experience," Kalani coach Shannon Hirai said of Zalewski's outing. "He has to learn that when you're up five runs, you have to pound the (strike) zone. He was trying to strike out guys, getting too fine. When calls don't go his way, he starts pressing. You just have to learn from that."

Zalewski wasn't the only one with an eventual outing on the mound. Kailua starter Bryson Ballesteros only lasted three batters, walking the first two, while the third one reached on an error. When his 1-0 pitch to the fourth batter, Zalewski, was a wild and bringing home the second run, he was pulled for Hanano.

Not expecting to see action in the first inning, Hanano labored. He walked Zalewski, though statistically, the walk is charged to Ballesteros because he left with a 2-0 count. Hanano would eventually allow two RBI singles (to Payton Awaya and Kyle Sasano), hit a batter and walk a batter. When the 11^th batter of the inning, Jarryn Wee came up with the bases loaded and one out, only a diving stab of a liner by third baseman Noah Ah Yat prevented an even bigger inning.

"I didn't have much time warming up," Hanano said. "It was kind of quick."

But from the second through sixth innings, Hanano would scatter two singles, two walks and a hit batter in keeping the Falcons off the scoreboard.

"He started off a little wild, but he came back strong," Ishigo said of Hanano's effort. "He threw strikes for us."

Hanano said from his second inning, he found his rhythm.

"I found my first-pitch changeup," he said. "After than, I got my slider, a lot of off-speeds."

Dalton Kalama, who started at catcher, pitched a scoreless final inning, but not before making it exciting by allowing two walks.

Although down five, the Surfriders did not try to get the runs back with one swing. They remained disciplined at the plate, waiting for Zalewski to give them pitches to hit. Kailua had only two hits in the seven-run inning, but drew four walks and a hit batter off Zalewski, as well as a balk that scored a run. He gave way to Christopher Nam, who walked and hit a batter with the bases loaded in each situation, before Micah Kawano replaced him and struck out the next batter to mercifully end the inning.

"We just didn't get anything to hit that we liked so they weren't swinging at pitches that were balls," Ishigo said.

The Surfriders, who were 2-3 at one point, have won four in a row as the regular season hits the home stretch.

"Our team is really turning it around," Hanano said. "We all believe in each other. If someone doesn't do something good, then we pick him up. That's just how it is for our team right now."