HHSAA Baseball
Mililani rallies in final inning to stun Saint Louis


Michael Lasquero | ScoringLive
May 2, 2023, 11:52pm

  

Tue, May 2, 2023 @ [ 7:00 pm ]

Mililani

2

Saint Louis

1

FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
Mililani 0 000002252
Saint Louis 0 1 00000172

W: Kai Hirayama    L: Jacob Villacorte

STL: Chance Kuhlmann 1-3 trp; Jacob Villacorte 6.6 IP 1 ER 7 K
MIL: Malosi Mataafa-Alferos 2-3 run rbi; Kai Hirayama 7.0 IP 1 ER 5 K




MANOA — It was a former Crusader that came up clutch to stun the Brotherhood Tuesday night.

Sophomore Malosi Mataafa-Alferos hit a two-out single to tie the game before scoring the go-ahead run in the top of the seventh as Mililani rallied to turn back Saint Louis, 2-1, in the final opening round game at Les Murakami Stadium.

The Trojans (11-6) move on to face reigning state champion and third-seeded Waiakea Wednesday in the quarterfinals of the Wally Yonamine Foundation Baseball Championships. First pitch is slated for 1 p.m.

"Really good win for us," said Mataafa-Alferos. "We knew they were going to come out hard, they brought everything to the table. They're a good team."

Malosi Mataafa-Alferos, who starts at shortstop and bats leadoff, transferred from Saint Louis to Mililani just a few months ago. He said the move is to help his family financially as he has two younger sisters that are transferring to Punahou.

"We're trying to give them the same opportunities that I had, so I just want what's best for them," Mataafa-Alferos said.

The Trojans left runners on the base in four different innings before Mataafa-Alferos seized the opportunity to play hero.

After the Crusaders (13-6-1) threw out the potential tying run at home for the second out of the seventh inning, Mataafa-Alferos hit a sharp ground ball outside the reach of second baseman Noah Paiva to score Ethan Bagasol to make it a 1-1 game.

The sophomore shortstop knew what pitch to look for against Saint Louis starter Jacob Villacorte after taking the first pitch for a strike.

"I knew he was going to come with an off-speed pitch," he said. "I'm just used to seeing that pitching so it felt good."

Mililani continued to extend the inning when Cyler Wicklund reached on a throwing error by third baseman Chyler DeSilva, who normally starts at second base. Centerfielder Tanner Chun then replaced Villacorte on the mound, but he gave up a single through the left side to Ethan Murakoshi which scored Mataafa-Alferos for the game-winning run.

"In the top of the seventh we all came as a team and told each other this is where we want to be," said Mataafa-Alferos. "Jobs not finish, gotta get it done. It helped us get that energy up so it felt nice."

Kai Hirayama (4-1) got credit for the pitching win for the Trojans. He scattered seven hits on 93 pitches in a complete game victory. The sophomore southpaw also struck out five while allowing just one walk and one earned run.

"He was locked down," Mataafa-Alferos said of Hirayama. "He's been working very hard. I knew he was going to do good. We just had to make sure we back him up because we knew he was going to be on his 'A game.' He did great."

The Crusaders' lone run of the game came in the bottom of the second inning. DeSilva reached on a one-out single to right field before stealing second base. After Hirayama struck out a batter, Matt Pavao singled to left field to score DeSilva.

Villacorte (3-3) threw 104 pitches and went 6 2/3 innings in the loss. He allowed just four hits and two walks while striking out seven.


Reach Michael Lasquero at [email protected].




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