FL MORRIS / FMORRIS@STARBULLETIN.COM Mid-Pacific third baseman Blayne Fuke tagged out Saint Louis' Justin Doane attempting to steal.

MPI wins Nitta tourney

Anyone who's watched a Mid-Pacific baseball game over the past decade and a half will tell you that Owl head coach Dunn Muramaru is a stickler for the fundamentals. Under his direction, Mid-Pacific has captured four state crowns, even advancing to last season's state championship game, all the while stressing the importance of the basics.

This year, it seems as though league foes will see more of the same.

Using an attack that featured three sacrifice bunts, a squeeze play and an errorless defensive effort, the Owls were able to break open a tight contest to defeat Interscholastic League of Honolulu rival Saint Louis 8-4 in the title game of the third annual Glenn Nitta Tournament at Mililani High School in a game abbreviated to six innings due to darkness.

"It's good that we're playing well," Muramaru said. "Saint Louis is tough, we played OK, and it shows that it (the ILH) is gonna be a dogfight."

Mid-Pacific scored the game's first run in the top of the first. Chad Takabuki led off with an infield single, and advanced to third on a pair of wild pitches, setting up Kip Masuda for a one-out sacrifice fly to right.

The Owls added another run in the second, using a pair of bunts to fuel the rally. Owl starting pitcher Reece Uyeno reached on another infield hit and advanced to second on an infield error, giving Mid-Pacific runners at first and second.

Blayne Fuke followed with a sacrifice bunt to give the Owls runners at second and third with one out. Muramaru then called for the suicide squeeze and Nick Furumoto obliged, pushing a bunt down the first-base line to score courtesy runner Kyle Sakamoto.

After Saint Louis scrapped back on a run-scoring single to center by Kyle Gonzaga in the bottom of the second, Mid-Pacific again responded with a sacrifice bunt. Fuke and Furumoto set the table with back-to-back one-out singles to put the Owls in business. Muramaru then inserted pinch hitter Seob Yoon, who laid down a perfect bunt with two strikes to give MPI a pair of runners in scoring position. Takabuki followed with a two-run single to center.

Adam Tamashiro then singled and scored on a ringing ground-rule double to right-center by Masuda to give Mid-Pacific a 5-1 lead.

But the Crusaders charged back for three runs in the bottom of the inning on two walks, a hit by pitch and singles by Sheldon Santiago and Shaun Kauleinamoku doing the damage.

Mid-Pacific regrouped, using patience at the plate and another bunt to pull away with three more runs in the top of the sixth to regain the momentum.

"We had to win the game twice," Muramaru said. "The walks didn't help and having to come back can really drain a team."

Junior reliever Jared Hara entered in the bottom of the fourth, spacing three singles to post three scoreless innings of relief. Hara located his fastball and threw his slider for strikes, striking out two while not issuing a walk.

"I was just trying to throw strikes and let them hit the ball," Hara said. "I was really trying to hit the outside corner, since the umpire was calling that location."

Takabuki led all hitters, going 3-for-3 with two RBIs, while Masuda added a triple and a double in the win.