It is 3 p.m. on a sweltering day in Manoa. On the diamond at Mid-Pacific Institute, two men are fretting over weed spots near the third-base line. In the batting cage, catcher Dane Fujinaka takes his cuts. Near his locker, shortstop Justin Protacio catches a breather.

Eight hours of infield practice, batting practice, lifting weights and stretching — he’ll do yoga for 30 minutes every day — were broken only by a quick trip home for lunch. It is Easter Sunday. Life is one happy grind for the team that ended Punahou’s run of seven consecutive state titles. MPI’s win over Punahou a week ago clinched second place in the Interscholastic League of Honolulu, yielding a state berth.

"I spent my sophomore and junior year losing to them," Protacio said. "Last year, they beat us in the (league) semifinal. It was a pretty good feeling (last) Tuesday afternoon."

Protacio, an upbeat, steady senior, is one of the cornerstones of the squad this year. The peaks and valleys haven’t worn him out. Between the yoga sessions and devotion to the diamond year-round, he’s more flexible and pliant than hard and unyielding.

"My mom, she was a cheerleader at UH, and I have a younger sister who’s a dancer. She always got on my sister’s case for not stretching out. I always wanted to be more flexible, so I do yoga," he said. "I can do the splits now. I stretch after I shower at night."

Protacio spent summer days at White Plains (Kalaeloa) Beach, sprinting on the sand at 7 a.m. In the weight room, it’s about power cleans, squats and bench presses, all to develop more explosiveness. As a sophomore, he maxed at 225 on the bench press. Now, weighing in at 155, he presses 260.

In his dreams, Protacio wears No. 24 and plays like the greatest leadoff man in history. With 22 stolen bases, he paced the Interscholastic League of Honolulu. In time, he wants to be another Rickey Henderson: a leadoff hitter with a ridiculous on-base percentage, power to all fields and, most of all, the ability to disrupt.

"The defensive speed, the offensive speed. They always say speed never goes in a slump," Owls coach Dunn Muramaru said. "Sometimes stolen bases are disruptive. Even when he doesn’t steal, it poses a threat and causes people to do things that they normally don’t do, like rush and throw more fastballs."

Protacio, an All-State first-team pick by media and coaches last year, hit .436 in ILH play this spring. He scored 22 runs on 24 hits, benefitting from a picky palate at the plate — eight walks for an on-base percentage of .508. However he gets on base, the goal is to get in scoring position by any means necessary.

The pattern has been successful and the sequence is rarely changed. Protacio takes absolutely nothing for granted, which is part of the reason he’s been caught stealing just four times.

"I get my signal from Coach and I look at the pitcher, make sure he’s on the mound," he said. "I take a look at the outfield real fast, in case there’s a hit, a line drive, so you can take third and you don’t have to stop at second."

He takes the same approach off first base each time, a good 3 1/2 steps, focused on the pitcher.

"I just watch their feet, (then) I watch their hands, if they break first or go up. Some pitchers like to pick off or others don’t pick off at all and focus on the batters."

This is where the Henderson role-modeling is most evident.

"He does the same thing, marking up the field and going head first. The thing is, if you slide, you have to slow down to bring your foot back. To dive, your momentum is already low and forward, so all you have to do is lay your hands out."

Like most speedsters, Protacio has a set of running gloves to go with his batting gloves to prevent wear and tear on his hands. He wears Adidas cleats, lightweight stuff at 11.5 ounces.

"As much as possible, I try to take that next base. If I get to second, I want to steal third," he said.

For all the aggression and speed, Protacio knows there are risks. Within the 85 percent steal rate in league play were two pickoffs at first.

"Against a lefty, your first move, as soon as you break. I’m going. It takes kind of long, so I can make up ground. One game, I got caught by a righty. I was caught taking my (steps). I think it was a Saint Louis pitcher, (Rico) Garcia."

Beyond the physical, he has learned to eliminate the negative.

"I learned that when you get thrown out, the most important thing is taking the fear out that you’ll be thrown out again, so the best thing is to steal again, just to kick the fear out of you, to get the confidence. It’s going to happen. You’re going to get caught every so often," he said.

He signed a letter of intent with Kansas and plans to major in kinesiology. He wears a Jayhawks hat almost everywhere. For now, though, it’s just one week until the state tournament and Protacio is feeling good in MPI green, grinding away.

"We always have fun and work hard," he said. "Nothing is taken away from us."