By Billy Hull

bhull@staradvertiser.com

Adam Connell says he and his Mililani teammates think about last year’s loss to Mid-Pacific in the state final “every day.”

Thanks to his game-saving hit on Tuesday against Hilo, the Trojans can finally erase that painful memory on the field.

Connell’s two-out RBI single in the top of the seventh forced extra innings and Trevor Inouye scored the winning run on an error in the ninth as the Trojans stunned Hilo 5-4 in the Division I first round of the Wally Yonamine Foundation/HHSAA Baseball State Championships at Les Murakami Stadium.

Mililani (10-6) advances to the quarterfinals against the top-seeded Owls on Wednesday night at 7:30 in a rematch of last season’s 3-1 loss to MPI in the title game.

“It’s a big weight lifting off of our shoulders,” Connell said. “We wanted to get to the second game especially and get our revenge against Mid-Pac.”

Connell finished 3-for-4 with two RBIs to lead the Trojans past the Vikings

(9-5-1), who took a 4-3 lead in the bottom of the sixth inning on Noah Serrao’s two-out RBI single.

Hilo’s Jalen Carvalho pitched all nine innings and had the Trojans down to their last out when Connell singled to right-center to bring in Inouye, who stole both second and third bases.

Inouye reached base with one out in the top of the ninth on an error and scored when Serrao misplayed a fly ball Connell hit to left that got lost in the sun.

“I honestly thought he was going to catch it and then Coach Mark (Hirayama) started sending me home, so I ran as fast as I could,” Inouye said.

Hilo had one last chance in the bottom of the frame. Isaiah Banasan-Vincent singled with one out but was picked off by Mililani catcher Sean Sonognini at first. Micah Chinen then got Joey Jarneski to ground out to first to earn the save.

“It’s been this way all year, where we haven’t scored a lot of runs and had to rely on our pitching and our defense to keep us in the ballgame and figure out a way to win it at the end,” Hirayama said.

Hilo committed three of its four errors in the final three innings and put the leadoff batter aboard twice.

The Vikings had runners on first and second with one out in the eighth, but Tyler Kaneshiro got UH signee Jodd Carter, who finished

1-for-5, to hit into one of three Hilo double plays.

“It’s certainly been a tough year for us,” Hilo coach Tony DeSa said. “Even when Mililani was down they kept battling, so hat’s off to them.”

Carvalho threw 117 pitches and allowed only two hits over the final five innings.

Micah Kaaukai finished with four of Hilo’s 12 hits and Banasan-Vincent went

3-for-5 with a run scored.

Sonognini doubled home a run in the first and Devin Awai tripled and scored in the second to help Mililani take an early 3-0 lead.

At Les Murakami Stadium

Mililani (10-6) 210 000 101 — 5 8 1

Hilo (9-5-1) 010 012 000 — 4 12 4

Cole Nakachi, Koa Eastlack (6), Tyler Kaneshiro (7), Micah Chinen (9) and Sean Sonognini. Jalen Carvalho and Josh Breitbarth. W–Kaneshiro. L–Carvalho. S–Chinen.

Leading hitters–Mil: Sean Sonognini 2b, run; Adam Connell 3-4, 2 RBIs; Devin Awai 3b, run. Hilo: Micah Kaaukai 4-5, , run, RBI; Noah Serrao 2-5, run; Isaiah Banasan-Vincent 3-5, run.