Five neighbor-island teams are ranked in the latest Honolulu Star-Advertiser Baseball Top 10 released today.
It’s the first time it has happened this season and just the third time in the history of the poll.
Baldwin, which lost a first-place vote to ILH champion Punahou this week, is No. 1 for the 11th straight week dating back to the last season. Kamehameha-Hawaii, the top seed in the Division II state tournament beginning Thursday, is No. 4 for the second straight week. Hilo, which beat Waiakea for the BIIF title, is No. 8, followed by the Warriors at No. 9 and Maui at No. 10.
Maui (No. 1), Waiakea (No. 2), Baldwin (No. 7), Hilo (No. 9) and Kauai (No. 10) ended the 2017 ranked in the Top 10. In the week leading up to the 2015 state tournament, Baldwin, Maui, Hilo, Waiakea and KS-Hawaii were ranked Nos. 6-10.
The Buffanblu, who won their first ILH baseball championship since 2008 with a 2-0 victory over Kamehameha last week, moved up to the No. 2 spot with the Warriors jumping up three spots to No. 3.
Saint Louis dropped three spots to No. 5 ahead of No. 6 Mililani and No. 7 Campbell.
‘Iolani (six), Mid-Pacific (two), Kamehameha-Maui (two), Kailua (one), Radford (one) and St. Francis (one) also earned votes.
The Wally Yonamine Foundation/HHSAA Baseball State Championships begin on Maui on Wednesday with five ranked teams playing in the opening round. No. 5 Saint Louis plays No. 9 Waiakea in the lone matchup of ranked teams.
No. 3 Kamehameha gets Castle and No. 10 Maui plays Kailua while No. 7 Campbell opens the tournament in Game 1 at 10:45 a.m. against Kaiser.
The Surfriders, whose six-week absence from the rankings is their longest stretch ever, own the longest active streak of 15 state-tournament appearances in a row.
KS-Hawaii, the only Division II team in the rankings, opens its state tournament on Thursday at Vidinha Stadium on Kauai against Waipahu.
Honolulu Star-Advertiser Top 10
| FOOTBALL | ||
|---|---|---|
| Updated: 10/23 | ||
| RANK | SCHOOL | VOTES |
| 1. | Kahuku (10) | 100 |
| 2. | Miililani | 86 |
| 3. | Campbell | 81 |
| 4. | Punahou | 73 |
| 5. | Saint Louis | 53 |
| 6. | Kapolei | 50 |
| 7. | Konawaena | 40 |
| 8. | Farrington | 23 |
| 9. | Lahainaluna | 18 |
| 10. | Kamehameha | 8 |
Division I State Tournament
| Match # | Date | Matchup | Time/Scores | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | May 8 | Kaiser vs. Campbell | 10:45 a.m. | Iron Maehara Stadium |
| 2 | May 8 | Kamehameha vs. Castle | 1:30 p.m. | Iron Maehara Stadium |
| 3 | May 8 | Waiakea vs. Saint Louis | 4:15 p.m. | Iron Maehara Stadium |
| 4 | May 8 | Maui vs. Kailua | 7 p.m. | Iron Maehara Stadium |
| 5* | May 9 | G3 loser vs. G2 loser | 8:15 a.m. | Iron Maehara Stadium |
| 6 | May 9 | (4) Mililani vs. G2 winner | 10:45 a.m. | Iron Maehara Stadium |
| 7 | May 9 | (3) Hilo vs. G4 winner | 1:30 p.m. | Iron Maehara Stadium |
| 8 | May 9 | (2) Punahou vs. G1 winner | 4:15 p.m. | Iron Maehara Stadium |
| 9 | May 9 | (1) Baldwin vs. G3 winner | 7 p.m. | Iron Maehara Stadium |
| 10* | May 10 | G1 loser vs. G4 loser | 8:30 a.m. | Iron Maehara Stadium |
| 11* | May 10 | G8 loser vs. G7 loser | 11 a.m. | Iron Maehara Stadium |
| 12* | May 10 | G6 loser vs. G9 loser | 1:30 p.m. | Iron Maehara Stadium |
| 13 | May 10 | G7 winner vs. G8 winner | 4 p.m. | Iron Maehara Stadium |
| 14 | May 10 | G6 winner vs. G9 winner | 7 p.m. | Iron Maehara Stadium |
| 15* | May 11 | G5 winner vs. G10 winner | 10:30 a.m. | Iron Maehara Stadium |
| 16* | May 11 | G12 winner vs. G11 winner | 1 p.m. | Iron Maehara Stadium |
| 17* | May 11 | G14 loser vs. G13 loser | 3:30 p.m. | Iron Maehara Stadium |
| 18 | May 11 | G14 winner vs. G13 winner | 6 p.m. | Iron Maehara Stadium |
| * — consolation | ||||
Division II State Tournament
| Game # | Date | Matchup | Time/Scores | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | May 9 | (3) St. Francis vs. Konawaena | 11:30 a.m. | Vidinha Stadium |
| 2 | May 9 | (2) Radford vs. Seabury Hall | 2 p.m. | Vidinha Stadium |
| 3 | May 9 | (1) KS-Hawaii vs. Waipahu | 4:30 p.m. | Vidinha Stadium |
| 4 | May 9 | (4) Waimea vs. Molokai | 7 p.m. | Vidinha Stadium |
| 5* | May 10 | G2 loser vs. G1 loser | 10:30 a.m. | Vidinha Stadium |
| 6* | May 10 | G3 loser vs. G4 loser | 1 p.m. | Vidinha Stadium |
| 7 | May 10 | G2 winner vs. G1 winner | 3:30 p.m. | Vidinha Stadium |
| 8 | May 10 | G3 winner vs. G4 winner | 7:30 p.m. | Vidinha Stadium |
| 9* | May 11 | G6 winner vs. G5 winner | 2 p.m. | Vidinha Stadium |
| 10* | May 11 | G8 loser vs. G7 loser | 4:30 p.m. | Vidinha Stadium |
| 11 | May 11 | G8 winner vs. G7 winner | 7 p.m. | Vidinha Stadium |
| * — consolation | ||||
Is there going to be any live coverage ?
KS Hawaii DII but ranked 4 in the state. No business playing DII in all sports.
@The Rim, I agree with your statement. The BIIF is no joke in baseball and KS Hawaii beat everybody, including Hilo and Waiakea. From what I hear, KS Hawaii is loaded this year, both pitching and hitting. They would have a good shot to win the D1 and so they should dominate this D2 tournament. But …
When schools like this are willing to settle for lower standards just so the kids can “win”, it also makes you wonder about other choices the school is making for the kids.
I like Kamehameha’s chances to upset in the D1 bracket. Seems like they got a very nice draw.
Hilo, Waiakea, and KS-Hawaii take players from the same pool and with changes at the helm in Hilo and Waiakea, KS-Hawaii is the top team this year.
Talent wise, though, I’m not sure if this is BIIF’s year. Regardless KS-Hawaii should win the D2.
LOL at Iolani not even good enough for top 10 in the state anymore. I talked to a scout here on Maui and he is pissed that Iolani not there for states. He is on the island all week to scout players and was ready to look at the Iolani prospects. Kamehameha and St. Louis beat out Iolani for states and now they can take advantage of this bonus. I guarantee the scouts will notice some of those St. Louis and Kamehameha boys. It is amazing how small things like this can affect the future of the players.