Manuel third, Moore fifth in Fiji

Hawaii’s Malia Manuel won two heats before losing in the semifinals of the Fiji Women’s Pro at Cloudbreak on Wednesday.

Manuel topped New Zealand’s Paige Hareb 8.50 to 7.00 in the fourth round and beat Johanne Defay of France 9.50 to 8.93 in the quarterfinals.

In the semifinals, Manuel was eliminated by eventual event champion Sally Fitzgibbons of Australia, 14.24 to 8.86. Manuel finished equal third.

Defending ASP women’s world champion Carissa Moore of Hawaii lost to Australia’s Dimity Stoyle in the quarterfinals and finished equal fifth.

In the final, Fitzgibbons surfed past fellow Australian and former world champion Stephanie Gilmore, 9.00 to 8.73.

Moore is still the top-ranked surfer on the ASP Women’s World Tour.

Eldredge wins Leahey Award

Duane Eldredge, who has perpetuated a three-generation commitment to youth baseball in Hawaii, has been named the recipient of the 2014 Chuck Leahey Award.

Named for the late sportscaster and athletic official who began the Rainbow Easter Baseball Tournament, the award has recognized significant contributors to Hawaii baseball by individuals for 26 years.

Eldredge, 49, has led Team Hawaii for 14 years, taking 26 teams to national tournaments. His late father, David "Pop" Eldredge II, began the practice, taking teams in 1969. Duane’s father, Dave Eldredge III and uncle, Pal Eldredge, followed.

The exposure has helped many players be seen by pro scouts and college recruiters.

Duane Eldredge has also coached Babe Ruth and high school baseball. He is a teacher at Dole Middle School.

Wahine sailing team earns spot in final

A sixth-place finish in its semifinal bracket on Wednesday sent the Hawaii women’s sailing team to the finals of the Intercollegiate Sailing Association national championships in Annapolis, Md.

The Rainbow Wahine maintained their place in the Western bracket standings after the second day of competition at the U.S. Naval Academy to secure a place in the 18-team finals. UH finished the semifinals with 152 points to safely make it into the top nine. Yale won the 14-team bracket with 69 points.

UH’s team of Madeline Kennedy and Katrina Berry finished with 64 points in the A division after 11 races in the semifinal round. UH’s Cecilia Jansson, Annie Kelly and Louise Curry sailed in the B division and posted 88 points.

The scores will be reset when the two-day Sperry Top-Sider Women’s National Championship finals begin Thursday morning.

5 UH volleyball players on academic team

Five University of Hawaii men’s volleyball players were named to the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation All-Academic team released Wednesday by the league office.

Middle blocker Taylor Averill and opposite Johann Timmer were each recognized for the third time while outside hitter Sinisa Zarkovic, setter Joby Ramos and libero Kolby Kanetake were first-time honorees.

To be considered, players were required to have achieved at least a 3.0 grade point average, have sophomore or above standing and have appeared in at least 50 percent of their team’s matches.

UH finishes seventh for commissioner’s cup

Hawaii finished seventh in the Big West Conference Commissioner’s Cup for the 2013-14 school year, the conference announced Wednesday.

The competition measures performance by the conference’s nine schools across 16 sports.

Long Beach State won the cup for the fourth consecutive year, followed by Cal Poly and UC Irvine.

UH’s top point earners were women’s volleyball, women’s basketball and men’s and women’s tennis.

UH finished third in the 2012-13 competition, the school’s inaugural season of having both men’s and women’s teams in the Big West.

Tom is All-SEC first-team outfielder

Ka’ai Tom, a Saint Louis alumnus and sophomore at the University of Kentucky, has been named All-Southeastern Conference first team in baseball. Tom, an outfielder, ranked second in the SEC in batting average in league games (.373).

Fujikawa shoots 77 in eGolf event

Honolulu’s Tadd Fujikawa shot a first-round 7-over 77 at the Sedgefield Classic in Greensboro, N.C. Ted Brown shot a bogey-free 6-under 64 for the lead in the 54-hole event. Fujikawa is tied for 94th.