State baseball champion Baldwin, which won its second koa trophy in three years last month, ended the season ranked No. 8 in the country by USA Today.
The Bears, who finished 16-1 overall, dropped one spot in the final Super 25 rankings released Wednesday. Baldwin finished second in the West Region, trailing only No. 5 Valley Christian-San Jose.
The Bears landed four players on the Honolulu Star-Advertiser All-State first team, including position player of the year Anthony Ho‘opi‘i-Tuionetoa, who was selected in the 16th round of the Major League Baseball Draft earlier this month by the Minnesota Twins.
The Bears closed the season with a 14-4 mercy-rule win over Waiakea in the state final. After squeaking past Punahou, 8-7, in the quarterfinals, the Bears outscored their next two opponents in the state tournament 23-8.
Baldwin outscored its foes 136-26 during the season.
The island of Maui has won the past three state baseball championships overall, with Maui High beating Waiakea in the state final in 2017.
Other Bears to make the All-State team this year were third baseman Chayce Akaka, first baseman Nainoa Keahi and utility Kaipo Haole.
Riverdale Baptist (Md.) finished No. 1 in the USA Today rankings after winning its final 27 games to finish 32-1.
Polynesian Bowl to air nationally
The Polynesian Bowl Hall of Fame and CBS Sports have agreed to a multi-year partnership that will televise the Polynesian Bowl live on CBS Sports Network.
The third annual Polynesian Bowl, a high school football all-star game held at Aloha Stadium, will be held Saturday, Jan. 19, 2019.
Hawaii News Now will produce the Polynesian Bowl broadcast and air the game locally on KGMB on tape delay the day after the live broadcast on CBS Sports Network.
The game had been televised on ESPN3 live outside of Hawaii the previous two years.
Wahine hoops to play in Vegas tourney
The University of Hawaii women’s basketball team will take part in the 2018 Duel in the Desert, scheduled for Dec. 19-21 in Las Vegas. It will be the second straight season that the Rainbow Wahine will compete in the tournament.
The 2018 field will consist of Florida, Hawaii, Kansas, Northwestern, UNLV, Utah, Washington State, and Wichita State. The Wahine open against host UNLV on Dec. 19.
The Wahine return four of their top five scorers from last season in seniors Tia Kanoa and Lahni Salanoa, and juniors Julissa Tago and Makenna Woodfolk.
Kanoa led the Big West in assists last season with 5.1 per contest, while Salanoa was the team’s top shooter from 3-point range, making a team-best 47. Tago is the Wahine’s top returning scorer after averaging 9.4 points per game last season, second behind Sarah Toeaina, who graduated. Woodfolk led the team in three stat categories last season, pacing the Wahine in 3-point percentage (.348), rebounds (6.1 per game) and blocked shots (0.6 per game).
Hawaii comes off a 12-18 season that included a 5-11 mark in conference play. The remainder of the 2018-19 schedule will be released at a later date.
Mata‘afa waived by Vikings
Former Lahainaluna and Washington State defensive end Hercules Mata‘afa was waived by the Minnesota Vikings on Wednesday.
Mata‘afa suffered a torn ACL on June 6 during Minnesota’s organized team activities. The injury occurred during a kickoff coverage drill. The Vikings waived Mata‘afa with an injury designation, which means he will revert to injured reserve or receive an injury settlement if he goes unclaimed by another team.
As a junior at Washington State, Mata‘afa was a consensus All-American and was named the Polynesian College Football Player of the Year. He was also named the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year, but went undrafted and signed with Minnesota as a free agent.
