Chinen leads Hilo
to PONY regional title

LIHUE >> Richard Chinen struck out eight, walked two and allowed no runs in a six-inning, complete-game shutout as Hilo beat Aiea 1-0 for the PONY Baseball Hawaii Region Mustang Tournament title for 9- to 10-year-olds.

Aiea outhit Hilo 2-1, but committed one costly error.

With no score in the fourth inning, Hilo's Likiak Jack reached base on an error.

He eventually scored on a fielder's choice after a Geonah Ragual groundout for the game's only run.

For the tournament, Chinen struck out 26 in 15 innings pitched.

Hilo advances to the West Zone Regionals in California.

Flanagan finishes fourth at FINA Championships

Hawaii Kai's John Flanagan finished fourth overall in the men's open water 10K event with a time of 2:01.16 at the ninth annual FINA World Swimming Championships in Fukuoka, Japan.

Flanagan also finished 10th in the men's open water 5K event.

Senior PGA event returns to Maui

The Wailea Golf Course on Maui will host the 2002 Senior Skins Game on Jan. 25-27.

It will be broadcast on ABC, with the final nine holes being shown the morning of the Super Bowl.

Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Hale Irwin competed at the picturesque Wailea Gold Course last year. The previous 11 tournaments were played on the Big Island.

Irwin won the 2001 event, pocketing $180,000 in a playoff.

A spokeswoman for the made-for-TV event said she expected Irwin would be back to defend his title. Nicklaus and Palmer will also likely take part, but that won't be determined until Thanksgiving.

Seattle Bowl to be broadcast on ESPN

ESPN will broadcast the new Seattle Bowl on Dec. 27, Aloha Sports Inc. director Fritz Rolhfing announced yesterday. Terms were not released.

"We're thrilled to add the Seattle Bowl to our extensive lineup of postseason and all-star bowl games," said John Wildhack, ESPN senior vice president of programming. "We look forward to displaying the beauty of the Pacific Northwest to our viewers worldwide."

The inaugural Seattle Bowl will be played at Safeco Field. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. Hawaii time for the postseason game that was formerly known as the Oahu Bowl. The game matches the fourth- or fifth-place team from the Pac-10 against the fourth- or fifth-place team from the Atlantic Coast Conference.

"ESPN is a proven winner in televising college football and we're very pleased about solidifying a long-term working relationship with the network," Aloha Sports Inc. chief executive officer Fritz Rohlfing said.

Local golfers survive at junior championships

Honolulu's Stephanie Kono is tied for seventh after yesterday's first two rounds of the Junior World Championships in San Diego.

Her 36-hole total of 124 in the girls 11-12 division is 12 strokes off the pace set by Kumiko Kaneda of Japan.

Several other local golfers are competing for titles as well in their respective age divisions. Fellow local golfer Hee Sue Condry is tied for seventh in the girls 8 division. She shot a 36-hole total of 125 and is seven strokes back of leader Molly Plomaritis of the USA.

Honolulu's Haaneo Manini-Helen finds herself in eighth place in the girls 9-10 division with a two-round total of 122. Hilo's Kimberly Kim and Kaika Martin are tied for 13th at 126.

In the girls 13-14 division, Amanda Wilson of Hilo is tied for sixth at 147. Fellow Big Island golfer Christine Kim is also in the hunt, tied for 13th at 150.

Among male golfers from Hawaii, Kapolei's Bronson Kalilikane is tied for first in the boys 13-14 division at 144.

Honolulu's David Hahn is tied for 14th at 128 in the boys 11-12 division and Ryan Kuroiwa of Aiea is tied for 12th in the boys 8 division at 119.