CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARBULLETIN.COM Jenna Kosinski of Lahainaluna cleared 4-8 in the high jump, which left her 2 inches short of qualifying for tomorrow's finals.

Baldwin’s Lusk breaks
sprint record

Baldwin's girls still face an uphill battle to beat Punahou for the team title in tomorrow's finals of the HHSAA/Island Movers State Track and Field championships. But Bears sprinter/hurdler June-Ann Lusk looked like she was running downhill yesterday during the trials.

Lusk won her heats in all four of her events and set a meet record in the 100 meters at the Mililani High track.

Lusk's time of 12.25 seconds eclipsed the 12.32 that Cassie Coffin of St. Anthony ran in 1999.

"Actually, I didn't feel like I was running very fast," she said. "I was shocked when I heard it was a record. Hopefully I can repeat it on Saturday."

The sophomore also won her heats in the 200 meters, 100 high hurdles and 300 low hurdles.

Even if Lusk wins all four events tomorrow for 40 points, Baldwin will need more to get past Punahou, which has won 27 state championships, including seven of the last nine.

Bears coach Neal Takeyama said Baldwin is in position to challenge for its first state title.

"The goal today was to get as many as possible into the finals, and I think we did that," Takeyama said. "We got a good overall performance from June-Ann, and Vete Tollitau p.r.'d in the discus and is in real good position (126 feet, 8 inches for third). We had a close call in the (4x100) relay. The timing in our passes just wasn't there, but we made it."

Punahou qualified nearly all of its potential scorers.

There were no trials in the girls pole vault, and Takeyama said that could be to Baldwin's advantage.

"Kaimana Rebolledo hadn't been able to jump because of a sprained ankle two weeks ago. This gives us another couple of days," he said.

Punahou's Anna Hildebrand is the favorite going in, with a 10-6 vault, and teammate Claire Schiff has cleared 10 feet. Rebolledo has also gone 10 feet. She said she plans to vault "at least" that high tomorrow and cut into the possible 18 Buffanblu points.

On the boys side, Kamehameha still appears to be in control of its own destiny despite some disappointing qualifying marks.

Punahou is still in the hunt despite losing its potential 4x100 relay points to a dropped baton. Kahuku lurks, but needs lots of good fortune to win the meet.

Waimea's sprint duo of Troy Yamase and Kenny Estes stole the individual show in the boys trials. Yamase, better known as the Menehunes' second baseman and leadoff hitter, was timed at 10.7 and Estes at 11.1 in the 100 meters. The times in the event were hand-held because of a malfunction of the automatic system.

Yamase and Estes rarely run on rubberized tracks because there are none on Kauai.

"We're not used to the track yet," said Yamase, who agreed that he and Estes might have snuck up on some of the competition. "It's hard for anyone to expect us to win because coming into the meet their times are faster."

Another blazer from the Garden Isle, Kapaa's Joe Locey, scratched from the 400, but qualified in the 200. He is the defending state champion in both events.

Meet records in the boys discus and shot put were under siege yesterday. Both survived, but may fall tomorrow.

Brashton Satele of Word of Life fouled on his first and third discus heaves, but the defending champion's middle throw went 184-7. The senior leads the event, and has three throws tomorrow to try to surpass the 186-0 produced in 2003 by his cousin, Jerrod Avegalio of Kahuku.

"I was just trying to stay loose and get a good mark. And I wanted to make sure I got one in there and go for it again on Saturday," Satele said.

Hawaii Prep senior Daniel Teo-Nesheim put the shot 58-0 feet on his third try. Teo-Nesheim has thrown it 59-0, and is aiming for the 59-834 effort of Kaione Crabb from Punahou in 1997.

"Those throws weren't typical of him," said HPA throws coach Bern Brostek, a state champ in both events at Iolani. "He can build on the third one for Saturday."

Teo-Nesheim had a plate lunch and a plan after the trials.

"I really wanted to break it today, but I know what I need to do," he said. "I need to glide faster across the ring."

For the second meet in a row, unmatched uniform colors resulted in disqualification. Maui's Maasi Mataele was DQ'd from the shot put (in which he entered the meet with the state's sixth best mark) because he wore a blue undershirt and teammate Tavita Vave had on white. Two Kahuku 200 meters runners were disqualified in a similar ruling during last week's OIA championships.