Warriors not in S-B poll despite 2 big triumphs

The merry-go-round of the Star-Bulletin Baseball Top 10 poll did something unusual today.

Despite losses last week, No. 1 Iolani and No. 2 Punahou stayed pat. In fact, the one team that did knock off the top two teams in the state, Kamehameha, received a first-place vote but didn't crack the Top 10.

The voting was as wacky as last week's scores. In addition to Iolani and Punahou, then-third ranked Kaiser also suffered a loss. With all that instability, No. 4 Waianae could possibly have moved to the top.

Same with unbeaten Baldwin or even Waiakea, the co-leader in the Big Island Interscholastic Federation.

Instead, voters stayed with Iolani, which outslugged Mid-Pacific and Saint Louis to close out its week. The Raiders collected 13 of 15 first-place votes.

Good, but not quite enough: Aiea's misfortune this season hasn't been relegated to its home field, which has bleachers still under construction.

The road warriors of Aiea got great efforts from Tripper Chung and Cody Aquino, but lost to a quickly-rising Leilehua squad 6-2 on Saturday.

Chung, a senior catcher who missed last season with an ACL injury, got himself a round-tripper in the first inning and later doubled. His chance to help Aiea rally in the final inning, however, ended with a pop-up to the catcher.

"That's just how the game goes," said Chung, holding an ice bag to his right cheek. The catcher was hit by a throw from the outfield in the first inning. "You get the perfect pitch, you swing. Sometimes you try to do too much."

Aquino overcame a case of strep throat to fire six scoreless innings in relief. He showed no signs of fatigue on the mound, allowing just five hits in six shutout innings.

"He's sick as a dog. Ideally, he wouldn't have pitched at all," Na Alii coach Ryan Kato said. "He was really feeling it between innings."