Maui ends up on top after stunning win

The state baseball tournament is usually as unpredictable as any state championship event of the year.

Even in a world where eight different schools have been crowned Division I state champion in the last eight years, Maui’s run from third place in the MIL regular season to Saturday night’s 6-1 win over Waiakea in the state final is truly one of the most remarkable four-day runs a team has had in the state tournament.

Mikito Barkman, the tournament’s most outstanding player, had three hits in the title game and pitched six innings allowing just one unearned run. This came a day after he allowed one unearned run in four innings of relief. He earned the win in both the semifinals and the finals and impressed his coach, Chase Corniel.

“He stepped up big and was a bulldog for us tonight,” the head coach said .”I’m so proud of him for his willingness to do what’s best for the team and having that mind-set that he’s going to get that chance and when he did, he took advantage of it.”

Maui (13-5), unseeded in the state tournament and ranked No. 9 in the Honolulu Star-Advertiser Top 10 last week, received all 10 first-place votes this week to finish the season at No. 1. The Sabers spent the first eight weeks of the season unranked before entering the poll at No. 9 two weeks ago.

Waiakea (17-3), which was undefeated entering the BIIF championship series and won the state title in 2012, is ranked No. 2 to end the season.

The Warriors entered the poll at No. 8 in Week 4 and got as high as No. 5 before losing twice in a row to Hilo in the best two-of-three championship series.

They entered the tournament at No. 8.

ILH champion Saint Louis, which lost 8-6 to Maui in the quarterfinals as the No. 1 overall seed, dropped to No. 3. Campbell, the OIA runner-up who finished third in states following a win over Kamehameha, is fourth, with the ILH runner-up Warriors fifth.

Kauai, which won three one-run games, including two in extra-innings and the third that took a seventh-inning comeback against Damien to claim the Division II state title, is ranked No. 10 and finished just four votes behind No. 8 Punahou.

The complete top 10 can be found below.