Mililani unhappy with pairings
By Wes Nakama
Advertiser Staff Writer
New guidelines in the Hawai'i High School Athletic Association softball tournament's seeding/pairings procedure have caused a last-minute change in bracketing and further confusion to Mililani, the O'ahu Interscholastic Association runner-up.
The bracket change has Baldwin and Waimea swapping places, meaning Baldwin (14-3) will play Mililani (11-2) in tomorrow's first round and Kailua (11-1-1) will face Waimea (11-0). The change was made after a guideline passed last summer was overlooked during Sunday's seeding committee meeting.
Guideline "F" states that "the unseeded champion (Waimea of the Kaua'i Interscholastic Federation, in this case) will be placed with a No. 3, 4 or 5" from the OIA, Maui Interscholastic League, Big Island Interscholastic Federation, or Interscholastic League of Honolulu.
Kailua finished tied for third in the OIA with Pearl City.
The next guideline, "G," reads:
"Caution on placing teams: the No. 1 and No. 2 seed should have the lowest ranked team in their bracket. Seeding committee should follow guidelines A-F."
The interpretation of that vague wording has caused frustration at Mililani, which must face No. 1 seed Kamehameha (13-0-1) in the quarterfinals if it gets past Baldwin tomorrow.
Trojans coach Mike Okimoto said the guideline means Kamehameha should have Kailua in its quarterfinal bracket instead of Mililani since the Surfriders (OIA No. 3) are the lowest-ranked team among the five opponents in Kamehameha's six-team bracket.
The other four teams are Waiakea (BIIF No. 1), Waimea (KIF No. 1), Baldwin (MIL No. 2) and Mililani (OIA No. 2).
But HHSAA executive director Keith Amemiya said "lowest ranked" does not necessarily mean how the teams finished in their respective league.
"For example, the NCAA (basketball tournament) seeds its teams based on overall strength, not just how they finish in the league tournament," he said.
Okimoto, however, said his team has been given a tougher road than Kailua even though it finished higher in the OIA. Kailua is the defending state champion, has been in the past two state finals and features junior Courtney Kessell, whom many regard as the state's best pitcher.
"But our girls went through a lot this season and busted their okoles to finish where we did," Okimoto said. "Now they're all upset, and I'm just so disappointed."
Reach Wes Nakama at wnakama@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2456.
