Though the victory is just as sweet, there seems to be a different flavor to this Little League World Championship. Like the difference between strawberry and grape — one not better than the other, but still not the same.

Being the first ever has its obvious perks, and the 'Ewa Beach team in 2005 certainly enjoyed Neil Armstrong status.

The Waipi'o team's hard-won triumph maybe wasn't as dramatic in the theatrical sense of the word, particularly in Sunday's final game. It was something of a blowout. They made it look easy.

But just because we didn't see the epic struggle doesn't mean it wasn't there.

There are two sides to the underdog mentality.

On the one hand, being the underdog keeps people humble and inspires them to work hard. Underdogs have something to prove. Many find their fire in that.

The down side of the underdog label is rooted in the term itself: an underdog is defined as the loser or predicted loser. Sometimes people set up obstacles for themselves in order to live up to the expectation of heartbreak.

We've seen enough homegrown talent hobble their own efforts as if they don't recognize themselves unless they're struggling.

Just one reason why Waipi'o's victory at the Little League World Series was so amazing was they were underdogs, but not in the championship game. In that last game, they played ball like Michael Phelps swims, with nothing but gold in their sights. There were no nail-biting moments.

Sure, the team had more than its share of hardships along the way. All the elements of an epic were there: The bravery of Iolana Akau, who made a spectacular diving catch and hit a home run despite a hairline fracture in his arm, the six-run rally in the U.S. championship game to bring them from behind, and the rally cry of "Paliku! Paliku!" — the name of the bright-eyed little brother at home battling cancer.

But when it came time to play, those boys put aside their burdens and just played beautifully. They suddenly were not the Little Engine Who Could, chugging and puffing along inch by inch up the long tracks. They became a big bullet train with somewhere to go and the power to get there. It was the difference between "I think I can" and "We know we can." To shed the mantle of maybe and to become the confident, poised team that took on Mexico is one of the hardest transformations to pull off.

Add that to the many reasons the Waipi'o players, coaches and parents can be so proud and why they're such worthy hometown heroes.