Four teams from neighboring islands descended on the War Memorial Little League fields on Maui to determine the 2011 Hawaii state championship.

The championship flag stayed on the Valley Isle.

Central East Maui Little League won a trio of potential elimination games, including a doubleheader sweep of Makakilo Kapolei Honokai-Hale Little League, to claim its second state championship in three years. Central East Maui, which was the 2010 Hawaii runner-up, advanced to the West Region tournament in San Bernardino, California.

Central East Maui earned the trip to the mainland with 8-4 and 8-1 victories against Makakilo in the championship series, and in the process avenged a loss that dropped the Maui champions into the bottom bracket.

"We're very happy for the kids," said Maui manager Napa Kaupe. "They knew they had to come out and play a hard couple of games. That is a very good MKH team, a very tough team. I guess it comes down to pitching, and Kawena and Nawai were ready for it today."

Maui pitchers Kawena Alo-Kaonohi and Nawai Kaupe both turned in strong efforts in the championship series. Alo-Kaonohi struck out six and scattered four hits over 5-2/3 innings in the first game, and iced the victory with a three-run home run in the fifth inning that pushed his team to an 8-1 lead. In the second game, Nawai Kaupe carried a shutout into the sixth inning, and finished with a complete game four-hitter in her team's 8-1 victory. The right-hander struck out eight, walked one, and capped the victory with a towering three-run homer in the sixth inning.

"Central Maui played really well today," said Makakilo manager Lon Recamara. "They came out on all cylinders. Our kids battled as much as they can, but what can you say? Nawai Kaupe, she pitched a (heck) of a game today... Alo-Kaonohi was really tough, too."

The Maui pitchers benefited from an offense that finally awakened to their manager's liking.

"We haven't hit the whole tournament, and today we scored sixteen runs," noted Napa Kaupe. "Offensively, we came together."

Makakilo grabbed an early lead in the first championship series matchup, but Central East Maui took control with four runs in the top of the second inning. Kao Mindoro drove in the first run with a run-scoring groundout, and two more runs came in on RBI singles from Nevan Watanabe and Orion Farias. Alo-Kaonohi drew a bases-loaded walk that produced the fourth Maui run.

In the fifth, Mindoro delivered a run-producing single, and Alo-Kaonohi slammed a three-run homer over the center field fence.

Kaulana Stanley homered for Makakilo in the loss.

Alo-Kaonohi turned the game over to Central East Maui's other female player, Mayumi Kamau, after reaching his pitch count limit in the sixth inning. The Hawaii reliever closed out the game with a four-pitch strikeout.

"Mayumi, in the first game, she struck out that last batter, which was big," explained Napa Kaupe. "All weekend I was saying 'I was going to use her, I was going to use her'. We never had a chance because of the substitution rules in Little League. We finally did the right substitution, we were lucky the right way, and she was ready."

In the second game, Makana Sakamoto's two-run double fueled a three-run Maui outburst that snapped a scoreless tie in the fourth inning. Nawai Kaupe's long home run to left capped a five-run burst in the sixth to ice the win.

Makakilo reached the state championship game for the first time in the league's history with a 9-1 victory over West Coast-North Hawaii in the tournament's opening round and a 3-2 decision over Central East Maui in the teams' first meeting. Triston Siarot-Koa and Jordan Macias each had three hits in the victory over the Big Island team, and pitcher Marcus Ramos fueled the win over Central East Maui with ten strikeouts in 4-2/3 innings. Makakilo jumped to a 2-0 lead in the first inning against Maui, and the host team tied the score in the third before Makakilo pushed across the deciding run in the sixth. Siarot-Koa had two hits, including a home run, and drove in all three runs for Makakilo.

Maui rebounded from the defeat, and earned the championship series rematch with an 8-5 victory over Kaneohe Little League. Sakamoto, Damien Awai, and Alo-Kaonohi combined on a five-hitter, and struck out a combined nine batters.

"Today was kind of a strategy for us because you have got to know what pitchers you are going to use and for how long," explained Napa Kaupe. "We were hoping that we could come in 20-20-20 with Damien, Kawena, and Makana, but Makana stayed in a groove and we decided to leave him in that groove and let him throw the whole game."

Sakamoto eventually reached his pitch count limit, but Maui was able to minimize the use of its relievers to maintain flexibility for the championship series. Alo-Kaonohi needed just fifteen pitches to retire the side in the sixth, ensuring he would remain eligible to start the next day against Makakilo.

"I kind of talked to him during the inning and let him know that he has got to come with 20 strikes so I can use him tomorrow," explained Napa Kaupe. "That was real big what he did today."

Central East Maui's pitching staff came up strong again in the West Region tournament, allowing just 15 runs across four games. vMaui scored as many runs as it allowed, but dropped games by one-, two-, and three-run margins and finished the tournament with a 1-3 record.