Rainbow softball team splits two at Arizona tourney

Advertiser Staff

The University of Hawai'i softball team went 1-1 yesterday at the Hillenbrand Invitational tournament at Tucson, Ariz.

UH defeated Southern Mississippi 3-2 before losing to Long Beach State 17-2.

In a late game Friday, the Rainbow Wahine broke a four-game losing streak, defeating Evansville, 7-3.

The Wahine (11-8 overall, 2-2 in the tournament) finish the six-team tournament with a game against Eastern Michigan.

In yesterday's first game, Kate Judd doubled in Stacie Hirano from second in the bottom of the seventh to defeat Southern Mississippi.

In the second game, Stacy Porter went 2-for-2, including a two-run homer, but Long Beach scored five runs in the first and 12 (nine hits, three Hawai'i errors) in the third in a game shortened to five innings.

In the Friday game, Porter hit a three-run homer in the first inning and Hirano went 3-for-3 in the Wahine victory over Evansville.

Host is Arizona is 3-0 in the tournament.

DIVISION II

• Hilo sweeps: Hilo's Kristine Kahoalii and Taysha Anderson pitched shutouts at the Vulcans swept a doubleheader from Montana State-Billings at UHH Softball Field.

Hilo is 15-2, 6-0 in the Pacific West Conference. Billings is 0-14 and 0-12.

Kahoalii allowed four hits, struck out five and walked three in a nine-inning performance. Leilani Hashida drove in the winning run with a single in the ninth for a 1-0 Hilo win.

In the second game, Anderson improved to 5-1 with a five-hit shutout. She struck out six and walked one in the Vulcans' 12-0 five-inning victory. Diana Kim had three of Hilo's 14 hits.