UH gets offensive to defeat HPU, 9-3

By Stacy Kaneshiro
Advertiser Staff Writer

Intensity might have taken a break for Hawai'i but it still managed a 9-3 win against Division II Hawai'i Pacific to snap a modest two-game losing streak in collegiate baseball last night.

The Rainbows (8-3) committed a season-high four errors, had a runner caught in a rundown and another called out on appeal for not touching a base. Their committee of pitchers matched a season-high five walks.

The Sea Warriors (4-9) closed to one run in the fourth inning, but the Rainbows scored in the fourth, fifth and sixth to pull away before a crowd of 809 at Les Murakami Stadium.

"The whole game was shaky," UH coach Mike Trapasso said. "The whole game was sloppy. We didn't have any intensity from the first pitch to the last, and we were lucky to win."

Meanwhile, UH shortstop Brian Finegan was 0 for 3 with a hit batsman, ending his hitting streak at 10 games. He was due to lead-off the bottom of the eighth, but he was replaced in the top of the eighth by reserve Julian Russell.

"It's no big deal," Finegan said. "As long as we get the victory. My goal is to get on base twice and I accomplished that, just not through base hits. (He also reached on an error.) That's the way it goes. I hit the ball hard tonight, the times I did hit it. (He lined out to third his first time up) It just didn't go my way tonight."

Nick Ponomarenko (2-0) allowed a run on three hits and a walk in three innings in his starting debut. Since it was predetermined he would not go the minimum five innings, he was credited with the win.

Of the five relievers UH used, only Guy McDowell pitched two innings. Mike Peck, Rich Olsen, Ricky Bauer and Reid Horton each tossed an inning.

The Rainbows scored three runs in the second when they sent nine batters to the plate. An RBI single by Andrew Sansaver, who led UH by batting 3 for 4 and two RBIs, an RBI ground out by Jaziel Mendoza and a bases loaded hit batsman by Brent Cook accounted for the runs against HPU starter Matt Paulsen (2-2), who lasted 1á innings.

Blane Muraoka restored order for HPU long enough to watch HPU score in the third inning on an RBI single by Tyler Ward and on an RBI ground out by Brandon Sato in the fourth to pull to 3-2.

"Tonight's outing was probably his best," HPU coach Allan Sato said. "He struggled early in the season, but he showed good poise out there, coming in with the situation he came in and carrying us for a few innings after that."

The Rainbows added another run in the fifth and could have made it a bigger inning if not for two mistakes. After Josh Green's double scored Finegan with one out, Rocky Russo walked. With Tim Montgomery batting, UH tried a hit-and-run, but Green broke too soon and was caught in a rundown between second and third for the second out. Meanwhile, HPU shortstop Bryan Daguio's throw to first to get Russo went into the dugout.

"I didn't know what happened," Russo said. "(The umpire) said, 'Dead ball, go to third.' "

So Russo did. He took the direct route instead of touching second. He was called out when HPU appealed.

• • •