Hawai'i rallies for 8-4 win over HPU
By Stacy Kaneshiro
Advertiser Staff Writer
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| Hawai'i's Matt Inouye slides in safely at the plate in the fifth inning with HPU pitcher Matt Paulsen covering.
Eugene Tanner • Honolulu Advertiser Tonight's game What: Exhibition collegiate baseball Who: Matsusaka (Japan) vs. Hawai'i When: 6:35 p.m. Where: Les Murakami Stadium Parking: $3 Tickets: $6 Blue and Orange levels; $5 Red level (adults); $4 Red level (65 and older, students K-12 and UH students with IDs). TV: K-5. |
A four-run seventh inning by the Rainbows (13-5) broke a tight affair against the Division II Sea Warriors (4-10) before 654 at Les Murakami Stadium.
Clary Carlsen (1-1) allowed an unearned run in three innings for UH. Losing pitcher Brent Erickson (1-2) allowed three runs in the seventh without getting an out.
Hawai'i started three freshmen, as left fielder Matt Inouye and catcher Drew Jackson joined everyday third baseman Rocky Russo in the lineup. They teamed for seven of UH's 11 hits, three runs, four RBIs and three doubles. Inouye batted 4-for-4 with two doubles, Russo was 2-for-3 with two RBIs and Jackson was 1-for 3 with an RBI double and two runs.
Inouye, recruited as a catcher out of Mid-Pacific Institute, played outfield during the summer for the Island Movers.
"I'm seeing the ball very well right now," Inouye said. "I just hope I can keep it up, maybe get a pinch-hit against Rice or something."
The Rainbows plays No. 2-ranked Rice in a three-game Western Athletic Conference series starting Friday.
"All of these guys are playing good," UH coach Mike Trapasso said. "They're close to being starters. They're an injury away from being out there every day.
"(Inouye) has played well every time he's been in there. He's had good at-bats. He's making himself a guy who's going to force us to play him more."
Trapasso was pleased with the way Jackson handled himself behind the plate. His third start of the season allowed Brian Bock to have half-a-night off; he was the designated hitter.
"These are the games you need those guys," Trapasso said. "The guys who've been playing on a regular basis were on empty. The freshmen are fired up to get out there and did great."
The trio was a bright spot in a game that was anything but ready for prime time, despite being televised and broadcast on two radio stations. UH committed three errors after making only two in the three-game series at Fresno State and had two runners picked off.
"We didn't have a lot in the tank, but that's almost to be expected," Trapasso said. "But we answered every time they scored for the most part."
Trapasso also complimented the Sea Warriors.
"They played with a lot of emotion," he said. "They were diving all over the place. It was fun to see how hard that HPU was playing and that's a credit to those guys."
HPU took a 3-0 lead after four innings for starter Blane Muraoka. UH tied it with a three-run fifth. An error paved the way for an RBI double by Jackson and infield single by Inouye to chase Muraoka. Matt Paulsen then yielded an RBI single to Brian Finegan, then threw a wild pitch to allow the tying run to score.
HPU regained the lead in the seventh on a bunt single by Grandon Costa (4-for-5 with an RBI triple), who scored after consecutive errors to make it 4-3.
UH's four-run seventh was highlighed by an RBI single by Andrew Sansaver to tie the score at 4 before a wild pitch scored the go-ahead run. Russo followed with a two-run single.
Hawai'i added a run in the eighth. Josh Green doubled and, two batters later, Inouye doubled him home.
