"I'm not trying to do too much because I'm not a big guy," he said. "I can't expect (to do) more than just put the ball in play."

Omura has been doing just that. He leads team with a .397 batting average. His 10 doubles are twice the number of extra-base hits his next closest teammates have recorded. His 14 RBIs lead the team. His extra-base hits total is likely to surpass his previous output of 13 in 2003, when he batted .301 and was a freshman All-American, and 11 in 2004, when he batted .313 and earned second-team all-Western Athletic Conference honors.

"He's gotten stronger and he's been able to drive some balls that he hasn't (been able to) in the past, so it's a great start for him," UH coach Mike Trapasso said.

In one stretch that began two weekends ago and lasted into the middle of this past week, he had consecutive hits in five at-bats. On Feb. 25 against Washington State, he capped a 3-for-4 night with an infield single in his last at-bat of the game. The next day, he was 3 for 3 before he tweaked his left knee and left the game. After sitting out a game, he returned the next game and doubled in his first at-bat.

But just as the left-handed hitting Omura was hot, he experienced the extreme when he struck out in his next five at-bats. He even went hitless in three of his next four at-bats, drawing a walk, in his next game. But maturity that comes with being a third-year starter showed. He went 7 for his next 15.

"Stuff like that happens," Omura said. "I wasn't really mad that day. It's just part of baseball. Coach (Travis) Janssen always says, 'It's a humbling game. You could go out one night and be perfect and go out the next night and be absolutely trash.' "

Omura said spending the summer with the Anchorage Bucs of the Alaska League helped him. He finished second in the league with a .345 batting average. He was named to the all-star team as a third baseman, even though he played only a few games there.

"That's because four second basemen made the all-Alaska team," Omura explained. "The first baseman was a second baseman and the shortstop was a second baseman."

The injury that forced him to miss his only game this season was a scary moment for Omura, who has had his share of injuries since his days at Mid-Pacific Institute. In the Feb. 26 game, Omura went to cover second on a steal attempt and felt his left knee pop. He had to be carried off the field, but was walking under his own power after the game. Still, it was a harrowing experience because he injured the same knee that forced him to miss most of his senior season at MPI.

"When I heard it pop again that night, I got real scared," he said.

Omura doesn't just bring a productive bat to the game. His defense is much appreciated by a pitching staff with an earned run average of 3.15. He wasn't charged with an error all last season; his streak ended at 44 games in the Pacific series last month.

Omura does not have the range of some other second basemen, but if he gets to the ball, he is likely to make the play.

"It's knowing the scouting reports," he said. "I'm not blessed with a lot of range or foot quickness, so for me positioning is pretty important."

Trapasso said Omura can turn the double play with the best.

"He's got a good a hand as you'll see," Trapasso said. "He's not in the category of a rangy guy, but if it's hit to him he's going to make the play. He turns the double play better than any second baseman I've been around."

His ability to get rid of the ball quickly also is evident on the back-hand stabs behind second base, where he turns in one motion to gun the batter down at first.

Unknown to most fans is that Omura is ambidextrous. He is a natural left-hander; he does most things left-handed, such as eating and writing. Some time during his youth, his father, C.J. Omura, encouraged him to throw right-handed.

"He taught me to throw right, so I guess I could play all the positions in baseball," Omura said. "I just stayed left-handed hitting because that was my natural side. I didn't really know what I was doing back then because I was so young."

Left-handed or right-handed, the Rainbows are pleased with Omura's hot start. It comes at a time when injuries and slow starts are hampering others.

"We have to temper that we're just a quarter of the way through the season," Trapasso said. "But he puts up three more quarters like he has this one, then it's going to be great year for him."