Timing has been everything for Hawai'i senior second baseman Ryan Morford.

While at Santa Barbara JC, he just happened to play well the day UH coach Mike Trapasso was at a game to check on another player. Morford was the only one from that game to end up here.

This season, while most of the Rainbow hitters are still trying to find their career averages, Morford finds himself the second-leading hitter at .298. This after riding the pine most of last season.

"It's been a lot of fun," Morford said of his recent good fortune. "Really, I'm mostly concerned with how the team's doing. As long as we're winning, I'm fine. I'm really enjoying myself, especially since this is my last year. Hopefully, it ends on a high note, since we're doing well right now."

How's this for timing?

Last season, when the Rainbows got off to a 9-19 start that was stamped with a four-game sweep by Sacramento State. But a 20-12 finish was ignited with a win on April Fool's Day at Stanford following the sweep in Sacramento. It sort of coincided about the time Morford started leading cheers from the bench. What else is a reserve to do? But now that he's busy batting and playing defense (no errors in 66 total chances), he has benched his antics ... at his coach's request.

"I told him to tone it down because we aren't doing that anymore," Trapasso said with a laugh. "He's that way. He's got that kind of personality. The guys gravitate toward him and he has leadership qualities and capabilities. It's always easier to lead by example and when you're out there playing. He's really done a nice job of doing what we ask him to do. He understands his role: hitting behind runners, getting a bunt down, playing good defense."

Morford agrees with the coach's decision, adding it's not necessary with this year's group.

"We're trying to keep it a little more professional in the dugout this year," Morford said. "I'm trying to go about things the right way. It seems last year, we needed something to bring us together. At the end of the year, we really started to come together. This year, the team is really close. We don't really need something like that. Everybody's going about their business the right way, so there's no need for the extra stuff."

Morford, who hit .217 in 14 games (five as a starter) last year, started this season sharing time at second base with fellow senior Shane Hoey. Sometimes, both were in the starting lineup with one at DH. But Morford has been hot of late, batting 4 for 9 with a double and three runs in the three wins following UH getting no-hit in the Coastal Carolina series. Morford, who credits his improvement to hitting coach Keith Komeiji, said he had too much movement in his swing.

"So coach (Komeiji) kind of just shortened up my swing," Morford said. "Just tailor my swing to the hitter that I am. I'm not going to hit home runs. I give a lot of credit to him. It's all about buying into his hitting philosophy and it works. We're hitting at the right times. That's why we're successful. Our average (.245) may be low, but we're hitting .300 with runners in scoring position and with two outs. That's what's helping us win games."

Meanwhile, Morford is aiming at graduating with a degree in economics this summer.

"I want to be an entrepreneur," he said. "It's been my main goal for a long time. I don't want to be a suit-and-tie guy. If I could do something involved with sports, that would be cool."

But remember, Morford knows something about timing.

"I might just stay in school, get a masters," he said, "until the economy gets better."