Despite allowing only four runs in the Western Athletic Conference baseball doubleheader, Hawai'i could only salvage a split against Sacramento State yesterday.

The Rainbows did everything in the 7-2 seven-inning nightcap win that they couldn't in a 2-1 loss in the opener in front of 2,918 at Les Murakami Stadium.

Junior Nate Klein (1-2) picked up his first career Division I victory by allowing a run, five hits and a walk while striking out five in five innings for the Rainbows (23-13 overall, 6-4 WAC), who are tied for third with Nevada, percentage points behind second-place San Jose State (5-3), and a half-game behind New Mexico State (7-4).

While Klein was the beneficiary of run support, the same could not be said for teammate Matt Sisto (4-3), who allowed two runs and eight hits with seven strikeouts in the opener for his second complete game loss of the season.

"You can't waste pitching performances like Sisto gave us," UH coach Mike Trapasso said of the 6-foot-5 freshman. "It's a shame we couldn't score and support him."

For the Rainbows, it might have been a case of getting away from how they have historically done business offensively. They flied out 13 times in the first game. The Rainbows' first eight runs of this series were all driven in by home runs. But it wasn't until Kolten Wong's RBI single in the third inning of the nightcap that a UH run didn't score on a homer.

"We can score other ways, too," said third baseman Vinnie Catricala, who was 3 for 3, including a two-run homer with three RBIs in the second game. "That's the way we score the majority of the time.

"We hit the ball well (in the opener). I'd like to say everyone in the lineup lined out to someone at least once. The results don't show it, but we swung the bats well. That's just baseball."

In the opener, right-hander Jesse Darrah (7-2) allowed only a second-inning lead-off homer to Kevin Macdonald in 7 2/3 innings for the Hornets (21-16, 2-5). He scattered five hits and a walk, stranding seven runners, five in scoring position.

"Today, for the most part, he had that command," Sacramento State coach John Smith said. "That's what kept him in the game. He would've finished the game, but the humidity over here is so hot, he was out of gas."

Jeff Roth came in from right field with two outs in the eighth to finish up for his fourth save, scattering two hits and a walk in 1 1/3 innings.

The Hornets tied the score in the fourth when Tim Wheeler, Blake Crosby and Jeff Roth strung successive singles with two out.

Sacramento State took the lead in the fifth in textbook fashion. Aaron Crouch led off with a single, took second on a sacrifice and scored another out later on Hunter Martinez's single to right.

Hawai'i's strong pitching continued in the second game. The only run Klein allowed was in the second inning, when Roth doubled with one out and scored from second base on a wild pitch that pulled the Hornets to 2-1. Klein had retired eight in a row at one span before allowing a double to Joe Espana with two outs in the fifth and a walk to Ivan Otsuka before the dangerous Martinez lined out to second for the third out.

"I was fatiguing a little bit because I haven't thrown in a while, but I felt pretty good," Klein said. "My changeup was working pretty well, but I had all four pitches working and I hadn't had that all year, so it was good to have."

Jesse Moore finished the final two innings, allowing a run.

It was Klein's second outing since missing two starts because of a tender elbow.

"He was fatigued," Trapasso said of why he replaced Klein after five innings. "He couldn't hit his location. We had him throw another 15 (pitches) in the bullpen just to get him a little more extended. He pitched good until that inning."

Unlike the opener, the Hawai'i offense showed the consistency it didn't in the opener. After Catricala's first-inning, two-run homer off Brandon Sandoval (4-4), the Rainbows got runs the old-fashion way: Producing them without the long ball.

Wong was 2 for 2 with an RBI single, Christian Johnson was 1 for 3 with two RBIs.

"I'm proud of our guys the way they bounced back the second game," Trapasso said. "It's a resilient bunch. We put ourselves in a position to win the series tomorrow. Tomorrow's a big day, you either win it or you split it."

The series finale is at 1:05 p.m. today. Trapasso said either Jared Alexander or Connor Little will start. The Hornets will counter with left-hander Tommy Elrod.