After making strides in a conference win at home, a breakthrough on the road represents the next step for the Hawaii women’s basketball team.

The Rainbow Wahine left the UH campus in the dark of Tuesday morning for their second road trip of the Big West schedule and in search of their first win on the mainland this season.

UH (5-10, 1-2 Big West) faces Cal Poly (6-10, 2-2) today at the Mustangs’ Mott Athletics Center in San Luis Obispo, Calif. The Wahine conclude a run of four road games in its first five Big West contests at UC Santa Barbara (7-9, 2-1) on Saturday.

“We have to find a way to get a road win,” UH coach Laura Beeman said. “Those are two places that have been hard for us in the past to win even when we had very veteran, very experienced teams. So this young team’s got their work cut out for them.”

UH opened Big West play two weeks ago with losses at conference leaders Long Beach State and UC Davis to fall to 0-7 on the road this season.

“It has less to do with the nerves of traveling than it does with when we get punched in the mouth a couple times in a game we have a tendency to start feeling sorry for ourselves or lose a little focus or try to get everything back all at once,” Beeman said.

“It’s not the travel that’s getting us. … It’s not the unfamiliarity with gyms. It’s when someone gets after us, we don’t know how to sustain piece by piece. We want to get it all back and then we dig ourselves a really bad hole.”

The Wahine earned their first league win last Thursday by pulling away from Cal State Fullerton for a 60-50 win at the Stan Sheriff Center. They hope to carry the confidence and energy generated in the second half with them to California.

“Chemistry is getting there, we just need to work with it,” said sophomore forward Lahni Salanoa, who raised her scoring averages to 7.8 points per game for the season and 10 ppg in conference play with a career-high 19 points in the win.

The Wahine prepared for the first stop of this week’s trip by working on their transition defense in advance of a matchup with a Cal Poly team looking to push the tempo. The Mustangs rank second in the conference in averaging 67.4 points per game, led by junior twins Dynn and Lynn Leaupepe.

Dynn Leaupepe ranks fifth in the league with 15.5 points per game, with Lynn at 14.9. Lynn Leaupepe is also third in rebounding with 7.6 boards per game.

The Mustangs also feature one of the Big West’s most efficient post players in 6-foot-3 senior Hannah Gilbert, who averages 14.7 points on 54 percent shooting from the field.

“Their guards do a great job of attacking,” Beeman said. “They have a big who runs like the wind.

“We have to do a really nice job of stopping that transition and making them score in the halfcourt.”

Salanoa and twin sister Leah played against the Leaupepe sisters — who are from Camarillo, Calif. — since middle school. Lahni pointed to patience on offense as a focus for the Wahine today.

“Running the play smart instead of playing fast and losing control of the ball,” Salanoa said.

Guard Sarah Toeaina continues to lead UH with 11.6 points per game and is averaging 13.3 in Big West play.

UC Santa Barbara edged UC Riverside at home last Saturday and hosts first-place Long Beach State today.