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Sports

Rainbows overpower alums

DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARADVERTISER.COM
The Rainbows' Matt Sisto gave up one hit over six innings against Hawaii's alumni team.

Jared Alexander watched his line drive get through the middle for a base hit and tossed his bat in the air like he just won the World Series.

It was the hit that broke up Matt Sisto’s perfect game and one of the more entertaining moments in yesterday’s alumni game, won by the current Rainbows 10-1 at Les Murakami Stadium.

A turnstile crowd of 366 saw Sisto, Brent Harrison, Michael Blake and Lenny Linsky combine on a two-hitter as the Rainbows won for the second straight year after a 4-4 tie in 2009.

"It was a lot of fun to get out here and kind of go through a dress rehearsal before the actual season starts," said Sisto, who went six innings and struck out eight.

He faced one over the minimum, giving up the hit to Alexander with one out in the sixth inning. The two were teammates in 2009, when Sisto was a freshman and Alexander was a senior.

"It couldn’t have come to a better guy, right?" Sisto said.

Alexander also drove in the Alumni’s only run with a groundout to score Sean Murphy and avoid a second consecutive shutout.

Outside of that, it was a day owned by this year’s Rainbows, who piled up 12 hits. Breland Almadova had two hits and scored twice and Kolten Wong reached base in all three plate appearances, scoring three runs.

Wong started the game hitting third and hit the first pitch he saw for an RBI single and an early 1-0 lead. He drew a walk in the third inning and then was hit by a pitch in the fifth.

"I didn’t even feel like I got hit," Wong said. "I kind of turned and (the umpire) said it hit me, and I was like ‘Oh man.’ But it’s always fun with all these old guys coming back. I’ll be out here playing next year."

Hawaii coach Mike Trapasso said the alumni obviously did their homework preparing to pitch to Wong.

"They got the scouting report to try and beat him in," Trapasso said.

Junior David Peterson started at catcher and singled twice before sophomore Pi’ikea Kitamura took over catching duties in the sixth inning. Jeff Van Doornum singled twice and drove in three runs, Collin Bennett had two hits and an RBI and Kalani Brackenridge hit an RBI double in the seventh inning.

"We went about our business in a good way," Trapasso said. "We didn’t try to be cool, we didn’t Cadillac it, we just went out there and I liked our effort."

Nineteen different position players played for UH, including newcomer Zack Swasey, who tripled and scored in the eighth.

Harrison allowed a single in the seventh inning, and Blake pitched a 1-2-3 eighth inning with two strikeouts.

Linsky, one of four Rainbows named to the preseason All-Western Athletic Conference first team, finished off the game, allowing a run on an error and a groundout with two strikeouts.

"I thought Sisto threw really well for the most part, and we’ve got to get Lenny fixed," Trapasso said. "He’s been a little out of whack and out of sync all spring, so we need to get that fixed."

Hawaii opens its season on Friday with the first of a four-game series against Oregon, ranked No. 9 in the Collegiate Baseball preseason Top 40 poll. The Rainbows are No. 38.

 

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