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The Hawaii softball team completed perfect weekend in the Bank of Hawaii Invitational with wins over St. Bonaventure and Weber State today at Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium.
UH right hander Stephanie Ricketts earned complete-game wins in both games as the Rainbow Wahine (16-4) defeated St. Bonaventure 8-0 in five innings and came back to beat Weber State 5-1.
A day after Kaia Parnaby threw a perfect game against the Wildcats, Weber State scratched out a run — the first allowed by UH this weekend — in the top of the first inning of the tournament finale. Erika James singled, stole second and scored on a throwing error on Brooke Silva’s bunt.
Jessica Iwata gave UH the lead in the bottom of the third with a two-run homer to left. After a single and a walk, Jenna Rodriguez singled to left and Alex Aguirre scored from second on a collision at the plate. Melissa Gonzalez followed with an RBI single to center to extend the lead to 4-1.
Dara Pagaduan added to the lead in the sixth a home run to center, her first of the season and fifth of her career, and Ricketts held off the Wildcats to improve to 10-3.
In UH’s first game of the day, Rodriguez’s two-run homer in the fourth highlighted UH’s 12-hit attack and the game was called in the fifth due to the eight-run mercy rule.
Ricketts gave up three hits, struck out three and walked one.
UH head coach Bob Coolen shuffled the lineup for the game against the Bonnies, which was originally scheduled for Friday but postponed due to rain. He moved Aguirre into the leadoff spot and shifted Kelly Majam to fifth in the order, marking the first time in 84 career games Majam didn’t bat first in the lineup. Sophomore Tara Anguiano, who entered the game with two career at-bats and none this season, also made her first start as the designated player and went 2-for-3.
Hawaii scored an unearned run with two out in the top of the first when Majam’s infield pop-up fell between pitcher Jen Sansano and first baseman Maureen Wells, allowing Gonzalez to score from second.
Rodriguez added to the lead with a two-run homer to left field in the bottom of the fourth. UH later loaded the bases and Anguiano scored on Gonzalez’s infield single. Sharla Kliebenstein’s two-run single to left stretched the lead to 6-0.
Rodriguez and Sarah Robinson led off the fifth with singles and advanced to Anguiano’s ground out. Jasey Jensen then lined a single to center to score both runners to bring the run rule into effect.
Ricketts was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player and Parnaby was the Most Outstanding Pitcher. Joining them on the All-Tournament team were Kliebenstein, Gonzalez, Rodriguez and Robinson.
