It’s the necessary evil one must endure before flying to and from the mainland.

For most people, packing a suitcase or two can be challenging, frustrating and downright painful at times.

The University of Hawaii baseball team left early Wednesday morning to begin an 11-day, seven-game road trip beginning at San Jose State this afternoon and ending at Louisiana Tech a week from Saturday.

The team bus was scheduled to leave at 4:45 a.m., less than 12 hours after the end of UH’s last home practice before the trip.

That period was critical for most of the Rainbows, who had yet to break out the bags and suitcases.

“I’ve got to do laundry still because my clothes work out to about 10 days, so I have to have every piece of clothing for this road trip,” freshman Stephen Ventimilia said. “A lot of us are going to be pulling all-nighters.”

Some, like junior Breland Almadova, cram every possible inch of their suitcases with the necessary items to get by.

Others, like sophomore Jarrett Arakawa, find packing relatively easy.

“I wear the same shirt every day, so shirts don’t really matter,” said Arakawa, who leads the Western Athletic Conference with a 1.75 ERA. “I mean, I take a couple of shirts, but I end up wearing the same one over and over.”

It allows Arakawa more room to pack the more essential stuff.

“I bring up a bag of snacks … some kakimochi, some li-hing snacks, stuff like that,” he said.

Arakawa was a teammate at ‘Iolani of Almadova, who in his third year with the ’Bows has gotten the whole packing concept down to a tee.

“I’m a night-before kind of guy and hopefully finish in time to get to bed and get some sleep,” said Almadova, who’s hitting .293 and is tied for second on the team with six doubles. “I kind of pack in a certain way where I have my equipment packed first and then my clothes and then lastly I pack my books.”

Almadova has spent much of the past two years rooming with senior Collin Bennett, the reigning WAC hitter of the week.

The two led the Rainbows offensively against Saint Mary’s. Bennett went 8-for-12 with four runs and six RBIs and Almadova was 6-for-10 with two doubles.

Almadova says, of all the Rainbows, Bennett takes the most time preparing his wardrobe.

“Bennett’s a stylish guy when he packs — he packs some pretty good clothes,” Almadova said. “When we go out to eat, guarantee Bennett’s the guy always walking on the streets in style.”

The Rainbows hope their longest road trip of the season is a stylish one.

San Jose State swept defending champion Fresno State for the first time in a decade last weekend and beat No. 10 Stanford 3-2 on Tuesday.

SJSU is similar to Hawaii, excelling both defensively and on the mound. The Spartans’ 3.17 team ERA is second in the WAC to Hawaii, which at 2.66 holds the sixth-best mark in the country.

Freshman Kalei Contrades, a 2011 Saint Louis alumnus, is hitting .321 (17-for-53) and has posted a 1.08 ERA in 16 2/3 innings with two walks and 12 strikeouts.

Contrades was a high school teammate of UH left fielder Kaeo Aliviado, who despite his youth seemed to have the best advice of any UH player on how to pack.

“Always remember the baseball equipment first,” Aliviado said. “And always bring a toothbrush.”