In Michele Nagamine’s first year as Hawaii soccer coach, the gauntlet stretch of the schedule happened leading up to league play. It ultimately allowed the Rainbow Wahine to improve and enjoy a successful final year in the Western Athletic Conference.

In year two, the conference schedule IS the gauntlet.

After last week’s release of UH’s 2012 schedule — featuring a first run through the powerful Big West Conference — Nagamine reacted with a mix of optimism and tempered expectations.

"Last year my theme was ‘Back to the WAC.’ We just wanted to get to the WAC tournament," Nagamine said. "This year we’re thinking … to be in the top five, six teams of the Big West I think will be a huge accomplishment for us in our second season."

The season begins on Aug. 17 at Nevada, marking the first time UH will open up on the road since 1994, the program’s first year in the NCAA. The first of 11 home dates at Waipio Peninsula Soccer Stadium is Aug. 24 against Sacred Heart in the OHANA Hotels & Resorts No Ka Oi tournament.

Difficulty ramps up steadily after a moderate nonconference slate, with a nine-game Big West schedule capped off at league powers Long Beach State (Oct. 26) and UC Irvine (Oct. 28) just before the conference tournament.

Six Big West teams finished in the top 115 of the national RPI last season, and the league is expected to retain much of its talent. UH finished 218th in RPI after a successful 4-2-1 WAC season (5-12-1 overall).

The good: The days of distant WAC travel are done, with all league opponents based in California.

The bad: If UH is to qualify for the Big West tournament (which will likely include six of 10 teams) the Wahine likely can’t afford to stumble out of the gate then expect to make up ground with the back-loaded schedule. LBSU made it to the NCAA round of eight in 2011, while Irvine advanced to the second round.

Nagamine laughed ruefully at the prospect.

"That’s a heck of a way to end a season," she said. "With those two competitive teams, we have to make sure we pace ourselves out. If we can qualify — you look at the kind of talent we’re seeing in the Big West — if we can qualify for the tournament, I will be stoked."

Yet she expressed high hopes behind nine returning starters among 17 letterwinners from last year’s resilient crew. Ten newcomers are signed to bolster the ranks, with all but two of them from California.

Nagamine said her philosophy for her first self-crafted nonconference slate was a mix of schools similar to her team in terms of RPI.

"All the teams we have coming in are good, solid teams," Nagamine said. "They may not have a lot of name recognition, but they’re disciplined."

The Wahine lead into Big West play with three straight away games — Washington State, Eastern Washington and Cal State Bakersfield.