Kayla Wartner wields power with her words as well as her bat.

As a hitter, Wartner poses a threat stepping to the plate. Setting up behind it, her duties include keeping the University of Hawaii’s pitchers focused.

That could mean offering a verbal pat on the back, a dose of brutal honesty or maybe even a joke during meetings in the circle, depending on the situation and the temperament of the teammate holding the ball.

It’s a knack Wartner demonstrated while handling a veteran staff last year as a freshman catcher with the Rainbow Wahine softball team. Now a relatively seasoned sophomore, she has a feel for how to help senior Kaia Parnaby relax, whether UH’s freshman pitchers could use some encouragement, and when to take command of the defense as a whole.

"She’s become more of a leader," coach Bob Coolen said. "She has taken the reins of the pitching staff and has gotten more involved vocally on the field.

"She came back with a better mind-set that she needed to be in charge more. She knew my expectations and she knew what the rigors of a whole season were."

Catching is often a dual-pronged challenge of mastering the position’s cerebral requirements while managing the physical grind behind the plate. Wartner will be tested in both aspects over the next three weeks, starting with today’s game against Memphis at Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium.

The matchup with the Tigers begins a stretch in which UH could play 21 games (depending on tournament bracket results) over the next 18 days.

UH — ranked 20th in this week’s USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 poll and 22nd in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 — hosts Memphis, Campbell and Western Kentucky in the Bank of Hawaii Invitational Friday through Sunday, with two more tournaments to follow.

Wartner started all 53 games at catcher last season and readied herself for another endurance test.

"Last year I noticed I got tired physically and mentally," she said. "This year I’m more prepared and I know what it entails."

Wartner wasn’t quite as sure what to expect as a freshman. Even so, she hit .273 with six home runs, including walk-off shots against Missouri-Kansas City and Fresno State.

More significantly, she established control behind the plate while calling pitches for a staff that ranked among the nation’s stingiest for most of last season.

"She came in as a freshman and had a pitching staff of a senior (Stephanie Ricketts) and a junior (Parnaby) and handled them so well, to the tune of only nine losses all year. That’s phenomenal," Coolen said, "and with me not calling one game. It was all her and the pitchers."

Wartner’s pitch-calling has helped fellow left-hander Parnaby start this season 6-2 with 68 strikeouts and just six walks in 572⁄3 innings. She also plays a critical part in helping freshmen Keiki Carlos and Loie Kesterson get comfortable at the college level.

With Parnaby, "I just go out and joke with her," Wartner said of her visits to the circle. "The (freshmen) I have to push them more and give them a boost of energy and pump them up. Kaia knows what she’s doing wrong, I just go out there to relax her more."

Offensively, Wartner is hitting .324 (tied for second on the team) with two home runs, two doubles and a triple while hitting second in the order. A solid start, but she’s looking to make an even stronger statement at the plate as the season progresses.

"I’m slowly getting into my groove and I’m settling down and I know what I’m doing wrong when I have bad at-bats and I’m working on that," Wartner said. "I prepared for what they’re going to throw me because they know how to pitch me now. I’m working on my weaknesses and I want to get better at everything. … There’s always room for improvement."