Wild win for Ducks

The seventh-ranked Oregon Ducks continue to have Hawaii’s number.

Nick Catalano scored the winning run on a wild pitch in the top of the ninth inning and Oregon ran its winning streak to eight against the Rainbow Warriors with a 3-2 victory on Friday night.

Catalano’s run was the only one earned in a sloppy game played in front of a Les Murakami Stadium crowd of 2,774. Hawaii pitchers combined for four walks and two hit batters and the Rainbow Warriors committed three errors.

Oregon walked five and committed two errors but managed to pull out the victory in the end.

"It’s frustrating and it’s disappointing because that’s one of those swing games," Hawaii coach Mike Trapasso said. "That was a game that was there to be won."

Junior Eric Gleese threw 32/3 innings in relief of starter Matt Cooper and retired 11 of the first 12 batters he faced, giving up only an infield single.

With two outs in the ninth, he walked consecutive batters, forcing junior Jordan DePonte into the game in relief.

DePonte made the pitches he needed, striking out Oregon third baseman Scott Heineman. The ball bounced away from catcher Trevor Podratz — who had entered the game as a pinch hitter in the eighth — allowing Catalano to score from second.

"We’ve got to be stronger physically, and that will come," said Gleese, who struck out two. "I started aiming the ball a little bit, but I’ll get rid of that. That will come with more experience in this atmosphere."

Kaeo Aliviado had two of UH’s five hits and drove in a run, and freshman Marcus Doi reached base four times in his collegiate debut. He drew an eight-pitch walk with the bases loaded in the fifth to give UH its first run of the season.

"We competed every inning with them and it came down to execution," Doi said.

Shortstop Austin Wobrock, who committed one error in 51 starts as a junior, bobbled his first ground ball of the season in the second inning. Oregon put two runners on with one out but stranded both as Cooper got his second strikeout and battled back from a 3-0 count to Catalano to get him to fly out to center.

Cooper again labored in the third, giving up a one-out walk to Heineman, who immediately swiped second base off UH catcher Alan Baldwin.

Senior Marc Flores, who made his first UH start in left field after playing first last season, was tested on the next two plays, making two catches on flares hit by the Ducks to keep the game scoreless.

Hawaii gave away two runs in the fourth with two crippling two-out errors. Second baseman Stephen Ventimilia dropped a routine fly ball that allowed Kyle Garlick to score from second. Catalano followed with a single to left that got past Flores and rolled to the wall, allowing Jack Kruger to score.

"We just didn’t bring the execution, but that’s going to come," Trapasso said. "We know we’re going to catch fly balls and the things we’ve really worked on from day one got us beat today."

Hawaii’s offense got untracked in the fifth as Kalei Hanawahine started off the inning with a single just inside third base.

LJ Brewster drew a walk and Wobrock reached on a sacrifice bunt on a bad throw by Heineman to first.

After Ventimilia popped out to right, Doi drew a walk to score Hanawahine. Aliviado then beat out a double play at first, allowing Brewster to score to tie the game at 2.

The three UH errors forced Cooper into an early exit after throwing 91 pitches in five innings. Both of the runs were unearned and he lowered his career ERA at home to 2.05 despite struggling to throw his secondary pitches for strikes.

"It was kind of an odd game, but if we come out with the same intensity we’ll be all right," Cooper said. "I struggled with my command all night and I think I’m leading the nation in hit-by-pitches right now probably."

Hawaii junior Jarrett Arakawa returns to the mound for the first time in two years in Game 2 on Saturday night at 6:35 p.m.

WP—Cleavinger. HBP—by Cooper (Packard); by Cooper (Tolman); by Paddon (Doi). PB—Baldwin. Umpires—(Plate): Kelly Gonzales. (First): Kevin Daugherty. (Third): Dixon Stureman. T—3:11. A—2,774.