Surfers poised to ring coveted bell

The Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach gets underway Wednesday with a competitive window that runs through April 12 as the second stop on the 2015 Samsung Galaxy World Surf League Championship Tour in Victoria, Australia.

Filipe Toledo of Brazil enters the event as the frontrunner following his victory this month at the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast.

Hawaii’s Carissa Moore, two-time world champion and back-to-back winner at Bells Beach, headlines the women’s field. Moore will take on Dimity Stoyle (Australia) and trials winner Pauline Ado (France) in the first round.

UH Hilo players earn PacWest honors

Seniors Colleen Aubrey and Vanessa Salinas earned PacWest Co-Player of the Week and Pitcher of the Week honors for their performances in UH Hilo’s 11-game slate last week.

Aubrey hit .528 (19-for-26) with seven doubles, 10 RBIs and 15 runs scored. The conference leader with a .474 batting average was named to the all-tournament team at the Tournament of Champions, as the Vulcans went 6-1 and won the bronze bracket title.

Salinas posted a 7-0 record in nine appearances as a pitcher and hit .318. She struck out 27, walked five and posted a 1.71 ERA in 45 innings pitched and hit a three-run home run in a win over Western Oregon. She was also named to the all-tournament team.

UH Hilo drops baseball game to Concordia

The Vulcans fell 8-2 to future PacWest member Concordia in Irvine, Calif., on Monday morning after six pitchers combined to surrender 12 hits and three earned runs.

First baseman Keenan Nishioka paced Hawaii Hilo (6-20) at the plate with three hits and an RBI.