Wahine fall short of sweep

Hawaii’s battery of Brittany Hitchcock and Callee Heen powered the Rainbow Wahine softball team to a series-clinching win over UC Santa Barbara to open Saturday’s Big West doubleheader.

UH’s hopes of a sweep slipped away late in the finale at Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium.

Heen hit her third home run of the series and Hitchcock earned her second complete-game victory of the weekend in UH’s 8-4 win in the first game of the afternoon.

The Rainbow Wahine took a 2-0 lead in the second game, but UCSB tied the game on Samantha Lujan’s two-run homer in the fifth inning and Kristen Clark’s sacrifice fly in the seventh was the difference in a 3-2 Gauchos victory.

“It was tough,” UH coach Bob Coolen said of seeing an opportunity slip away. “We’ve been swept twice, so it would be nice to sweep someone.”

On a chilly afternoon in Manoa, Heen stayed hot a day after hitting home runs in her last two at-bats in Friday’s 5-1 win.

UH (27-19, 6-9 Big West) took the lead in Saturday’s opener when Chardonnay Pantastico scored on Heather Morales’ opposite-field double with two out in the bottom of the first. Heen, a freshman catcher, followed with her third home run in as many plate appearances to give Hitchcock a 3-0 lead.

UH pulled away with three more runs in the third and Hitchcock, pitching the middle of a series for the first time in the Big West season, struck out eight and walked one to improve to 18-9.

The Wahine threatened to break the finale open after going up 2-0 and loading the bases with none out in the fourth. But UCSB reliever Lena Mayer escaped with two popups and a strikeout and and held UH to one hit the rest of the way.

Thomsen held UCSB to two hits through 42⁄3 innings before Lujan tied the game with her blast to center. Melanie Menor doubled to lead off the seventh and UCSB loaded the bases before Clark lifted a fly to left field to drive in the go-ahead run.

“It was big for us to get that first win,” Hitchcock said. “And then knowing we had already beaten them twice we should have been able to do it again and just couldn’t quite put it together at the right times, but overall had a lot of success.”

—

At Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium

>> UC Santa Barbara (27-23, 7-7) 000 100 3 — 4 9 3

>> Hawaii (27-18, 6-8) 303 110 x — 8 8 3

Ashley Wright, Lena Mayer (1) and Samantha Lujan. Brittany Hitchcock and Callee Heen. W—Hitchcock. L—Wright.

Leading hitters—UCSB: Jessica Johnston, 2-4, RBI; Alyssa Diaz, 3-4, 2 RBIs; Melanie Menor, 2-4, RBI. Hawaii: Sarah Muzik, RBI; Chardonnay Pantastico, 3-3, 3 runs; Nicole Lopez, 2B, RBI; Heather Morales, 2B, RBI; Heen, HR, 2 RBIs; Angelique Ramos, RBI.

>> UC Santa Barbara (28-23, 8-7) 000 020 1 — 3 7 0

>> Hawaii (27-19, 6-9) 010 100 0 — 2 6 0

Veronika Gulvin, Lena Mayer (4) and Samantha Lujan. Dana Thomsen, Brittany Hitchcock (7) and Heather Cameron. W—Mayer. L—Thomsen.

Leading hitters—UCSB: Kristen Clark, 2-3, RBI; Alyssa Diaz, 2B; Melanie Menor, 2B; Lujan, HR, 2 RBIs. Hawaii: Sarah Muzik, 2B; Heather Morales, 2B; Angelique Ramos, 2-2, 2B; Ulu Matagiese, RBI; Cameron, RBI.

SATURDAY

>> Cal Poly 8, UC Davis 0

>> Cal Poly 8 UC Davis 7, 13 innings

>> Cal State Fullerton 6, Long Beach State 0

>> Cal State Fullerton 4, Long Beach State 1

>> Cal State Northridge 10, UC Riverside 5

>> UC Riverside 9, Cal State Northridge 2

>> Hawaii 8, UC Santa Barbara 4

>> UC Santa Barbara 3, Hawaii 2

TODAY

>> Cal Poly at UC Davis, 9 a.m.

>> UC Riverside at Cal State Northridge, 10 a.m.

>> Cal State Fullerton at Long Beach State, noon