The Hawaii baseball team overcame injuries and a Longwood rally for Tuesday night’s 9-3 victory at Les Murakami Stadium.
A crowd of 547 saw the Rainbow Warriors sweep the four-game series against the visitors from Farmville, Va. The ’Bows, who improved to 7-5, open a series against Oregon on Thursday. The Lancers fell to 3-9.
Logan Pouelsen went 3-for-3, drove in two runs, and was part of the six-pitcher collaboration. The ’Bows did not allow a run through seven innings. The Lancers, who scored all their runs in the eighth, used seven pitchers.
Pouelsen departed in the seventh — in pain — after he was struck on the right leg with a pitch.
That further thinned a UH lineup that already was without center fielder Adam Fogel and catcher Dallas Duarte. Fogel has missed the past two games since suffering a shoulder injury in the eighth inning of Saturday’s game. Fogel and right-handed pitcher Aaron Davenport, who had arm discomfort during Sunday’s start. Each will have MRIs today.
Duarte was held out because of a sprained ankle he suffered on Sunday. Tyler Murray, who suffered a preseason wrist injury, made his first start on Tuesday.
With the quick turnaround before the Oregon series, UH coach Mike Trapasso went with the staff approach to pitching. Dominic DeMiero, a senior left-hander, was making his second start of the season and first appearance in 17 days. DeMiero had been struggling with his range of motion as he continued to strength his pitching arm. His 2018 season was abbreviated because of shoulder tendinitis.
But through Tuesday’s first three innings, DeMiero regained the form that made him one of UH’s top starters two years ago. DeMiero allowed one hit and struck out two through the first 31⁄3 innings. DeMiero was pulled after allowing consecutive one-out singles in the fourth.
Pouelsen, who replaced DeMiero, hit Jacob Mitchell to load the bases. But on a squeeze, Grant Keller bunted back to Pouelsen, who threw to Murray for the forceout at home. Pouelsen then struck out Michael Peterson to end the threat.
Pouelsen pitched 12⁄3 innings before yielding to Cade Halemanu.
Shortstop Maaki Yamazaki boosted UH to a 1-0 lead. In the third inning, Daylen Calicdan reached on a fielder’s choice. Yamazaki then pulled a drive into the right-field corner and Calicdan sprinted from first to score the game’s first run. Yamazaki has regained the swing that helped him lead the ’Bows in hitting last season. After hitting .188 in the first seven games, he has rebounded to hit .600 since.
In the fourth, Ethan Lopez, who entered batting .238, hit a towering fly. Losing a battle to the crosswinds, the ball dropped within a foot of Peterson’s glove in left field. Lopez, in a full sprint, circled the bases for his first home run of the season.
Hawaii added two runs in the fifth when Pouelsen singled to right off Alec Abdalah, the Lancers’ fourth pitcher of the inning.
Yamazaki and Alex Baeza added RBI singles in the sixth to extend the ’Bows’ lead to 6-0.
It was 7-0 when the Lancers scored on a bases-loaded wild pitch and Eli Mercado’s ensuing two-run single in the eighth.