Defying the odds and the mercury, the Hawaii baseball team cooled off defending national champion Vanderbilt, 3-1, at Hawkins Field on the Nashville, Tenn., campus.

The Commodores entered ranked No. 2 nationally and on a winning streak that reached eight following Friday’s 5-1 victory in which they struck out 16 Rainbow Warriors.

But on a chilly afternoon — 46 degrees at first pitch — three UH hurlers mystified the Commodores to help the ’Bows improve to 8-4 and even the three-game series. It was the first time the Commodores (9-3) lost in nine games at Hawkins this season.

“I’m for these kids,” said head coach Mike Trapasso, whose ’Bows beat a top-five opponent for the first time since 2013. “What you don’t want is for the kids to be surprised (by the outcome). If others want to be surprised, I can honestly see where that comes from. These kids have worked hard and they’ve shown that when we play clean, we’re capable of being a good ballclub. It’s another step in the right direction for this year’s club.”

The starting-pitching duel between UH’s Aaron Davenport and Vanderbilt’s Kumar Rocker did not materialize. Rocker, who is projected to be the No. 1 pick in the 2021 draft, was scratched because of what Vanderbilt officials described as “soreness.” Freshman Thomas Schultz, a two-sport standout in high school, replaced Rocker.

Davenport, meanwhile, faced an early hook. He went to full counts on three of the five batters he faced in the first inning, and escaped a second-inning jam when the Commodores placed two in scoring position with one out. Trapasso, who doubles as the pitching coach, said Davenport strayed from the game plan and tried to overthrow fastballs.

“He was pitching like the environment was too big for him,” said Trapasso, who offered a pep talk of commanding the fastball and trusting the change-up. “He thought he had to throw 98 (mph), and was just completely getting out of his mechanics by overthrowing.”

After throwing 50 pitches in the first two innings, Davenport threw 59 more in the next four scoreless innings. Davenport exited with a 2-0 lead — Dustin Demeter and Adam Fogel had RBI singles — while allowing three hits and striking out six in six innings.

“That’s a game last year he’s out after two innings because he’s not going to change,” Trapasso said. “But he settled down. That’s growth. That was something that was fun to see.”

The Commodores scored their run in the seventh when Harrison Ray, after an apparent third strike was called a ball, singled, stole second and came home on Cooper Davis’ single.

The ’Bows added an insurance run in the ninth on Matt Wong’s run-scoring single. It was more than enough of a cushion for rejuvenated Carter Loewen. Loewen suffered a torn labrum as a true freshman in 2017, and the rehabilitation was not completed until this preseason. Mixing a 92-mph fastball with a cutter that zipped between 88 and 90, Loewen pitched two scoreless innings for the save.

“Carter was really, really good,” Trapasso said. “These kids all work hard, but there’s nobody who works harder than Carter Loewen. It’s great to see this kid have success after all he’s been through. He’s battled back from surgery and injury, and then he gets carjacked at knifepoint. This kid has been through a lot. There’s nobody who wants it more. You just love seeing good things happen to good people.”

Today’s series finale begins at 8 a.m. (HST).