The University of Hawai`i softball team (36-16, 14-7 WAC) completed the regular season by winning both games of Saturday's Western Athletic Conference doubleheader over San Jose State (19-35, 5-16 WAC). The Rainbow Wahine won the first game 11-1 in five innings and 3-1 in the finale.
Stephanie Ricketts and
Kaia Parnaby both earned complete game wins while the offense blasted six home runs on the day to lead Hawai`i to the series sweep at the SJSU Softball Complex.
Game 2: Hawai`i 11, San Jose State 1 (5 innings)
The 'Bows racked up 11 runs on 11 hits to defeat the Spartans in five innings.
Kelly Majam led the game off with an opposite-field double to the left-centerfield gap.
Jasey Jensen then moved Majam to third hitting behind her on a ground out to second.
Jessica Iwata then drove in her first run of the day with a single up the middle to score Majam from second.
In the second inning,
Alexandra Aguirre gave UH a 2-0 lead with a solo home run to centerfield. It was Aguirre's sixth home run of the season and 19th of her career.
The Spartans got their first run of the series in the bottom of the third with a two-out rally. Amanda Schatz hit a double to centerfield then scored after a fielding error on the first baseman allowed pinch runner Kailey Mertz to score from second.
Aguirre led off the fourth inning with a walk and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by
Sarah Robinson. Aguirre then scored on an RBI single to right-centerfield by
Dara Pagaduan.
Kelly Majam followed with a walk and after a fly out to centerfield, Iwata cleared the bases with her second home run of the series. Iwata's team-leading 14th homer of the season gave UH a 6-0 lead. Majam's walk was her 77th of her career to move her into first in UH's all-time record book. She passed former UH All-American Tyleen Tausaga's mark of 76 walks in four seasons.
In the fifth inning, the 'Bows batted around and scored five runs to put the game away.
Melissa Gonzalez led off with a single up the middle. Pinch hitter
Jazmine Zamora drew a walk and Aguirre was hit by a pitch to load the bases. After a strike out, Pagaduan drove in her second run of the game with a sacrifice fly to left. Majam then launched a three-run home run over the right-centerfield fence. It was Majam's eighth homer of the season and 38th home run of her career, moving her into a tie for second in UH history with former All-American Stacey Porter. Jensen kept things going with a single to the pitcher and then scored on an Iwata single to right-centerfield to give UH an 11-1 lead.
Parnaby (12-5, 4-3 WAC) tossed a two-hitter in five innings. She gave up one unearned run with four walks and seven strike outs.
San Jose State's Jennifer Ames (7-16) took the loss, giving up eight runs on seven hits with four walks and two strike outs. Alex Molina closed the game, giving up three runs on four hits with a strike out in an inning of work.
Iwata tied her season-high with five RBI in the game with two RBI singles and a three-run home run. She went 3-for-4 in the game. Majam was 2-for-3 with a double and a home run with three runs scored; Jensen was 2-for-4 with a run scored; Aguirre scored three runs and hit a home run; Pagaduan was 1-for-2 with two RBI.
Game 3: Hawai`i 3, San Jose State 1
The Rainbow Wahine started the series finale with a bang.
Kelly Majam led the game off with her ninth home run of the season. The shot that sailed over the right-centerfield fence was her 39th of her career and it moved her past former UH great Stacey Porter into second place in the UH all-time record book. Kate Robinson is the UH career record holder with 44 home runs. It was the first time this season that Majam has led the game off with a home run, and the eighth time that she's accomplished the feat in her career.
Two batters later,
Jessica Iwata drilled her team-leading 15th home run of the season just inside the leftfield foul pole to give the 'Bows a 2-0 lead. It marked Iwata's 33rd career home run, tying her for sixth place all-time with Tyleen Tausaga.
Hawai`i did not score again until the sixth inning, when
Jenna Rodriguez launched her fifth homer of the season over the left-centerfield fence. It was her 22nd homer of her career.
San Jose State responded in the bottom of the sixth inning. Britney Helm drew a one-out walk and then scored on a double to the left-centerfield gap by Markesha Collins, cutting their deficit to 3-1.
Hawai`i's Ricketts (21-11, 8-4 WAC) tossed her 29th complete game of the season and earned her 21st win of the season. She gave up one run on five hits with a walk and eight strike outs in seven innings of work.
San Jose State's Elyssa Fox (5-15) also threw a complete game, giving up three runs on six hits with a walk and eight strike outs in the game.
Hawai`i ends the conference season in fourth place and will open next week's WAC tournament (in Fresno, Calif.) against the fifth seed Utah State on Wednesday, May 11 at 4:30 pm.
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