Game Notes
SALT LAKE CITY—The No. 15/19 University of Hawai'i softball team (29-3, 5-1 WAC) continues its eight-game roundtrip with mid-week games against Utah (23-8, 0-3 PAC-12) and Utah Valley (20-10-1, 1-3 PCSC). The Rainbow Wahine will face Utah on Tuesday at 4:00 p.m. and then Utah Valley at 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday.
The Rainbow Wahine are coming off a three-game conference sweep over defending Western Athletic Conference champions, New Mexico State. The 'Bows won a decisive first game, 9-1 in five innings but had a much closer, 4-3 win in a hard-fought second game before finishing the series with a 4-1 win highlighted by three home runs by Leisha Li'ili'i,
Kayla Wartner, and
Sarah Robinson.
Hawai'i's pitching continues to lead the WAC with a combined 0.83 ERA which ranks the dynamic duo of
Stephanie Ricketts and
Kaia Parnaby at No. 3 in the NCAA. Ricketts has been the cornerstone of the team with an 18-2 overall record and 4-0 mark in WAC action. She has a 0.90 ERA in 132.2 innings pitched with seven shut outs and 154 strike outs. Parnaby is 11-1 with a 0.71 ERA in 78.1 innings with 10 walks to 78 strike outs. In this week's NCAA rankings, Ricketts is ranked No. 5 in victories, No. 8 in shutouts, No. 9 in ERA, and No 16 in strike outs while Parnaby is No. 4 in ERA, No. 7 in fewest walks allowed per seven innings, and No. 19 in shutouts.
On offense, UH's line-up was shuffled a little this past week with the loss of injured rightfielder
Sharla Kliebenstein who had started the first 29-straight games. Junior
Brynne Buchanan stepped in and hit .333 against the Aggies with a run scored. Junior shortstop
Jessica Iwata continues to lead Hawai'i at the plate with an overall .407 batting average, a .681 slugging percentage and a .486 on-base percentage. She also is tops on the team with 37 hits, seven doubles, and 33 RBI. Iwata also leads the team with 11 multiple-hit games and 11 multiple-RBI games. In WAC games, junior centerfielder
Kelly Majam has ramped up her game, hitting a team-best .412 average (7-for-17) while leading UH with seven runs, two homer runs (tied with
Sarah Robinson) and six RBI.
Scouting the opponents...
Utah Utes (23-8, 0-3 PAC-12)
Utah rebounded last week with back-to-back wins over WAC-member Utah State and Idaho State after being swept in their Pacific-12 opener at No. 3 Washington (1-5, 1-6, 1-3). The Utes have been an offensive juggernaut that is hitting a combined .311 with 11 players hitting above the .300 mark. Utah is led by Whitney Holm--who is one of three Utes to start all 31 games thus far along with Jackie Sweet and Kelsi Hoopiiaina. Holm leads Utah with a .432 average, 38 hits, 22 runs, eight home runs, and 31 RBI. Katelyn Elliott is second on the team with a solid .377 average (23-for-61) while Hannah Clements is hitting .353 (18-for-51).
In the circle, Utah's Generra Nielson (17-6) has a staff-best 1.35 ERA in 139.2 innings pitched. She has 37 walks to 203 strike outs while holding opponents to a .181 average. Naomi Amu (4-2) has a 3.33 ERA in 33.2 innings while Mariah Ramirez is 2-0 with a 3.37 ERA in 27.0 innings.
Utah Valley Wolverines (20-10-1, 1-3 PCSC)
Utah Valley opened its Pacific Coast Softball Conference season last week, going 1-3 against the Vikings of Portland State. The Wolverines have a busy week as they will face Utah State on Tuesday this week before going against the 'Bows on Wednesday and then a four-game series against conference-rival Northern Colorado. UVU is led by Amanda Robinson who is strong across the board with a team-high .348 average (32-for-92) with four doubles, two triples and a team-best five home runs. She also is tied with Amanda Perez for the team-lead with 21 RBI. Jamie North is hitting .328 (21-for-64) with three doubles and three home runs while Jessica Uresti is batting .313 (26-for-83) with seven doubles and two homers.
The Wolverine pitching staff is comprised of three pitchers. Tiffany Mills (10-7) leads with a 2.11 ERA in 112.2 innings pitched. She has walked 59 and struck out 70 while holding opposing hitters to a .237 average. Megan Peay (4-1) is second with a 2.43 ERA in 23.0 innings while Cassie Herrera (6-2) has a 3.57 ERA in 66.2 innings of work.
Games 33-34
Who: No. 15/19 Hawai'i (29-3, 5-1 WAC) vs. Utah (23-8, 0-3 PAC 12); Hawai'i vs. Utah Valley (20-10-1, 1-3 PCSC)
Dates: Utah - Tuesday, April 3 (4:00 p.m. MT); Utah Valley - Wednesday, Apr. 4 (5:00 p.m. MT)
Where: Ute Field (1,500), Salt Lake City, Utah; Wolverine Field (500), Orem, Utah
Audio Webcast: Against Utah, there will be an audio broadcast at client.stretchinternet.com/client/utah.portal#. No audio will be available at Utah Valley.
Live Stats: Live in-game stats are available at utahutes.com and at wolverinegreen.com
Series Record: Hawai'i leads Utah, 17-11 and have on the last six. Last season, UH battled back to down the Utes in one of the most exciting games of the year. Down by as much as 6-1 in the sixth inning, and later 7-4 in the bottom of the seventh, the 'Bows rallied to score four runs to defeated Utah on a three-run bomb by
Jessica Iwata and a solo, walk-off homer by Alex Aguirre to end the game.
-It marks the first meeting against the Wolverines of Utah Valley.
