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HONOLULU – In the Western Athletic Conference opener both teams, the University of Hawai'i baseball team dropped Fresno State, 8-2, on Thursday night at Les Murakami Stadium. The Rainbows (18-12, 1-0) used a five-run seventh inning to put away the Bulldogs (14-15, 0-1).

The Rainbow offense went into overdrive for their five-run explosion. The inning was kick started by some traditional small ball, as Kaeo Aliviado (1 H, 1 R) and Pi'ikea Kitamura (1 H, 2 R) bunted their way on to load the bases. Trevor Podratz (3-4, 2 R, 1 RBI) delivered an RBI-base hit with the bases loaded, which was followed by a two-RBI single by Breland Almadova, and a bases-clearing double by Zack Swasey.

Almadova and Swasey both had stellar performances. Almadova batted 2-3 with two runs and three RBI, and Swasey added three RBI and a pair of hits.

3,161 tickets were issued for tonight's contest, while 2,000 fans coming through the turnstiles.

Matt Sisto (5-3) didn't have his best stuff but won for the fifth time this season, tying a career high. He went six complete innings and allowed two runs on six hits with six strikeouts. David Longville tossed three scoreless innings to capture his first career save.

Tyler Linehan (3-3) was tagged with the loss, surrendering seven earned runs on 12 hits in 6.1 innings of work. Austin Wynns had two hits to lead the Bulldogs at the plate.

Fresno State plated the game's first run on an RBI-double by Aaron Judge (1 H, 1 RBI) in the first inning. Sisto surrendered a base on balls to Patrick Hutcheson (2 R), who would end up stealing both second and third before coming home on Judge's hit.

UH responded to take the lead with two runs in the second inning. Podratz doubled to lead off the inning, then scored on a base hit by Swasey. With the bases loaded after Swasey's single, Max Duval (1-3) drew a two-out walk to give the 'Bows their first lead of the game.

In the third inning, the Bulldogs appeared to have Sisto right where they wanted him. Judge ran the count to three balls with runners at the corners, but Sisto battled back for the strikeout to prevent what could have been a big inning for Fresno State.
Hawai'i and Fresno State continue their series on Friday. First pitch at Les Murakami Stadium is set for 6:35 p.m.





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