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SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif.—The University of Hawai'i softball team (25-18, 6-4 Big West) held off Cal Poly, 3-2 to open the three-game conference series at Bob Janssen Field in San Luis Obispo, Calif. on Friday afternoon. Brittany Hitchcock earned the win to improve to 12-6 overall and 3-1 in conference while Kanani Aina Cabrales came in relief to pick up her second save of the season.
 
Hitchcock was solid through the first five innings, allowing just one hit in the first inning before retiring the next 15-of-16 batters before coming out of the game after giving up the four straight hits. She earned the win throwing 5.1 innings, allowing two runs on five hits with no walks and no strike outs. Aina Cabrales fired the final 1.2 innings. She allowed just one hit while fanning another.
 
Hawai'i got on the scoreboard in the top of the first inning to open the game with a 2-0 lead. Keiki Carlos led off the game by getting hit by the pitch. She moved to second on a sacrifice bunt executed by Kayla Wartner. After a strikeout, Leisha Li'ili'i drove in Carlos from second with an opposite-field RBI-double that went off the glove off a diving leftfielder. Li'ili'i then stole third on a ball four to Morales. On the play, the throw from the catcher sailed into leftfield which allowed Li'ili'i to score.
 
In the fourth inning, the Rainbow Wahine scored what proved to be the winning run, pushing their lead to 3-0. Morales led the inning off by drawing her second walk of the game. Sarina Jaramillo followed with a sacrifice bunt to push pinch-runner Sarah McAndrew into scoring position at second base. After a foul fly out to leftfield, Kristina Akiona walked to put runners at the corners. Dori Ann Sugai then drove in McAndrew from third with an RBI-single through the leftside of the infield. It marked Sugai's first RBI of the season.
 
Hitchcock had retired 13 straight batters and had had given up just one hit going into the bottom of the sixth. But in the frame the Mustangs bats came alive, linking four consecutive hits which yielded a pair of runs. After a groundout to second. Emily Ceccacci and Chelsea Convissar hit back-to-back triples, both to rightfield for the first run. Courtney Tyler then got an RBI-single to left to drive in Convissar from third to cut UH's lead to 3-2. Sierra Hyland then got Cal Poly's fourth consecutive hit of the inning to put runners at first and second with one out. Aina Cabrales then entered the game for Hitchcock and quickly extinguished the fire. Aina Cabrales got a come-backer and threw out the lead runner at third for the second out. UH then got the final out on an unassisted fielder's choice that was hit to Jaramillo who stepped on second base from short for the third out to preserve their 3-2 lead.
 
Cal Poly's Hyland (16-15, 4-5 Big West) threw a complete game in the loss, giving up three runs on five hits with two walks and four strike outs. Hyland, who is just a sophomore, became just the second player in Mustang history to record over 200 strike outs twice in a career.
 
The UH win snapped Cal Poly's three-game win streak against the Rainbow Wahine dating back to last year's sweep of UH in Honolulu. Hawai'i is now 6-5 against the Mustangs overall.
 
The series concludes with a doubleheader on Saturday, April 19 with the first pitch slated for 2:00 p.m. (PT).