Hawai'i Game Notes | Abilene Christian Game Notes | Arizona Game Notes

The University of Hawai'i Rainbow Warriors baseball team concludes the 2015 season this week, on the road in Tucson, Arizona, slated for a three-game non-conference set—two versus the University of Arizona (28-23) and one with Abilene Christian (15-37). All three games will take place at UA's Hi Corbett Field.
 
Like the Rainbow Warriors, the Arizona Wildcats closed out their conference slate taking a sweep at the hands of the league's top team, falling to No. 4 UCLA three straight in Los Angeles. The other Wildcats, from Abilene Christian, bounced back from a slow start to the season and are coming off series wins over Incarnate Word and New Orleans.
 
Up first in a doubleheader on Saturday is Abilene Christian, who dropped 12 of their first 13 this season, but have accumulated nearly half of their wins in the last month of play. As a team, the ACU Wildcats are hitting .244, and are averaging four (4) runs per contest. However, they also hold a 4.67 team ERA and average just under six (6) runs allowed per game.
 
Senior center fielder Tyler Eager is a four-year starter, and a leader at the plate and in the field for ACU. He's topping ACU's list with a .306 batting average, leading the pack in hits (63), doubles (15), RBI (35) and stolen bases (10). He's also scored 30 runs—for which he's second on team—and is a tough defender, registering a .992 fielding percentage.
 
Sophomore infielder Aaron Draper bats .282 and tops the team with 33 runs, in addition to 16 RBI. Meanwhile, infielder Russell Crippen has racked up 27 RBI and 18 runs, batting .266 with six (6) doubles, three (3) triples and three (3) home runs, stealing eight (8) bases of his own.
 
The top pitchers for ACU, likely to make starts this weekend, juniors Nate Cole and junior Garrett deMeyere, will likely take up the first two spots in ACU's games against Arizona. Right-hander Drew Hansen is expected to round out the rotation, the freshman is 1-3 with a 4.57 ERA this season, striking out 23 with 14 walks through 43 innings and 13 games.
 
Arizona, who the 'Bows will face for two games, met a tough Pac-12 schedule this season, going 12-18 in league play. However, the Wildcats have been strong against non-conference opponents, logging a 16-5 record. Part of that success comes from a strong hitting approach, boasting a .295 team batting average. The Wildcats put up over six (6) runs per game on average. On the mound, UA has a 4.07 team ERA and allow nearly 10 hits per outing.
 
Pacing Arizona at the plate, junior second baseman Scott Kingery is the best leadoff guy one could ask for. Ranking 10th in the NCAA and first in the Pac-12 with a .402 batting average, Kingery has recorded an NCAA fifth-best 88 hits, which include 15 doubles, five (5) triples and five (5) home runs. The results have been a team-leading 51 runs scored—aided by 10 stolen bases—in addition to 36 RBI.
 
At shortstop and batting second, junior Kevin Newman leads the Pac-12 with 18 doubles and is hitting .352 with 32 RBI and 47 runs, aided by a team-high 19 stolen bases. Another to watch for is sophomore third baseman/utility Bobby Dalbec, who has an NCAA 15th-best 14 home runs, on top of nine (9) doubles and a pair of triples, hitting .328 overall. Dalbec tops the Wildcats with 50 RBI and also has scored 40 runs.
 
On the mound, the 'Bows can expect to face right-hander Nathan Bannister first, while Dalbec will make the move over to the mound on Sunday. Bannister has a 6-5 record and 4.34 ERA in 22 appearances this season, striking out 52 through 75 innings. The true utility guy, Dalbec is 2-7 with a 3.62 ERA, pitching 55 innings through 20 games, striking out 45 with five (5) saves.
 
The Rainbow Warriors wrap up their season with the three-game set on Saturday and Sunday. Though UH fell in a sweep at the hands of Big West leader Cal State Fullerton, the 'Bows were in contention for the league title into the final series and finish the year at .500 in BWC play for the first time since joining the conference.
 
The 'Bows will look to keep the trend of strong road hitting in the mix while meeting the pair of Wildcat opponents. Leading the effort of late has been shortstop Jacob Sheldon-Collins. The Australian junior is hitting .284 with 22 runs and 11 RBI, batting .452 in the month of May, with a .469 on-base percentage (OBP).
 
Designated hitter Alex Sawelson and first baseman Eric Ramirez are also key bats for the 'Bows, hitting .274 and .271, respectively. A junior, Sawelson has 20 RBI and 15 runs. Wrapping up his rookie campaign, Ramirez is second on the team with 29 RBI and has 21 runs as well, leading the team with a .376 OBP.
 
On the mound, the 'Bows are consistent in their rotation, with righties LJ Brewster and Tyler Brashears, as well as lefty Jarrett Arakawa, making their final starts of the season. Brewster is 6-5 with a .293 ERA on the season, striking out 58 through 89 innings. Brashears follows with a Big West third-ranked 1.91 ERA, tied for the conference win lead with an 8-4 record. Bound to go over the century mark, he has struck out 64 batters through 94 innings. Making his final, and 50th career start at UH, Arakawa rounds out the trio with a 3-4 record and 3.65 ERA, striking out 26 through 49 innings.What: Hawai'i Rainbow Warriors (21-29) vs Abilene Christian Wildcats (15-37)
                                                          vs Arizona Wildcats (28-23)
When:  (vs ACU) Saturday (May 25), 2:00 p.m. PT (11:00 a.m. HT)
            (vs UA) Saturday (May 25), 6:00 p.m. PT (3:00 p.m. HT)
            (vs UA) Sunday (May 26), 12:00 p.m. PT (9:00 a.m. HT) – Season Finale
Where: Tucson, Arizona (Hi Corbett Field)
Television: None
Live Video Streaming: The Arizona live stream will be posted on Pac-12 Video.
Radio: ESPN Honolulu 1420 AM and NBC Sports 1500 AM will carry the opponent broadcasts live. Neighbor islands can listen live on KNUI on Maui, KHLO in Hilo, KKON in Kona and KTOH on Kaua'i. The opening game versus ACU and the Sunday matchup with UA will be on 1420 AM. The late game on Saturday vs. UA will be on 1500 AM.
Audio Webcast: www.espn1420am.com | NBCsportsradiohawaii.com
Live Stats: Live in-game stats will be provided by Arizona Athletics and will be available in advance of game times at the link below:
           Arizona Live Stats for All Games
Series History: The Rainbow Warriors will meet Abilene Christian for the first time on Saturday. The Arizona series is split at 10-10 and the teams have a storied relationship, meeting seven (7) times in the postseason, dating back to 1979. One of those meetings included the 1980 matchup in the College World Series Championship, where the Wildcats claimed 5-4 and 5-3 wins to earn the national title. The teams last met during the regular season in 2007 in Honolulu.