HONOLULU – For a few seconds, all of the struggle it took to reach the moment disappeared for University of Hawaii baseball (13-8) players, coaches and fans on Sunday at Les Murakami Stadium as left fielder Johnny Weeks' bat came around to a firm crack and Corey Sawyer's final pitch screamed beyond the left field wall. It was a two-run, walk-off homer for the Rainbow Warriors, putting a wrap on the season's longest game and an 8-6 comeback victory over Seton Hall (9-10-1).
 
Weeks was hardly the only Rainbow Warrior to step up to the hero role as Hawai'i clawed back from a 5-1 deficit in the third game of the series, as freshman left-hander Jeremy Yelland lifted the 'Bows defense with a 4.1-inning relief appearance that provided a UH season-high 10 strikeouts of the 15 batters he faced, while holding the Pirates to just a single hit (.067 batting against).
 
Unlike most opponents, the Pirates have found greater, not lessened ease to hit inside the pitcher-favored Murakami Stadium. Seton Hall was able to get their licks in early, breaking loose against starter Cade Smith to a three-run third inning with Al Molina and Tyler Shedler-McAvoy teaming up to give SHU the three-run advantage.
 
However, the 'Bows proved ready to fight, using shortstop Maaki Yamazaki's leadoff single in the home half to scratch a response run across on designated hitter Logan Pouelsen's RBI line shot into shallow right field.
 
The Pirates managed to grow their lead again in the fifth, as two runners scored on a throwing error to first prompted not only the start to Yelland's afternoon, but also the beginnings of a Warrior rally.
 
With SHU starter Ricky DeVito called off for the day and Andrew Politi assuming pitching duties, the 'Bows capitalized, coaxing out walks to load the bases. When Blake Espinal took over, the Warriors surged, with Kekai Rios scoring Yamazaki on an RBI fielders choice and Tyler Murray plating Weeks on an RBI single.
 
While Yelland locking the Pirates up, the offense kept rolling in the sixth, as Weeks added an RBI single and Yamazaki scored again courtesy of a Pouelsen RBI, knotting the score at 5-5. Patience paid off for UH in the eighth, as two singles and an intentional walk set Eric Ramirez for an RBI base on balls, scoring Adam Fogel on the go-ahead run.
 
Yelland was near perfection, but a two-out fielding error in the ninth provided his first baserunner, quickly followed by a game-tying RBI single from Christian Del Castillo. Closing out the frame, the rookie southpaw secured the final out with his 10th strikeout, and then one swing of the senior's bat set everything right with UH's first win in a hard-fought series set for conclusion on Monday.
 
Pacing the 'Bows hitters all day, Weeks finished 3-for-5 with three RBI and two runs. Pouelsen was 2-for-4 with two RBI and Yamazaki scored four times on 2-for-3 batting. Yelland earned his first collegiate win with his second appearance of the series.
 
With the series tilting 2-1 in Seton Hall's favor, the Rainbow Warriors and Pirates wrap things up on Monday night at Les Murakami Stadium. First pitch for the finale is set for 6:35 p.m.