HONOLULU – Hawai'i closes out its stretch of four straight weekends at home to begin the season with a four-game series against Rice, Friday through Monday at Les Murakami Stadium.
The former Western Athletic Conference rivals will meet for the first time since 2013. The Owls lead the all-time series between the two schools, 36-10.
| HAWAI'I (7-5, 0-0 Big West) vs. RICE (4-8, 0-0 AAC) |
| Dates & Times |
Friday, Mar. 8 - 6:35 p.m.
Saturday, Mar. 9 - 6:35 p.m.
Sunday, Mar. 10 - 1:05 p.m.
Monday, Mar. 11 - 2:05 p.m. |
| Location |
Honolulu, O'ahu -- Les Murakami Stadium |
| Radio |
CBS 1500 (Friday, Saturday) | ESPN Honolulu (Sunday, Monday) |
| TV/Live Stream |
None |
| Live Stats |
Friday | Saturday | Sunday | Monday |
| PDF Notes |
Hawai'i | Rice |
| Social Media |
@HawaiiBaseball  | @Hawaiibsb  |
| Promotions |
Hawaii Army National Guard is the series sponsor of FANtastic Weekend.
This weekend we have four different theme nights: Video Game Night (Friday), Carnival Night (Saturday), Dodgeball Night (Sunday), and Barbie Night (Monday). Anyone dressed along with them will be photographed and shown on the videoboard!
Friday (Mar. 8): Please join us at the mauka grass of the Les Murakami Stadium for our Tropical Turn Up! an hour before first pitch for games, autographs, and music by select DJs.
Saturday (Mar. 9) We will allow youth teams that purchase group tickets onto the field! For more information on tickets please visit etickethawaii.com. |
| Projected Rotations |
Hawai'i
Friday -- LHP Harrison Bodendorf (0-1, 7.36)
Saturday -- LHP Randy Abshier (0-1, 7.62)
Sunday -- TBD
Monday -- TBD |
Rice
Friday -- RHP Parker Smith (1-2, 3.18)
Saturday -- LHP J.D. McCracken (1-1, 4.05)
Sunday -- RHP Ryland Ubranczyk (0-2, 3.00)
Monday -- TBD |
HEAD COACH RICH HILL
At Hawai'i: 64-49, 3rd season
Collegiate Record: 1,143-787-4, 37th season
SERIES VS. RICE
Rice leads, 36-10
Last Meeting: 2013 in Honolulu
LEADING OFF
DID YOU KNOW?
Matthew Miura currently leads the Big West and is 15th nationally with 19 RBIs. The sophomore has driven in 14 runs over the last five games, the most by a UH player in a five-game stretch since 2009 (Kevin Macdonald - 14).
WALK IT OUT
The Rainbow Warriors have been one of the best teams in the country at drawing free passes through the first three weeks of the season. UH currently ranks third in the country and first in the Big West with 93 walks while also getting hit by 25 pitches to amount to 118 free passes. The 'Bows are also second in the conference and 30th nationally with a .437 OBP and are one of two teams in the Big West with more walks than strikeouts.
SERIES WIN SECURED
After going toe-to-toe with a pair of powerhouse programs to start the season, Hawai'i picked up its first series win of the season taking three of four games from Holy Cross. The Rainbow Warriors outscored the Crusaders 32-13 over the four games.
Matthew Miura,
Jordan Donahue and
Austin Machado all hit .500 or better in the series while
Alex Giroux picked up the win in two of the three victories and did not allow a run over five innings pitched.
RBI MACHINE
Rainbow Warrior center fielder
Matthew Miura has been on a tear to start the season. The sophomore leads the Big West with 19 RBIs and is hitting .375 with four doubles, two triples and 14 runs scored. Miura's 14 runs driven in over the last five games are the most in a five-game span by a UH player since 2009, when Kevin Macdonald also knocked in 14 runs.
» Also ranks 15th nationally in RBIs.
» Has driven in multiple runs in five straight games and leads the team with six multi-RBI games.
» Leads the team and is second in the conference with six stolen bases.
STARTING OFF STRONG
True freshman
Elijah Ickes has wasted no time making his presence known with a strong first three weekends. The Kamehameha-Kapalama graduate leads the team with 16 runs scored and is one of four starters hitting over .360 on the year at .366. Ickes has started all 12 games, with the first three coming at shortstop and the last nine at third base. He became the first UH true freshman to start at shortstop on opening day since 2017 (Dustin Demeter). A 19th round selection in the 2023 MLB Draft, Ickes has hit in the leadoff spot in the order in the last nine games and has reached base safely in each of the last 11.
TROPICAL SWARM
The Hawai'i pitching staff has shown off its depth so far in 2024, using 20 different pitchers over the first 12 games of the year. Of those 20, 17 have appeared in at least two games while 13 have pitched three or more times. No UH pitcher has more than 13.1 innings pitched this season.
» The Rainbow Warriors have used at least five different pitchers in nine of the 12 games.
» Hawai'i used eight different pitchers in a Feb. 18 win over Ole Miss, with the eight arms combining to limit the Rebels to just four runs on five hits.
LIGHTS OUT BULLPEN
The Rainbow Warrior bullpen has been lights out over the first few weeks of the season. UH has leaned on its relievers to shoulder the majority of the workload, accounting for 64.8 percent of the team's innings pitched and 55.5 percent of the strikeouts. Additionally, Hawai'i bullpen arms have combined to earn six of the team's seven wins while owning a sub-3.00 ERA among other impressive stats.
Notable Bullpen Stats
ERA – 2.99
W-L Record – 6-2
Innings Pitched – 69.1
Strikeout-to-Walk – 61-28
Batting Average Against - .204
