HONOLULU--The University of Hawai'i softball team (14-8) opens their Big West slate hosting Long Beach State this weekend at the Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium. Hawai'i and The Beach will face off in a single game on Friday, March 7 at 6:00 p.m. HT followed by a doubleheader on Saturday, March 8 starting at 2:00 p.m. HT. The Rainbow Wahine find themselves sitting atop the Big West standings going into the opening week of conference play.
 

GAMES 23-25:  Long Beach State (10-8, 0-0 Big West) vs. Hawai'i (14-8, 0- Big West)
Dates & Times				Friday, March 7, 2025 at 6:00 p.m. HT Saturday, March 8, 2025 at 2:00 p.m./ 4:00 p.m. HT (DH)
Location				Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium - Honolulu, O'ahu
Promotions				UH Prizes will be awarded for the winners of the popular "Ballpark Bingo." Also, towels will be thrown into the stands during the fourth inning of every UH game.
Television				FRIDAY GAME ONLY - Spectrum Sports (Ch. 12 [SD] / 1012 [HD] - Scott Robbs (Play-by-Play), Lori Santi (Color Anylyst)
Video Stream				FRIDAY GAME ONLY - ESPN+ (Blacked out in Hawai'i)
Game Day Roster				CLICK HERE
Live Stats				GAME 1 | GAME 2 | GAME 3
Game Notes				Hawai'i | Long Beach State
Social Media				@HawaiiSB  | #HawaiiSB | @HawaiiSoftball  | Facebook

HAWAI'I RAINBOW WAHINE (14-8, 0-0 Big West)Head Coach: Bob Coolen (34th Season)
Record at UH: 1,114-724-1
Overall Record: 1,186-817-1
Series Record: LBSU leads 74-34
Last series vs. LBSU: Last year, The Beach won the series 2-1. LBSU edged out UH 2-1 to open the series in Long Beach. Hawai'i then won the second game, 8-0 but fell in the series finale, 3-1.

LONG BEACH STATE BEACH (9-8, 0-0 Big WestHead Coach: Kim Sowder (19th Season)
LBSU/Career Record: 555-382-1 (18)
Last Week: The Beach went 3-1 in their Louisville Slugger Invitational. LBSU notched wins over Utah Tech, Omaha,and Loyola Marymount. Their loss came in their tourney finale vs. Pittsburgh.

QUICK HITSLAST WEEK
Hawai'i went 4-2 in their final non-conference tournament, the OUTRIGGER Invitational. UH notched two wins over both Howard and Jackson State, but fell twice to Washington. 

AH YAT POWERS WAY TO BIG WEST PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS
Sophomore shortstop Milan Ah Yat was voted Big West Field Player of the Week after leading UH last week hitting for a .529 batting average going 9-for-17 at the plate. She hit safely in all six games and was tied for the team-lead with four runs score and three home runs while recorded a team-best 1.059 slugging percentage and a .600 on-base percentage. Against Jackson State, Ah Yat racked up a career-high three hits--including a home run. Overall, Ah Yat leads UH with a .368 batting average and is tied with a team-high 15 RBI.

HOME RUNS HELPING PROPEL HAWAI'I
UH leads the Big West in both total home runs (17) and home runs per game (.77). Seven different Rainbow Wahine have launched a round-tripper this season. Sophomore first baseman Jamie McGaughey leads UH with five home runs thus far. Ah Yat is second on the team with four while Chloe Borges, Liliana Thomas and Kayara Tuiloma all have two apiece. Both Millie Fidge and Ellyanna Cinzori have one home run each.

MARTINEZ SETTING THE TABLE
As UH's leadoff batter, senior catcher Izabella Martinez reached base safely in the first 15-straight games and in 21-of-22 games thus far this year. Overall, she ranks third on the team with a .338 average amassing a team-best 23 hits and six doubles. She is tied with Carys Murakami and Tuiloma with a team-best 11 runs scored. Martinez also leads UH with 15 walks and is second on the team with a .458 on-base percentage. On defense, Martinez has thrown out seven runners trying to steal on her which ties her with Grace Kilday (UC Davis) for the Big West lead. Both are tied ranked No. 9 in the NCAA in "Caught Stealing By."

MURAKAMI STEADY ON OFFENSE & DEFENSE
This past week, junior second baseman Carys Murakami was second on the team, hitting an even .500, going 8-for-16 at the plate scoring four runs while driving in three. On defense, the CSUN transfer recorded 11 putouts and 10 assists with no errors for a 1.000 fielding percentage. Overall, Murakami leads UH with five mutiple hit games and she is second on the team with a .339 batting average She is tied with Martinez and Tuiloma with a team-best 11 runs scored. she has also executed a team0best three sacrifice bunts and a team-best three stolen bases (tied with Maycen Gibbs).

KOSTRENCICH, BRANDL BOTH GO 2-1 LAST WEEK
Last week, both of UH's starting pitchers--Addison Kostrencich and Macy Brandl--went 2-1 in the OUTRIGGER Invitational. Senior starter Addison Kostrencich earned wins against both Howard (2/26) and Jackson State (2/28) with a loss coming from Washington (3/1). For the week, she tallied a team-low 2.52 ERA in 16.2 innings pitched while holding opponents to a .242 batting average with five walks and nine strikeouts. Sophomore Macy Brandl also earned wins against Jackson State and Howard while falling to Washington (I). Brandl tossed a pair of shutouts over Jackson State and Howrd. Brandle had a 2.86 ERA in 14.2 innings pitched with six walks and eight strikeouts.

McGAUGHEY LAUNCHING BOMBS
Sophomore first baseman Jamie McGaughey ranks third in the Big West with five home runs. Last week alone in the OUTRIGGER Invitational, she hit .350 with three doubles and three home runs and a team-high 10 RBI. Against Jackson State (2/28) she hit two homers against the Tigersfor a career-high four RBI. In the game she went 3-for-4 (career high) scoring a career-high two runs.

CINZORI FINDING ROLL AS DESIGNATED PLAYER
Junior Ellyanna Cinzori has found her groove as the designated player for the 'Bows. She has hit safely in the last four-straight games all four of which she started at DP. Her first collegiate hit was a home run last week against Jackson State. Cinzori is the latest Wahine to get a shot at DP. 

OPTIONS IN LEFTFIELD
Thus far, the 'Bows have started three different Rainbow Wahine in leftfield. Junior Cierra Yamamoto started the first 10 games in left. When Maycen Gibbs came back, freshman Kayara Tuiloma shifted from rightfield to leftfield for the next nine games. Most recently, freshman Kennedy Thompson has started the last three game in left. Alyssa Nakagawa, Kolbi Kochi and Millie Fidge have all had opportunities as the DP during the non-conference schedule.

GIBBS SOLID IN RIGHT
After having to sit out the first 10 games due to an NCAA ruling, junior Maycen Gibbs has made an impact starting the last 12 games in right. She is fourth on the team hitting .333 (11-fir-33). with three doubles two triples and six RBI. Although she's played in 10 less games, she has already crossed the plate nine times, scoring one run in each of her first five starts.

THOMAS FINDS HOME AT HOT CORNER
Although senior Liliana Thomas is hitting .235, she finds ways to contribute on offense. She has reached base safely in 16 of 22 games thus far, scoring 10 runs. She has had timely hitting, driving in 14 run to tie for third best in RBI on the team.

NEW LOOK LINEUP IN 2025
The "new look" lineup for 2025 has basically remained constant on defense with a little shuffling in the offensive lineup. Except for Martinez catching, UH features an entirely new infield due to graduation last year as UH lost Dallas Millwood (first base), Maya Nakamura (second base), Xiao Gin (shortstop) and Ka'ena Keliinoi (third base). Strarting this year at first base is sophomore Jamie McGaughey who played sparingly at third base last season. The three other infield positions were secured by three local transfers who came home to play at UH. Junior Carys Murakami has locked down second base after spending two years at CSUN. Milan Ah Yat spent her freshman year at LMU before choosing to transfer to UH where she emerged as the starting shortstop. And Liliana Thomas has taken over at third base after a little circuitous route before coming to UH spending two seasons at Arizona State and one at LMU.