Mānoa Magic muffled by Cal Poly pitching, ending Hawai’i’s Big West run

The end of the Rainbows’ road.

The 2025 season and first-ever Big West Baseball Tournament run for the University of Hawai’i baseball team finished up on Friday afternoon as UH dropped a 2-1 heartbreaker to No. 2 seed Cal Poly. The fourth-seeded Rainbow Warriors outhit the Mustangs, eight to four, but struggled in the clutch as they left seven men on base and committed two errors in the loss.

Hawai’i right-hander Freddy Rodriguez was charged with the tough-luck loss, going a season-high 6.0 innings while allowing just two runs on three hits and two walks. The former Mustang-turned-Rainbow Warrior kept Cal Poly hitless through the opening three innings before the second seed busted through with three hits to score two runs in the bottom of the fourth.

“I thought it was amazing,” UH head coach Rich Hill said of Rodriguez’s performance. “I had a talk with Freddy before the game just about managing the moment …  [the connections with Cal Poly, emotions of starting playoff game] and he stopped me halfway through the conversation and was like Coach, I got it. I’m good.”

Cal Poly left-handed reliever Josh Morano picked up the win for the Mustangs, twirling an outstanding 6.1 innings of scoreless ball out of the bullpen before giving way to redshirt senior LHP Jake Torres for the save in the top of the ninth. The No. 2 seed got two full frames of work from redshirt junior LHP Luke Kovach to open the game, seeing the pro prospect work out of zero outs, bases-loaded jam in the top of the first inning with only one run of damage before shutting down UH in the second.

Hawai’i (35-21) started the game swinging, collecting three straight hits off Kovach as Matt Miura led off with a single, followed by Jordan Donahue doing the same before Ben Zeigler-Namoa smoked an RBI double to bring home the Rainbow Warriors’ lone run of the day before the first out had been recorded.

After walking Elijah Ickes to load the bases, Kovach quickly recovered as he struck out the next two UH batters and induced an inning-ending groundout to limit the damage to the single run. While Rodriguez pitched a gem on the other side, the missed chance with the nobody out and the bases loaded came back to haunt the Rainbow Warriors.

The two teams traded zeros until the Mustangs broke through in the bottom of the fourth inning, collecting two hits in the first two batters after being held without one through the first three frames. A wild pitch allowed both Cal Poly 2B Ryan Fenn and 3B Alejandro Garza to advance into scoring position with nobody out and SS Nate Castellon lifted a sacrifice fly to left that knotted the game up, 1-1.

Casey Murray Jr. brought home the go-ahead run for the Mustangs with a high chopper that was tapped along the first base line, beating out an infield single as Garza crossed home. Hawai’i recovered to get out of the inning without any further damage, but the lead was gone for good.

Cal Poly’s Morano diced up the Rainbow Warriors, allowing only two base runners across five frames as the Mustangs clung to the 2-1 advantage heading into the top of the ninth.

One final time, the resilient Hawai’i group tried to come through in “Bow Warrior Time” as two of the first three batters reached to put the go-ahead run on base and chase Morano from the game with two outs left to work with. After Shunsuke Sakaino moved both runners into scoring position with a productive second out, designated hitter Xaige Lancaster stepped to the plate for UH’s final chance.

The sophomore fought off a no-ball, one-strike offering toward the Cal Poly’s Fenn at second base, grounding out to end the Rainbow Warrior rally just short as the Mustangs held on, 2-1. With the victory, Cal Poly advanced into Saturday night’s first Big West Championship game against top-seeded UC Irvine. The Mustangs will need to win two games to clinch the automatic qualifier bid to the NCAA Tournament out of the Big West, UC Irvine needs one win and gets two tries.

The disappointing end didn’t take away from the love and shared brotherhood from an exciting season that saw Hawai’i reach the 35-win threshold for the second straight year, the first time in more than three decades that the program had achieved that feat. The UH senior class, many who joined the program at the same time Rich Hill did, were sent off with a season’s worth of some of the best fan attendances in the entire country.

(Note: Hawai’i ranked 19th nationally in fan attendance and first in the West region.)

“It is pretty amazing what these seniors have been able to do,” said Hill postgame of the group. “From the time we got on campus four years ago to now, the on-field success speaks for itself.”

UH’s head man continued to heap praise on his veteran leaders, not just as players but as people in their development with the University of Hawai’i. Making mention of the current state and perception of college athletics in the modern NIL and transfer portal era, Hill remained steady that the purpose of the job is the same: growth.

“That what people, I don’t know if they get it about college athletics, you know, and where it’s going,” Hill said. “It’s about growth and development. It’s about these guys going out into their community and just being pillars, being great fathers and great husbands. Learning the things, through the game of baseball specifically, but really sports that will enable them to put the gloves on and just get after it in life. That’s what our culture is all about.”

The seniors addressed the entire team at the field after the season-ending defeat, expressing their love for each other while the group reaffirmed that the year together resulted in a brotherhood for life. The Rainbow Warrior fanbase may also feel that type of affinity for the group, one who turned in one of the top five winning percentages among West region programs over the last four years.

The 2025 season had a multitude of heart-stopping victories as Hawai’i’s “never say die” attitude led to nine wins in games they trailed or were tied heading into the ninth inning. In all, UH collected six walk-off victories and outscored opponents by an astounding 22 runs in the ninth inning this year.

In the end, the magic came up just short for the season. Overall, it’ll continue with the group forever.