HPU take series opener over Chaminade with fast start, 11-7

WAIPAHU — The Hawaiʻi Pacific University baseball team wasted no time getting back on track.

Tyler Arnold’s one-out solo home run in the bottom of the first ignited a seven-run inning as the Sharks defeated Chaminade 11-7 in the Pacific West Conference series opener Tuesday night at Hans L’Orange Park.

The homer was Arnold’s fourth of the season and his first since March 1, helping HPU improve to 12-13 overall and 10-10 in conference play.

“Early in the game, I’m just trying to make hard contact and luckily he left something up in the zone and I got barrel to it,” Arnold said. “The wind today was blowing out so it helped me a little there. I think starting that there was knowing that we can still hit the ball and hit stuff hard and good things come out of that.”

Tyler Arnold got the start at first base against Chaminade, a change from his normal starting spot at third base. | Photo: Daniel Fujita

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The fast start was a welcome sight for the Sharks, who dropped their previous series against Menlo and had a key matchup against nationally ranked Westmont postponed due to stormy weather.

“I’m really happy with the way we started that game,” HPU coach Dane Fujinaka said. “It looked like our hitters were ready to go taking really good at-bats. We were able to capitalize on a couple mistakes that Chaminade gave us.”

Fujinaka also noted the challenges his team faced leading into the game.

“I thought we had a rough last week and we weren’t able to get on the field as much as we’d like to,” he said. “Today I thought was a good start. We got a really good practice in yesterday and were able to get in a nice game today. Just trying to focus on getting back into a rhythm.”

The Sharks got back in the win column with a 11-7 win over Chaminade Tuesday night. | Photo: Daniel Fujita

Injuries and illness forced adjustments to the Sharks’ lineup, with Arnold shifting to first base and senior Andrew Nykoluk stepping in at third.

Nykoluk contributed in key moments despite a modest stat line, impacting all three innings in which HPU scored. Batting eighth, he was hit by a pitch in the first inning and later scored on Noah Hata’s two-run single. He added a single in the third and came around to score again on an RBI by Kan Taguchi.

HPU added three insurance runs in the seventh inning, including a run that scored on Nykoluk’s sacrifice bunt.

Andrew Nykoluk makes a diving catch playing third base to record an out against Chaminade. | Photo: Daniel Fujita

“I love the guy, he’s a great teammate,” Arnold said of Nykoluk. “Wherever coach needs him, he’s there and he’s proving that. So proud of him.”

Hata, Taguchi, Blake Helsper and Taydem Hashimoto each drove in two runs for the Sharks. Helsper and Hashimoto, both freshmen, also recorded multiple hits.

On the mound, Jayden Gabrillo (6-1) earned his fifth consecutive win despite allowing a season-high 10 hits over five innings. He did not record a strikeout but avoided walks and limited the Silverswords (7-23, 5-19) to four runs.

Jayden Gabrillo has pitched in half of the Sharks’ wins to start the 2026 season. | Photo: Daniel Fujita

“I thought Gabrillo did a great job with kind of what he had,” Fujinaka said. “He didn’t have his best stuff, but he threw strikes and made it tough to score in bunches.”

Jacob Vanek followed with two scoreless innings out of the bullpen, allowing two hits and a walk while striking out two. His back-to-back strikeouts to end the seventh inning stranded a runner in scoring position and preserved an 8-4 lead.

“He competed and was able to kind of tone it down for us and get us back to offensively get a little bit of momentum,” Fujinaka said.

Noah Meaux recorded his fourth save of the season, entering with the bases loaded and the tying run on deck before securing the final two outs.