Rosenthal’s all-around night helps No. 3 Hawaii sweep No. 6 BYU

Rosenthal’s all-around night helps No. 3 Hawaii sweep No. 6 BYU

Rosenthal’s all-around night helps No. 3 Hawaii sweep No. 6 BYU

Tread Rosenthal celebrates after a point in the second set against BYU Friday Night. | Photo Credit: Daniel Fujita, HSRN

HONOLULU – Championship contender in full bloom.

Donning floral print uniforms while celebrating the Lunar New Year inside Bankoh Arena at Stan Sheriff Center, the third-ranked University of Hawai’i men’s volleyball team made quick work of No. 6 BYU (13-4) on Friday night with a sweep over the rival Cougars, (25-18, 25-21, 25-16).

Louis Sakanoko’s 15 kills on 25 swings led the way in the 11th straight win for the Rainbow Warriors, but it was junior setter Tread Rosenthal’s balanced performance piloting the offense that had head coach Charlie Wade’s mind wondering mid-match.

“I’m continually impressed with Tread,” Wade emphasized after the match. “Like he does stuff that just doesn’t show in the stat sheet. I thought today, like – and this doesn’t really happen much in my career – when I start to miss you in your junior year, when you’re still playing … He just impacts the game in so many ways.”

Hawai’i (14-1) saw the junior dish out 32 assists and tie his career-high with four aces from the service line in the sweep, tacking on a block, three kills and five digs for good measure. It was the 11th time in 13 outings that Rosenthal eclipsed 30 assists and his seventh match with multiple service aces this season.

Quintin Greenidge helped Hawai’i put on a defensive display as well, sprawling all over for 11 of the 29 total digs tallied by the team. The UH serve-receive game also put on a clinic, going without a single receiving error for just the third time this season and first time since January 8.

The Rainbow Warriors picked up where they left off on Wednesday night, riding a balanced offensive attack to a .500 hitting percentage as a group in a 25-18 opening set win. Sophomore Kainoa Wade had five of his nine total kills in the first frame while the Flying Frenchmen, Louis Sakanoko and Adrien Roure, each had four kills to help power the hosts to begin the evening.

Louis Sakanoko jogs back to the service box after a point by Hawai’i. | Photo Credit: Michael Lasquero, HSRN

The second set saw sloppiness seep back into the Hawai’i service turns, dishing out seven errors behind the stripe in a much tighter frame. BYU took a 15-14 lead into the media timeout with the help of 10 different Rainbow Warrior miscues, but a slightly-more focused group returned after the break to help the hosts respond in turn.

Rosenthal dealt a pair of aces out of the deck to help Hawai’i flip the frame on its head, giving UH a 20-17 lead and forcing a timeout from BYU. The Cougars made one final push, but Roure rammed the door shut in the second set with his lone ace of the night for a 25-21 decision and commanding two-set advantage.

Adrien Roure leaps to smack a serve on Lunar New Year Night for Hawai’i. | Photo Credit: Michael Lasquero, HSRN

“One of the things I love about these guys, Adrien and Louis, and their evolution, their maturity is shown in so many ways,” Wade said of his dynamic French duo. “One is being able to go back to the service line and not feel like they got to pull driver and swing out of their shoes as the only way to score … They’re starting to learn and to trust that we can score in different ways and being able to modulate from the service line.”

The two squads traded blows to an 11-11 deadlock to begin the third set, but Sakanoko, Finn Kearney and Kainoa Wade took turns in the service box helping Hawai’i race out to a 21-13 advantage and force BYU to burn both timeouts.

Sakanoko put UH on the cusp of the sweep of their historic rivals with his 14th putdown of the evening and finished off the Cougars two rallies later with his 15th and final kill, sending home the season-high crowd of 6,493 fans buzzing for the weekend.

“It’s so much fun,” a smiling sophomore middle blocker Trevell Jordan said about playing in front of the growing home audience. “Never had anything like it before, it’s really an experience and it really adds something to your play.”

Jordan, in his first season with the Rainbow Warriors after transferring from Grand Canyon following the school’s decision to cut the men’s volleyball program, added four kills on eight swings and five total blocks (four assists, one solo) in the win. The sophomore had a season-high seven kills against the Cougars on Wednesday night and helped Hawai’i out-block BYU both evenings.

The Cougars hit .183 as a team over the three frames, their second-worst showing of the season, while committing 16 hitting errors in the Friday night loss to the Rainbow Warriors. Trevor Herget was the lone player to register double-digit kills for BYU, racking up 10 putdowns and committing seven attacking errors on 24 total swings.

With the first foot into the second-half season gauntlet, Hawai’i continues a seven-match homestand next week when No. 7-ranked Pepperdine visits the islands for a pair of games. The Rainbow Warriors will host “Dig Pink” night on Wednesday, March 4 for the first of the two meetings with the Waves with opening serve scheduled for 7 p.m. HT.

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Mana Wahine: Hawaii Women’s Water Polo Utility Agatha Weston

Mana Wahine: Hawaii Women’s Water Polo Utility Agatha Weston

Mana Wahine: Hawaii Women’s Water Polo Utility Agatha Weston

Agatha Weston participates in the Rainbow Wahine during her true freshman season in 2024. | Photo Credit: Michael Lasquero, HSRN

HONOLULU – Agatha Weston’s childhood foreshadowed the life she would lead.

Born in Hong Kong, Weston spent her early years making friends from all different backgrounds. Living in an expat community that consisted of two blocks of apartments sandwiching a rugby-sized park, the Kiwi found herself playing with kids around her own age from Australia, Great Britain and many other places.

INTERVIEW WITH AGATHA WESTON

“It was a pretty fun upbringing,” Weston recalled. “I think the competitiveness from that community has carried through and really shaped the athlete I am.”

Her family made the move to Christchurch in New Zealand when Weston reached the end of primary school, setting Weston’s developmental years into full speed as she tried her hand at a variety of sports.

There was the consistent time in the pool, following behind her older sister’s path through the water polo ranks. But Weston also credits Surf Lifesaving as the other sport with a massive impact on her life.

“When I wasn’t in the pool, I was in the ocean,” Weston said.

She spent her summers at the beach in New Zealand, participating in the popular sport of Surf Lifesaving. A volunteer-based activity turned into sport, Weston tolled hours upon hours in the sun and water while competing in beach rescue events, board races and swim races among many other lifeguarding-like workouts.

Weston admits that part of Hawai’i’s appeal to her for school was the idea of being able to spend her time split between the pool and the beach still. The ocean is as big a part of her life as her sport, which she’s made quite the name in after just over a season of action as a member of the Rainbow Wahine.

Former Big West Player of the Year and multi-time ACWPC All-American selection Bernadette Doyle is the one to thank for Weston’s initial interest and ultimate engagement to Hawai’i. The fellow New Zealand product was a former teammate of Weston’s and consistently posted updates of her journey with the Rainbow Wahine water polo program that were impossible to ignore.

“She was in Hawai’i when I was starting to kind of look at [college options] and it always looked so awesome on her social media,” Weston said of Doyle’s impact on her recruitment. “Then I became good friends with her and that kind of sealed the deal that [Hawai’i] was where I wanted to go. You can ask anyone, I’ve been talking about playing in Hawai’i for the longest time.”

After reaching out to US college coaching staffs with interest in coming over, Weston went off and helped New Zealand win four matches at the 2023 World Aquatics Women’s U20 Water Polo Championships in Portugal. She scored 14 goals against some of the best competition on the planet and helped New Zealand to a top-eight finish and a quarterfinal appearance, six spots higher than the country’s final placement in the event four years prior.

Weston became a hot commodity with multiple west coast schools pursuing her commitment. Luckily for the Rainbow Wahine, Weston loved Doyle’s coaches in Maureen Cole and James Robinson just as much as they loved her.

“I really clicked with James and Mo,” Weston remembered. “I just thought they were so cool. There were other schools in the picture for sure, some California schools, but there was just something about those two … It was kind of a no-brainer.”

Again, Weston would make a big move in location. Again, Weston would play alongside people with backgrounds from across the world.

The 6-foot-4 redshirt sophomore utility player burst onto the scene in 2024 as a true freshman, scoring 19 goals, dishing out 14 assists and tallying a total of 29 steals, good for third-most on a UH team that went 23-4 overall and a perfect 7-0 in Big West play on the way to a conference crown and a national semifinal appearance.

Weston earned Big West All-Freshman Team honors for her debut campaign in the pool for the Rainbow Wahine, but her momentum forward was put on pause as she suffered an injury and redshirted in 2025.

“Last season was definitely hard,” Weston said. “I started off thinking that I would just get the knee surgery in the fall and then be cleared to play by January, so I really wasn’t expecting to take the whole year off.”

A self-described “water polo freak” with an obsession for the game, Weston couldn’t wait to get back in the pool with her teammates and compete.

Opposing coaches didn’t forget who she was despite her absence from the pool last season. Weston was one of the three Rainbow Wahine named to the seven-player Big West Preseason Coaches’ Team, checking in alongside junior goalkeeper Daisy Logtens and sophomore attacker Ema Vernoux for the defending conference champions.

Her start to 2026 has only made them look smarter.

Weston has scored in eight of the nine matches she’s played, totaling a team-best 25 goals despite missing the Rainbow Wahine’s February 1 matchup against Long Beach State. Weston even had her early-season hero moment already, coming when she muscled UH to a dramatic 16-15 victory in overtime against UC Irvine on the second day of the Triton Invitational at the end of January, scoring eight goals and taking nine total shots at the net.

Hawai’i is off to a 7-3 start with all three losses coming against opponents ranked in the top five nationally. The Rainbow Wahine kick off conference play on Friday, closing out February on the road against UC Irvine before visiting Long Beach State on Sunday, March 1.

UH’s first home match of the 2026 season is a week from Saturday, taking on UC San Diego on March 7 at 6 p.m. HT at the Duke Kahanamoku Aquatic Complex.

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Three-star guard Tiger Cuff flips to Hawai’i following mission

HONOLULU – It’s all in the family. Class of 2024 three-star guard Tiger Cuff announced his commitment to the University of Hawai’i on Tuesday, joining fellow guard Scotty Belnap (’24, Mater Dei) as prep prospects joining the Rainbow Warriors ahead...

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Hawai’i scoops up all-PacWest standout guard Jaden Matingou

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Former Arizona State F Marcus Adams Jr. commits to Hawai’i

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Hawaii, HC Eran Ganot agree in principle to contract extension

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Mana Wahine: Hawaii Softball Utility Player Rhea Furtado

Mana Wahine: Hawaii Softball Utility Player Rhea Furtado

Mana Wahine: Hawaii Softball Utility Player Rhea Furtado

Hawai’i utility player Rhea Furtado gets ready to run from 2nd base. | Photo Credit: HSRN

HONOLULU – Away from the islands for the first time, Rhea Furtado couldn’t help but have wandering eyes back home towards Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium in 2025.

The former Kapa’a standout started her college career at Big West rival Cal State Northridge, appearing in 40 games while getting a total of 21 at-bats in her single season with the Matadors. She knew she wanted to spread her wings and experience life away from the islands, but she had taken notice of a pair of local girls back at UH who had started their careers on the continent as well.

Milan Ah Yat and Carys Murakami went from underappreciated role players at LMU and CSUN to full-time starters when returning to the islands. Murakami and Ah Yat started every game next to each other in the middle infield in 2025, even seeing Ah Yat earn All-Big West honorable mention recognition.

 “I feel like being at home wasn’t an option for me at first because my first year, I really wanted to experience out-of-home and I’ve been here,” Furtado said of her commitment to CSUN out of high school. “I was like home is going to be home forever, so I’d like to experience [something new].”

Furtado is thankful for her year in Northridge despite the softball fit not working out. The experience brought hundreds of memories along with new friends and connections, but she found herself looking to the portal in the end.

After the successes of Ah Yat and Murakami in 2025, Furtado was inspired to come back home and put on the green. She couldn’t resist the calls of the islands and the chance to play for the fans in Hawai’i as soon as her sophomore season could begin.

“I really missed the home environment,” Furtado said of UH’s draw to her. “I feel like there’s no place like home. There’s no place like the people here and like the crowd and support you’re going to get.”

There was also the added benefit of having family and friends at more of her games. While at CSUN, she was aware of the challenges of travel between time and expenses. Now playing more than half her games in the islands, her mom and dad can make it out to watch much more often.

In a way, it was going to feel like she was back to playing in the state championship.

The pride of Kauai, Furtado and company won two HHSAA Division II softball titles in three years at Kapa’a. The year sandwiched between the championships was a 2023 run that was stopped by Furtado’s new teammate.

“We actually lost to Milan, guys,” Furtado said chuckling.

It was especially meaningful to Furtado to win the 2024 championship, completing her senior season with a title alongside many of the same girls that she had played with since the age of six.

Kapa’a rolled to a 13-1 victory over Pac-Five in the 2024 title game, avenging the 2023 state quarterfinal loss to Ah Yat’s Wolfpack squad. It was the second softball crown for the Warriors in program history, who won Division II again in 2025 after Furtado graduated.

Rhea Furtado rounds the bases during Kapa’a’s 2024 HHSAA Division II state championship victory over Pac-5. | Photo Credit: Ku’ulei Agbayani, HSRN

There was an immense amount of pride for Furtado in representing one of Hawai’i’s smaller islands and in showing that despite having three total high schools on Kauai, they could compete against the historically stronger O’ahu schools for championships.

Now, she gets a chance to represent the entire state of Hawai’i and play her home games inside Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium. She clearly enjoyed her time there in the 2024 state title game, going 3-for-4 at the plate with a double, a home run, three runs scored and five runs batted in for Kapa’a.

She’s gotten off to a nice start in her new digs, already tallying more hits (6), at-bats (29), walks (3) and stolen bases (8) in the first two weeks of her Rainbow Wahine career than she did in her full season with the Matadors.

After a challenging week on the continent between the CBU Classic and Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic that saw the Rainbow Wahine scratch out one win in eight tries against some of the best competition in the country, Hawai’i will return home this week for the OUTRIGGER Classic and host Mercyhurst and Portland State for a pair of games over the weekend.

UH will take on Mercyhurst at 3:30 p.m. HT on Friday, February 27 and follow it up by facing Portland State right after at 6 p.m. HT at Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium. The teams will reconvene again on Saturday to wrap up the three-day round robin tournament with three final games with first pitch scheduled for 10 a.m. HT.

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Hawaii caps AC Carter Night with dramatic overtime win over UC Santa Barbara

Hawaii caps AC Carter Night with dramatic overtime win over UC Santa Barbara

Hawaii caps AC Carter Night with dramatic overtime win over UC Santa Barbara

Hawai’i guard Hunter Erickson (0) raises his fist in celebration after the Rainbow Warriors outlasted UC Santa Barbara in overtime. | Photo Credit: Michael Lasquero, HSRN

HONOLULU – A night to remember.

Playing for a season-high audience of more than 8,000 fans and some of the greatest names in program history, the University of Hawai’i men’s basketball team outlasted UC Santa Barbara inside Bankoh Arena at Stan Sheriff Center on Saturday evening in overtime, 78-75.

“This one is one that I’ll never forget,” said head coach Eran Ganot after the win. “I cannot thank the power of the Hawai’i fanbase for their love and passion and emotion that they showed in there.”

Celebrating program legend Anthony ‘AC’ Carter’s jersey retirement, Hawai’i icons spanning from the 1970s through the 1990s and into the 21st century returned to the islands for a weekend celebration fit for a superstar.

University of Hawai’i legend Anthony Carter poses with a framed version of his retired jersey alongside UH athletics director Matt Elliott. | Photo Credit: Michael Lasquero, HSRN

It sparked an overwhelming sense of pride in the program as members from the over 100-plus year history of the program gathered in the same place to celebrate Rainbow Warrior royalty together. That program-wide togetherness became a rallying cry for the UH coaching staff to the team entering the weekend after suffering the first two-game losing streak of the season.

After beautiful renditions of the national anthem and Hawai’i Pono’i from Henry Kapono and the City of Refuge Christian Church sparked up the noise inside the Stan Sheriff Center, the teams got right to business trading stops and a few early buckets as the Gauchos took an early 7-5 lead through five minutes.

Ike Finlinson started to wake up the Rainbow Warriors on offense, scoring all nine of his points in the first 12 minutes of action to push the hosts ahead by the under-eight-minute media timeout, 22-15.

After being held to a 2-for-13 stretch through the middle of the opening stanza, UC Santa Barbara found the offensive fuel over the final seven minutes as they made six of their final 10 shots from the floor, including back-to-back threes with under a minute remaining to take a 32-30 lead at the break.

“Lapses are killers,” said junior guard Isaiah Kerr when asked about the end of the opening frame for Hawai’i. “It’s simple stuff where we’re kind of beating ourselves, and so that was the conversation at halftime. We’re playing good defense, sometimes we beat ourselves and we had to make that change.”

The Gauchos continued to gain separation when play resumed, scoring the first six points out of the locker rooms to extend out to a 38-30 lead over the Rainbow Warriors. Seniors Dre Bullock and Harry Rouhliadeff took turns getting the offense restarted for UH, scoring the next seven points to pull the hosts back within one, but back-to-back buckets by Aidan Mahaney put the visitors back up by a handful.

Kerr made the change he spoke about wanting to see, sparking Hawai’i on both ends after re-entering the game by helping cool off the increasingly warm Mahaney with his defense and knocking down a triple and a couple of free throws as the Rainbow Warriors rallied ahead of the Gauchos with under nine minutes left to play, 52-51.

Hawaii G Isaiah Kerr closely guards UCSB’s Aidan Mahaney. | Photo Credit: Michael Lasquero, HSRN

“I said to [Isaiah Kerr] after the game, I have never seen a player play as hard as I did see him tonight,” Ganot shared. “What happened is a rising tide lifts all ships, and Dre then took it to another level.”

After UC Santa Barbara shoved back ahead by a handful with 5:03 remaining in regulation, Kerr and Bullock willed the Warriors back before Harry Rouhliadeff tied it twice in the final minute to send the game to overtime.

Kerr began the extra period with a 3-pointer from the right wing to ease the nerves of the 8,103 fans standing anxiously waiting and wanting to celebrate the memorable evening. The junior guard elicited the loudest pop from the crowd all night two minutes later as he forced UCSB forward Hosana Kitenge to foul out as Kerr finished a layup through contact to put the Rainbow Warriors ahead for good with 1:59 remaining.

“[The 3-pointer to begin overtime] wasn’t even the play that was set up originally,” Kerr said chuckling about his hot finish. “I was just wide open when I caught the ball, so I was like alright it’s going up, and it went in. I felt really good to get that start and then that kind of had me in a little bit of a more aggressive mindset.”

Hunter Erickson and Isaac Johnson each split trips to the free throw line to help keep UH up over the final minute and Kerr made the on-the-fly decision to not foul while up three as UCSB’s CJ Shaw forced up a contested 3-pointer from the right wing that clanked off the side iron and into Bullock’s hands to clinch the 78-75 win.

The victory snapped UH’s eight-game losing streak against UC Santa Barbara and returned the Rainbow Warriors into a tie atop the Big West standings with UC Irvine and Cal State Northridge with two weeks remaining in the regular season. The Anteaters fell at home against UC San Diego on Saturday night while CSUN clipped Long Beach State by two in Long Beach.

Dre Bullock paced Hawai’i in the win with 21 points, seven rebounds and three steals, going 7-for-16 from the field while knocking down 6-of-9 from the charity stripe. Isaiah Kerr added a season-high 17 points off of the bench for the Rainbow Warriors, scoring 15 points after halftime while drawing the defensive assignment of Aidan Mahaney for a majority of his 32 minutes of work.

Harry Rouhliadeff was the final player to finish in double figures for UH, scoring 10 points and recording two of the biggest baskets of the game for the hosts before fouling out in overtime.

Hawaii F Harry Rouhliadeff tosses up a putback with under a minute remaining to tie the game. | Photo Credit: Michael Lasquero, HSRN

“Harry’s battling foul trouble and he makes two of the biggest emotional plays,” Ganot quickly pointed out postgame. “That’s our captain, make no mistake.”

Colin Smith led the Gauchos with 19 points and eight rebounds in the loss while Marvin McGhee IV recorded his first double-double of the season with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Aidan Mahaney scored 16 points before fouling out in overtime but was held to 7-of-20 shooting from the floor and didn’t get to the free throw line in a game for the first time in the entire month of February.

Hawai’i (19-7, 11-5 Big West) will head to the continent next week for the final road trip of the regular season, visiting UC Davis on Thursday, February 26 before hopping over to face Cal State Fullerton on Saturday, February 28.

Three-star guard Tiger Cuff flips to Hawai’i following mission

Three-star guard Tiger Cuff flips to Hawai’i following mission

HONOLULU – It’s all in the family. Class of 2024 three-star guard Tiger Cuff announced his commitment to the University of Hawai’i on Tuesday, joining fellow guard Scotty Belnap (’24, Mater Dei) as prep prospects joining the Rainbow Warriors ahead...

Hawai’i scoops up all-PacWest standout guard Jaden Matingou

Hawai’i scoops up all-PacWest standout guard Jaden Matingou

HONOLULU – Why not go back to the well? One year after going to the Division II ranks and pulling up an all-conference guard for the rotation, the University of Hawai’i men’s basketball team did it again as former Point Loma guard Jaden Matingou...

Former Arizona State F Marcus Adams Jr. commits to Hawai’i

Former Arizona State F Marcus Adams Jr. commits to Hawai’i

HONOLULU – An old foe, finally a friend. Arizona State forward Marcus Adams Jr. announced his commitment to the University of Hawai’i men’s basketball program on Saturday, becoming the first major addition from the portal for the Rainbow Warriors’...

Hawaii, HC Eran Ganot agree in principle to contract extension

Hawaii, HC Eran Ganot agree in principle to contract extension

HONOLULU – The only transition that the University of Hawai’i men’s basketball program will be experiencing is one into the Mountain West. Veteran head coach Eran Ganot and the school officially announced an agreement in principle on Tuesday that...

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Hawai’i shuts down Wichita State bats on Les Murakami Hall of Fame Night

Hawai’i shuts down Wichita State bats on Les Murakami Hall of Fame Night

Hawai’i shuts down Wichita State bats on Les Murakami Hall of Fame Night

Tsubasa Tomii pitched one scoreless inning with one strikeout as the first arm out of the bullpen. | Photo: Michael Lasquero, HSRN

HONOLULU – You’ve got to put on a show with Les and the legends in the house.

Behind an electrifying performance from the pitching staff and a jolt of offense from the jump, the University of Hawai’i baseball team held up its end of the bargain on Les Murakami Hall of Fame Night with a 4-2 win over storied rival Wichita State (4-2) on Friday evening.

Junior right-hander Hekili Robello (2-0) picked up his second win in as many starts this season, spinning 6.0 innings of two-run ball (1 ER) while allowing four hits, walking one and striking out nine.

“He was, again, lights out,” head coach Rich Hill said of Robello’s second straight sweet six-inning showing. “You notice he’s in an 0-2 count almost all the time. So you talk about first pitch strikes, mixing the slider and then he’s also got a changeup … he just fills up the zone. It’s a unique [arm slot], guys have a hard time with it.”

The Big Island fireballer turned it over to the bullpen for the final three frames, watching as Tsubasa Tomii, Saul Soto and John Alkire II combined for 3.0 innings of scoreless work to lock down the win. The trio of relievers allowed two total baserunners and only one hit in their action on Friday, combining for 42 pitches total to record the final nine outs.

Hawai’i (5-1) did all of its scoring in the opening inning, posting a four-spot in their first chance of the night again Shockers RHP Brady Hamilton. The first four batters reached base for the Rainbow Warriors before Evan Rolbiecki’s RBI groundout mercifully gave the first out of the bottom of the 1st for Wichita State.

Kamana Nahaku helped the Rainbow Warriors tack on two more runs before the end of the first inning, roping a single between the shortstop and third baseman to score Kody Watanabe and Jake Redding. Tate Shimao tried to advance from first to third on the single but was gunned down for the final out of the frame.

Kamana Nahaku’s 2 RBI single in the bottom of the first inning brought home the final runs of the night for Hawai’i. | Photo: Michael Lasquero, HSRN

Wichita State responded in the top of the 2nd with the help of a couple Hawai’i miscues, loading the bases with a leadoff single, a walk and an E4 before Kaleb Duncan tapped an RBI single into right to get the Shockers on the board and keep the bases juiced with nobody out.

An RBI groundout by Zeb Henry plated the second run for Wichita State, but more importantly helped Hekili Robello settle back in for the Rainbow Warriors. The junior right-hander bounced back to get Jaden Gustafson to pop out to the infield and struck out Jayson Jones to end the threat from the Shockers with UH still leading, 4-2.

“He’s just got ice in his veins, you know, the guts of a burglar,” Hill said of his starter’s resolve to get out of the 2nd-inning jam. “This environment can overwhelm some people … I mean, that’s [Rainbow Baseball] legends, that’s Coach Murakami, Coach Gene Stevenson. They’ve got the Hall of Fame blue jackets out here, a packed house screaming and he just went out there like it was another day at the park in Hilo. It was really fun to see. He’s got a great future.”

Robello would retire 11 Wichita batters in a row after allowing the two runs, finally seeing another Shocker reach base with two down in the bottom of the 5th when Jayson Jones smacked a single into right, but the UH starter got MJ Sweeney to ground out to second base the very next at-bat to end the frame.

The Hilo High product struck out the side in the top of the sixth, working around Owen Washburn’s one-out double to hand over a multi-run cushion to the ‘Bows bullpen.

Tomii twirled a scoreless 7th frame in his fourth outing of the young season, striking out one while showing off his funky spinning offspeed stuff for the fans in attendance. New Mexico State transfer Saul Soto spun a 1-2-3 inning in the 8th, delighting the crowd with a backwards K in his lone stanza of work.

Tsubasa Tomii pitched one scoreless inning with one strikeout as the first arm out of the bullpen. | Photo: Michael Lasquero, HSRN

RHP John Alkire II locked down the 9th for the Rainbow Warriors again, earning his second save of the season and sending fans home happy on Les Murakami Hall of Fame Night with a 4-2 win over the Shockers.

Brady Hamilton (1-1) took the loss despite going 7.0 innings, allowing the four 1st-inning runs and nothing more as he gave up seven hits, walked two batters, hit three more and struck out six.

Hawai’i and Wichita State return to action on Saturday for the third game of the four-game series with first pitch scheduled for 3:05 p.m. HT.

UPDATE: Please note, Saturday’s game has postponed due to rain and will be made up on Sunday as the Rainbow Warriors and Shockers play a doubleheader. The first game will be 7 innings with first pitch set for 11 a.m. HT with a 9-inning game to follow afterwards.

The dugout greets the defense after getting out of the seventh inning unscathed. | Photo: Michael Lasquero, HSRN

Ben Zeigler-Namoa was steady at first base and at the plate for Hawai’i, scoring the game’s first run while garnering two hits. | Photo: Michael Lasquero, HSRN

Draven Nushida makes contact with a pitch against Wichita State. He was one of two players with multiple hits Friday night. | Photo: Michael Lasquero, HSRN

Three-star guard Tiger Cuff flips to Hawai’i following mission

Three-star guard Tiger Cuff flips to Hawai’i following mission

HONOLULU – It’s all in the family. Class of 2024 three-star guard Tiger Cuff announced his commitment to the University of Hawai’i on Tuesday, joining fellow guard Scotty Belnap (’24, Mater Dei) as prep prospects joining the Rainbow Warriors ahead...

Hawai’i scoops up all-PacWest standout guard Jaden Matingou

Hawai’i scoops up all-PacWest standout guard Jaden Matingou

HONOLULU – Why not go back to the well? One year after going to the Division II ranks and pulling up an all-conference guard for the rotation, the University of Hawai’i men’s basketball team did it again as former Point Loma guard Jaden Matingou...

Former Arizona State F Marcus Adams Jr. commits to Hawai’i

Former Arizona State F Marcus Adams Jr. commits to Hawai’i

HONOLULU – An old foe, finally a friend. Arizona State forward Marcus Adams Jr. announced his commitment to the University of Hawai’i men’s basketball program on Saturday, becoming the first major addition from the portal for the Rainbow Warriors’...

Hawaii, HC Eran Ganot agree in principle to contract extension

Hawaii, HC Eran Ganot agree in principle to contract extension

HONOLULU – The only transition that the University of Hawai’i men’s basketball program will be experiencing is one into the Mountain West. Veteran head coach Eran Ganot and the school officially announced an agreement in principle on Tuesday that...

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