RAINBOW BASEBALL
RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@STARBULLETIN.COM
Hawaii third baseman Justin Frash dove but could not come up with this ball off the bat of a Georgia Southern player.
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Rainbows make their hits count to edge Eagles
Sanchez's two-run double is the difference as UH claims its series against Georgia Southern
A beautiful, sunny day at the ballpark. A generally crisply played game, and a victory for his team to win a series. A 4-2 record after two weeks.
Next Up vs. Pacific on Friday
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Everything a college baseball coach could ask for?
Maybe not.
Mike Trapasso said "something's missing" after his Rainbows edged Georgia Southern 2-1 while 960 watched yesterday at Les Murakami Stadium.
The "something," for the first 5 2/3 innings, was hits. GSU freshman right-hander Brian Wilkerson allowed none before the Rainbows bunched their three for the game, including the currently unstoppable Kris Sanchez's two-run double, in the sixth.
"I was not happy with that game. I'm happy with the series, winning two out of three against a good team," Trapasso said. "This will be a solid club that will contend for a conference championship and a regional bid. But we have to be better."
The Rainbows won despite putting only six runners on base.
"Too many fly balls," said Trapasso, after 11 of UH's 24 outs were in the air. "We talk about being Sunday tough -- actually today, Saturday tough. You have to focus on every pitch. I'm not saying we weren't Sunday tough, but something was missing. Maybe for both teams."
The Eagles (1-2) clubbed 10 hits off UH starter Josh Schneider, and reliever and winner Tyler Davis (1-0), but they left 13 runners on.
"We had plenty of opportunities all day," said Georgia Southern coach Rodney Hennon, after his team put at least one man on base in every inning but the ninth. "We have to take better swings in those situations."
Schneider, who pitched 1 2/3 scoreless relief innings in his debut last week, kept the Eagles off-balance with an effective curve. He was pulled after throwing 86 pitches.
"I had the breaking ball working, and I was able to locate the fastball," the JC transfer from Denver said. "In your first start all you can hope for is to go out and compete the best you can. I could care less about how many hits they got. My job was to keep the team in the game."
Schneider did exactly that, despite yielding six hits and two walks (he struck out four). GSU loaded the bases with two outs in the second, but leadoff batter Chris Hollis flied out to left on a 3-2 pitch to end the threat.
"Josh pitched really well. Especially in a situation where you don't know if you're starting or not that day until you get to the park," Davis said. "You just have to be ready for any role. He did a really good job against a great hitting team."
Trapasso liked it enough to say Schneider will start next Sunday against Pacific, unless he is needed earlier in the series for relief.
"Josh gave us five zeroes and that's all we could ask for," he said.
RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@STARBULLETIN.COM
UH second baseman Nate Young stopped this grounder and threw out the Georgia Southern runner.
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Meanwhile, Nate Young (second baseman Jeremy Beckham's error in the second) and Justin Frash and Sanchez (walks in the fourth) were the only Hawaii runners in UH's first 20 plate appearances.
Then, with two out in the sixth, Frash dumped a first-pitch single into left and Brandon Haislet singled sharply up the middle. Sanchez -- who went 4-for-4 in UH's 5-3 win Friday -- then ripped Wilkerson's 1-1 fastball past first and into the right-field corner, scoring both runners.
"We thought we had him set up good (for an inside pitch), but he jammed that ball down the first-base line," GSU pitching coach Brett Lewis said. "It was kind of one of those aluminum-bat hits."
Since the season started last week, it hasn't mattered how Sanchez has been pitched. He's batting .636 (14-for-22) with six doubles and a triple and 10 RBIs.
The two runs held up, barely, as Davis (1-0) got the win with four innings of one-run relief.
In the seventh, Griffin Benedict's sacrifice fly to left scored Beckham, who was hit by Davis' second pitch of the inning and advanced on Matt Miller's single and a fielder's choice.
GSU put runners on first and third with one out in the eighth on A.J. Wirnsberger's single and first baseman Sanchez's error on pinch hitter Kyle Blackburn's grounder. But shortstop Eli Christensen made a fine play on Beckham's grounder and forced pinch runner Brett Maxwell at second for the third out.
"That play Eli made in the eighth was big, huge. It was basically the game," Davis said. "And then (third baseman) Justin Frash making that play (on a long run for a foul pop) in the ninth for the first out."
Davis got the side out in order in the ninth, but wasn't particularly smooth otherwise.
"My arm angle got up too high. In the ninth I lowered it and got more movement on the ball," said Davis, who struck out one and walked none while allowing four hits.
Trapasso said the Rainbows will work on Davis' delivery in practice.
"Tyler's got to go to work; his ball's been a little flat, so we have to look at the video and see what's going on," Trapasso said. "But I'll take a flat Tyler over a lot of other guys. He has the will. He wills the ball and forces contact."
UH hosts Pacific in a three-game series starting Friday night and continuing with day games Saturday and Sunday. The Tigers were 0-2 after yesterday's 2-1 loss to Cal State Northridge and complete their season-opening series with the Matadors today.
Hawaii 2, Ga. Southern 1
Ga. Southern |
AB |
R |
H |
BI |
Hawaii |
AB |
R |
H |
BI
|
Hollis lf |
5 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
Christensen ss |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0
|
Beckham 2b |
4 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
Franco lf |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0
|
Miller cf |
5 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
Frash 3b |
3 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
|
Economos rf |
4 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
Haislet cf |
3 |
1 |
1 |
0
|
Benedict c |
4 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
Sanchez 1b |
2 |
0 |
1 |
2
|
Shehan 3b |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Zimny rf |
3 |
0 |
0 |
0
|
Wrnbrgr 1b/ss |
3 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
Hernandez c |
3 |
0 |
0 |
0
|
Porter dh |
3 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
Asato dh |
3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
Pierce ss |
3 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
Young 2b |
3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
Blackburn ph |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0
|
Maxwell pr |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
Parker 1b |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
Totals |
36 |
1 |
10 |
1 |
Totals |
28 |
2 |
3 |
2 |
|
Ga. Southern |
|
000 |
000 |
100 |
-- |
1 |
10 |
1
|
Hawaii |
|
|
|
000 |
002 |
00x |
-- |
2 |
3 |
1 |
E--Beckham; Sanchez. LOB--GSU 13, Hawaii 4. 2B--Miller; Wirnsberger; Sanchez. SH--Porter. SF--Benedict. SB--Hollis; Porter.
Ga. Southern |
IP |
H |
R |
ER |
BB |
SO
|
Wilkerson (L, 0-1) |
6 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2
|
Battisto |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
Hawaii |
IP |
H |
R |
ER |
BB |
SO
|
Schneider |
5 |
6 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
4
|
Davis (W, 1-0) |
4 |
4 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
HBP--by Davis (Beckham).
Umpires--Cary Izuka (plate); Gus Rodrigues (first); Mike Evans (third).
T--2:26. A--2,086.