Delayed flight? No big deal. It's finals week. An airport lobby is just as good a place to study as any. (Well, not really, but what else are you going to do?)

And if you've got to be stuck in a terminal, it might as well be San Francisco International. Good food.

“;They like the chowda,”; said Hawaii softball coach Bob Coolen, resurrecting his Boston accent.

The only things missing for the Rainbow Wahine yesterday were their bat bags—can't carry those on. They couldn't be sure of the location of their precious metal that helped them to 128 home runs, but the players weren't overly worried about it; no matter how many plane changes, their gear has always made it to the destination with them.

The Wahine endured a two-stop flight plan on the way to the WAC tournament yesterday. They waited out a storm and hoped to get out of SFO in time to make a 40-minute connection at LAX ... all part of a long trip to Las Cruces, N.M.

Assuming on-time arrival at El Paso, a day that began with a 5:15 a.m. round-up at UH wasn't even over at 10:47 p.m., Mountain time.

Despite the previous good fortune, there was still the crossing of fingers that the bat bags would appear at the carousel. And then, the drive to Las Cruces—often an adventure in itself, as it was when the Wahine visited the New Mexico State Aggies in early April. “;Last time the winds were 60 mph and there was this incredible storm,”; Coolen said. “;There were 18-wheelers coming at us and you couldn't even see the mountains.”;

The Wahine were unfazed by it all; this is one UH team that the road doesn't seem to bother. They won all eight games of the WAC road trip. It would've probably been nine, but a game at Utah State was snowed out.

The streak continued upon their return to Rainbow Wahine Stadium against LaTech, then on the road again for three more wins at Nevada, and finally all the way up to the last day of the regular season against rival Fresno State. It finally ended at 18 wins, but UH had already clinched the WAC regular-season title. Final ledger: 41-12 overall, 19-1 conference.

SO NOW they return to the high desert country where they rocked 13 homers in 19 innings. They need seven to break the NCAA single-season record of 134.

“;You kind of have it in the back of your head,”; senior second baseman Traci Yoshikawa said. “;But during our games we don't think about it.”;

For now, Yoshikawa is focused on her final for a nutrition class. The Wahine have a combined 30 exams to take this week.

When it comes to home run records, Coolen claims ignorance.

“;I don't even know where we're at,”; he said. “;We just have to forego it and play the game. There's too much at stake. We should be OK.”;

And you know the farther UH advances and the more homers it hits, the more the legality of its bats will be questioned by bitter opponents and skeptical observers. Coolen says the bats are cool, regulation equipment meeting the NCAA standard for liveliness.

That might be why the Wahine are ranked 21st and 23rd in the polls despite a 15 in RPI, which uses quality of schedule as part of the equation.

It's almost enough to make you hope their bats end up in Newark or some such place, and the Wahine break the record with borrowed sticks.

Almost.