Advertisement - Click to support our sponsors.

Saturday, February 3, 2001

Wahine open season
with doubleheader wins

---

By Andrew Bell
Special to the Star-Bulletin

TAMPA, Fla. -- It took 11 hours of flying, covering over 5,000 miles, a three-and-a-half hour layover in Chicago and two days of rest, but the Hawaii softball team opened its season last night with two wins at the USF-Louisville Slugger Tournament.

An even larger adjustment than traveling and a five-hour time difference is the cooler weather, as the temperature remained in the low 50s for both games.

"It takes longer to warm up in cooler weather,'' Wahine pitcher Desiree Duran said. "I'm somewhat used to this weather, being from Southern California. I try to work longer and harder in those conditions. Once you start playing, you begin to get warmer.''

Traveling or weather did not affect Duran's performance in game one last night against South Florida, pitching a no-hitter through five innings. Duran finished the game with nine strikeouts, allowing only two hits, including a solo home run in the sixth, to help lead the Wahine to a 2-1 victory.

Second-game starter Felicity Witt was also used to the weather, comparing it to playing a winter game in Sydney, Australia. The former member of Australia's junior national team wondered how she would fair in her college debut.

The freshman right-hander followed up Duran's win with a gem of her own, striking out 11 Tennessee batters and throwing a one-hitter in her first start, a 5-0 shutout.

"I think as freshmen, we know there's big shoes to fill,'' Witt said. "But we are excited to get the season started and getting the experience we need. The tournament is a good test for us to see where we are as a team.''

Gone from last year's team are three All-Americans, but with a strong freshmen class, goals for the Wahine are still high. The Wahine have been preparing for the season mentally, as well as physically, with the help of motivational speakers.

"I think the team has bought into the approach,'' Wahine coach Bob Coolen said. "It's a different approach for us, but it allows the freshmen to step in and have early success."

A 2-0 start is just what this young team needed, as it prepares to face preseason USA Today/NFCA third ranked Arizona tomorrow.

"Arizona has a solid one-through-nine line-up and is playing with a lot of confidence right now,'' Coolen said. "No team is unbeatable."

http://uhathletics.hawaii.edu