Wahine ready for their guests

No more tomorrow for UH softball

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When Bob Coolen talks about "going deep" this week, it has nothing to do with Hawaii's 39 home runs.

Instead, the UH softball coach is referring to the task facing the Rainbow Wahine entering the Western Athletic Conference tournament as they look to solidify their chances of reaching the NCAA regionals.

"We need to be one of the last three teams standing in the tournament, that's for sure," Coolen said yesterday.

"It's no longer, 'Well, we'll get 'em tomorrow,' because you only have two chances or you're gone."

Of course, the third-seeded Wahine (36-17) can eliminate any doubt by winning the double-elimination tournament and earning the automatic NCAA berth that comes with the title.

They'll open their first turn as tournament host by facing fourth-seeded Louisiana Tech tomorrow at 7 p.m. The champion will be crowned on Saturday.

Tomorrow's other first-round games are No. 6 San Jose State vs. No. 7 Utah State at 2 p.m., and No. 2 Fresno State vs. No. 5 New Mexico State at 4:30 p.m. Top-seeded Nevada has a bye and plays either SJSU or Utah State on Thursday.

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Bob Coolen had the look of a party host tidying up the pad just before the doorbell started ringing.

With the rest of the Western Athletic Conference soon to be dropping in, the Hawaii softball coach spent much of his Monday sprucing up Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium in anticipation of the school's first turn at hosting the league tournament.

From manicuring the field to making sure all of the slats in the outfield fence were just right, the softball and UH athletic department staffs have had plenty to keep them busy in the days leading up to this week's shindig.

"They've just been working diligently to get it all set up the way we drew it up," Coolen said during a break yesterday.

"We're in Hawaii and we want to do things Hawaiian style. It's a matter of we have to make sure we're on top of everything and that's exactly what's been happening."

But the logistics involved in running a seven-team tournament will slide to the back of his mind come tomorrow night when the Rainbow Wahine face Louisiana Tech in the first round of the double-elimination tournament.

An automatic berth to the NCAA regionals awaits the tournament champion, which will be crowned on Saturday.

Unlike last season when the Wahine were all but assured a regional spot after winning the regular-season title, they have no such guarantees this week as they enter the tournament at 36-17 and seeded third behind Nevada and Fresno State.

"Last year there wasn't as much pressure on us because we had 40 wins and we were most likely going to get the berth," said catcher Katie Grimes, named the WAC Hitter of the Week yesterday after hitting .625 against Utah State over the weekend. "This year it's not like that at all. We have to step up and win this tournament to go on to regionals."

But unlike any other WAC tournament, Hawaii does have the luxury of staying home.

"Personally I've been looking forward to it, I hate traveling," junior third baseman Clare Warwick said.

"It would be great to play in front of a big crowd, it really raises the intensity of the games."

The tournament was revived in 2006 after a seven-year hiatus and was held at Fresno State's Bulldog Diamond the last two. The Wahine made a run to the final two years ago and were eliminated in the semifinal-round last season, getting bounced by Nevada both times.

The Wahine were in contention for another regular-season title until an 0-6 road trip against Nevada and Fresno State snuffed those hopes. Four of those losses came by a single run, including two extra-inning defeats at Fresno State.

"Those games were really close and we just struggled to get across the line," said Warwick, who is hitting .385 in WAC games. "It's comforting going into the tournament knowing we've had really close games with all the teams."

The Wahine generated some momentum with a sweep of Utah State and rank third in the WAC in hitting and second in pitching, led by All-American Kate Robinson. The senior continues to pace UH at the plate at .378 and leads the WAC with 17 home runs and 49 RBIs. She'll take a 16-6 record and a 1.73 ERA into the circle tomorrow for the 7 p.m. matchup with Louisiana Tech.

"After that we'll just see what happens," Coolen said of his plans for the pitching rotation. Jessica Morton has been solid in relief and Courtney Baughman went 14-8 in the regular season.

Nevada (40-14) went 16-2 in WAC play to capture its first regular-season crown. Freshman catcher Noelle Micka hit .400 to lead the WAC's top offense (.317, 41 homers) and Kate Holverson (19-5) and Jordan McPherson (14-9) anchor the pitching staff.

Like Nevada, defending tournament champion Fresno State (49-9, 14-3 WAC) is likely headed to the regionals regardless of this week's outcome. Head coach Margie Wright notched her 1,300th win last week and freshman Morgan Melloh went 37-5 in the regular season to break the school record for wins. The Bulldogs arrive in town winners of their last 11 WAC games.

Tourney notes

General admission tickets are on sale at the Stan Sheriff Center box office and will be available at RWSS on game days. All-session passes are $25 for adults, $20 for senior citizens and $15 for children age 4-high school. Single-game tickets are $7 (adult), $6 (senior citizen) and $5 (children). ... Tomorrow's UH game will air on KFVE-TV (Channel 5) and KKEA (1420-AM).