The Univesity of Hawaii baseball team dodged adverse weather but not UC Irvineâs effective pitching in Sunday afternoonâs 5-1 loss at Les Murakami Stadium.
After winning the first two games, the Rainbow Warriors were held to four hits in the series finale in relatively calm conditions. The predicted heavy rain did not materialize during the 3-hour game played before 1,938 fans.
In dropping to 18-14 and 8-10 in the Big West, the âBows missed a chance to move into a fifth-place tie. The top five teams qualify for the Big West Tournament.
For the fifth consecutive game, the âBows were without shortstop Elijah Ickes, who is dealing with a fracture in his left (non-throwing) hand. UH coach Rich Hill said Ickes will undergo medical tests this morning, but is not expected to be on the travel roster as the âBows embark on a 12-day, six-game road trip.
UCI starting pitchers Trevor Hansen and Finnegan Wall did not get through the fourth inning on Friday and Saturday, respectively. On Sunday, Jack Ross was pulled after allowing one hit and a run in two innings. But that opened the way for the Anteatersâ rejuvenated bullpen. Left-handed Ricky Ojeda pitched four hitless innings. Right-handed Danny Suarez allowed three hits to earn the nine-out save, his second of the season.
âWe knew we were in for a challenge today, especially with Ojeda and Suarez sitting there ready to go,â Hill said. âDidnât really know about the weather, if it was going to be a five-inning game, a seven-inning game, or whatever. We felt the sense of urgency to score before those guys got into the game. ⌠We just didnât have an answer for those three pitchers they used.â
Last year, Ojeda was 13-1 and became the first reliever to be named the Big Westâs Pitcher of the Year. This season, he was moved into the second slot in the starting rotation. Ojeda had starts that impressed (six shutout innings against Sacramento State) and depressed (five runs in an inning against Cal State Fullerton). A week ago, he was moved to the bullpen, where he held UC Davis to one run in four innings.
On Sunday, Ojeda was at his best. Relying on a 93-mph fastball, Ojeda struck out five and walked three of the 15 batters he faced.
âI feel good coming out of the bullpen again,â Ojeda said. âItâs easier to get that fire I didnât have the first couple weeks of starting. Just going back to where I shined last year. I felt good on the mound. My arm felt good. ⌠It was mainly just fastballs. I was throwing the fastball, and they werenât hitting it, so I figured I might as well keep going to it.â
Suarez returned to the site of a nightmarish appearance. In a 2022 game against UH, he suffered a torn UCL in his left elbow.
âIt wasnât too fun,â recalled Suarez, who underwent Tommy John surgery for the season-ending injury. âItâs good to be out here.â
Suarez was used sparingly the next two seasons. He made 16 appearance last season. But this year, he has developed into a dominant late-inning pitcher. He entered with a 0.53 ERA, and 0.35 WHIP in the previous eight games. In Sundayâs intermittent rain, Suarez had difficulty firmly controlling his curveball. But he found success with a slider and fastball, allowing three hits and no walks. He has issued one walk in 21 innings this season.
âItâs more energy, more high energy,â Suarez said of relieving. âYou get to come into games that are close. Itâs more fun to play. I filled every role throughout my long, long, five-year career in college baseball. Itâs fun doing different things. I enjoy closing.â
The âBows scored the gameâs first run on Noah Rodriguezâs run-scoring single in the second inning.
But the Anteaters scored three in the third inning to seize control. Liam OâBrien, who did not allow a hit in the first two innings, walked the first two Anteaters in the third.
âWeâve seen him go seven (innings), weâve seen him go deep into games,â Hill said of OâBrien. âSometimes when itâs all clicking, he can really hold his velocity. Really wanted to make that move right there after two walks.â
Left-handed Grant Garman was brought in to face UCIâs six-lefty lineup.
But Garman was called for a balk placing two runners in scoring position. Daniel Polasekâs double brought home Noah Alvarez with the tying run. Frankie Carneyâs sacrifice fly plated Efren Ortega to give UCI a 2-1 lead. Later in the inning, reliever Saul Soto hit Landon Gaz with a pitch to force home the Anteatersâ third run.
âI donât think it was the weather,â UCI coach Ben Orloff said. âI just donât think we played too good the first two nights. This is like when weâre good. We pitch. We play good defense. We manage the strike zone. We do enough situationally. When we do that, that was a good version of us today.â
BIG WEST BASEBALL STANDINGS
Team
Conference
Overall
W
L
Pct.
GB
W
L
UC San Diego
11
5
.733
â
15
16
UCSB
10
5
.667
½
22
11
Cal Poly
10
5
.667
½
18
16
CS Fullerton
11
7
.611
1
17
17
CS Northridge
9
9
.500
3
19
15
UC Irvine
7
8
.467
3 ½
16
19
Hawaii
8
10
.444
4
18
14
CSU Bakersfield
6
9
.400
4 ½
15
21
UC Davis
7
11
.389
5
15
18
Long Beach St.
6
12
.333
6
11
23
UC Riverside
5
10
.333
5 ½
10
24
SCHEDULE & RESULTS
Saturday
Hawaii 3, UC Irvine 0
UC Riverside 9, Cal State Northridge 8
UC Santa Barbara 11, UC San Diego 10, (11 inn.)
Long Beach State 4, Cal State Fullerton 3
x-Oregon State 11, Cal Poly 6
Today
UC Irvine 5, Hawaii 1
Cal State Fullerton 6, Long Beach State 2
UC Santa Barbara 3, UC San Diego 1
x-Oregon State 3, Cal Poly 2
Tuesday
Cal Baptist at UC Riverside
Loyola Marymount at CSU Northridge
Pepperdine at Cal Poly
Pacific at UC Davis
UC San Diego at San Diego State
USC at Long Beach State
Cal State Bakersfield at Fresno State
San Diego at Cal State Fullerton
UC Santa Barbara at UCLA
x-nonconference game
UC IRVINE 5, HAWAII 1
ANTEATERS
PLAYER
AB
R
H
BI
BB
SO
LOB
Polasek lf
5
2
3
2
0
0
0
Farmer cf
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Carney rf
2
0
1
1
1
0
0
Doyle cf/lf
2
0
1
1
2
1
0
Gutierrez 3b
3
0
1
0
1
2
1
Castagnola 3b
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
Reyes 1b
5
0
1
0
0
2
7
Gaz dh
4
0
0
1
0
1
0
Fjelstad ss
5
0
0
0
0
4
3
Alvarez 2b
3
2
1
0
2
1
0
Ortega c
4
1
0
0
1
0
2
Totals
33
5
8
5
8
11
13
RAINBOW WARRIORS
PLAYER
AB
R
H
BI
BB
SO
LOB
Nahaku cf
4
0
0
0
0
1
1
Zeglr.-Namoa rf
4
0
1
0
0
2
1
Shimao 3b
2
0
0
0
2
0
0
Martin 1b
2
0
0
0
0
1
1
Bethancrt ph/1b
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
Watanabe ph/2b
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
Hoffman dh
0
1
0
0
1
0
0
Rolbiecki ph/dh
2
0
0
0
1
0
1
Redding c
4
0
0
0
0
0
1
Nushida lf
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
Wright ph/lf
3
0
0
0
0
1
1
Rodrigz. 2b/ss
4
0
2
1
0
1
0
Takata ss
2
0
0
0
1
0
1
Lau Kong 1b
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Totals
30
1
4
1
5
7
7
Team
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
UC Irvine
0
0
3
1
0
1
0
0
0
5
8
0
Hawaii
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
4
2
PITCHING & GAME NOTES
UC IRVINE
PITCHER
IP
H
R
ER
BB
SO
Ross
2
1
1
1
2
1
Ojeda (W 2-3)
4
0
0
0
3
5
Suarez (S 2)
3
3
0
0
0
1
HAWAII
PITCHER
IP
H
R
ER
BB
SO
OâBrien (L 1-4)
2
0
2
2
3
3
Garman
â
2
1
1
1
1
Soto
â
2
1
1
1
1
Waite
0
0
0
0
0
0
Tomii
3
3
1
1
0
4
Okada
1 â
1
0
0
0
2
Shipley
1 â
0
0
0
3
0
Records: Hawaii (18-14, 8-10 Big West), UC Irvine (16-19, 7-8 Big West)
EâMartin, Redding. DPâUC Irvine 1. 2BâRodriguez, Polasek, Carney, Alvarez. SHâCarney. SFâCarney. HBPâDoyle, Gaz. SBâRolbiecki, Carney, Doyle, Gutierrez.
WPâTomii. BkâGarman. HBPâSoto (Gaz), Waite (Doyle).
UmpiresâHP: Michael Chukerman. 1B: Gary Gilman. 2B: Jason Venzon. 3B: Denver Dubreuil.
Tâ3:00. Aâ4,462 (tickets issued), 1,938 (turnstile).