By BILL O’REAR
By BILL O’REAR
Tribune-Herald sports editor
When your team is struggling, you look for bright spots in any outcome — win, lose or rainout.
“We had great weather today, it was in the mid-80s,” University of Hawaii at Hilo baseball coach Joey Estrella said after his squad dropped a doubleheader, 12-3 and 18-2, against Grand Canyon University on Friday.
The Pacific West Conference baseball games were played in Phoenix. The teams play another doubleheader at 10 a.m. today to end the four-game series.
With the sweep, the Antelopes improved to 14-15 overall and 11-11 in the six-team PacWest. The fifth-place Vulcans slipped to 5-22 and 2-16, respectively.
But it was a long day for Estrella and his Vulcans as the host Antelopes combined for 27 hits and 30 runs against UHH pitching and took advantage of seven errors.
“We had a really good practice on Thursday and talked to the team about all the things we needed to do better against Grand Canyon,” Estrella said. “But then we just didn’t do them in the doubleheader today, things like throwing first-pitch strikes, limiting their opportunities and playing solid defense. In the first game, we had five errors in the first three innings and that really put us in a big hole.”
In the opener, GCU exploded for four runs in the bottom of the first inning and then after UHH plated a solo run in the second, the hosts added four more runs in the third to go up 8-1. The Antelopes then extended their lead to 12-1 with three runs in the fourth and one in the fifth. The Vulcans plated two runs in the ninth to close scoring.
Junior Brady Wager started for GCU and went seven strong innings. He picked up the win. UHH starter Bryan Raines, a senior out of Castle High School on Oahu, hurled three innings and “pitched well,” according to Estrella. But the shaky defense — the five errors — plus five walks and two beaned batters only helped the Antelopes bust out to the 8-1 advantage.
Raines took the loss.
Seniors Kyle Peterson and Joey Bristyan each had two hits for the hosts. No one paired hits for the Vulcans.
In Game 2, GCU stepped up the offensive attack on UHH pitching, scoring six runs in the first inning, four in the second and one in the third to grab an 11-1 lead. Then after the visitors scored a run in the fourth, the Antelopes came back to plate seven runs in the fifth to go up 18-2 and put the game on ice.
“We didn’t play well in the first game, but it only got worse in the second game,” Estrella said.
Coltin White started for GCU and hurled four innings. He earned the win. UHH starter Gavin Kinoshita, a junior out of Mid-Pacific on Oahu, lasted only an inning against the hot-hitting hosts and took the loss.
Junior Jeremy Kaaukai, a junior out of Hilo High, and Greg Cleary, a junior from Pocatello, Idaho, each had two hits to lead the Vulcans.
To make the doubleheader even seem longer, Estrella said two players missed the twinbill with the flu and three others missed Game 2 while not feeling well.
“I think it’s the flu,” the UHH coach said. “We were a little shorthanded today. But hopefully (today) we can start fresh and play much better.”
Following today’s twinbill with GCU, the Vulcans travel to California and play new PacWest member Cal Baptist in a four-game series, Tuesday through Thursday in Riverside, Calif. The teams play singles games on Tuesday and Thursday, and a doubleheader on Wednesday.
At Phoenix
Game 1
UHH 010 000 002 — 3 6 5
GCU 404 310 00x — 12 8 1
Game 2
UHH 010 100 0 — 2 4 2
GCU 641 070 x — 18 19 3