HPU pitcher stingy in holding down Vuls on Good Friday

By BILL O’REAR

Tribune-Herald sports editor

Hawaii Pacific University’s Michael Murray celebrated Good Friday by pitching two-hit baseball through eight innings as the Sea Warriors defeated the University of Hawaii at Hilo 6-1 on Friday afternoon at Wong Stadium.

Murray’s gem through eight innings propelled HPU to the victory in Game 1 of a Pacific West Conference doubleheader to open a four-game series in Hilo. Game 2 was cancelled due to heavy rain and won’t be made up.

The Sea Warriors improved to 19-12 overall and 11-10 in the PacWest; the Vulcans, dipped to 9-29 and 6-23, respectively. The teams will play a twinbill with two seven-inning games at 11 a.m. today at Wong to finish off the series.

Murray, a 5-foot-10 southpaw from Castle Rock, Wash., gave up a single to UHH’s Joshua Wong in the first inning, then didn’t allow another hit until the eight inning when junior Tyler Nitahara ripped a base hit to left field. Then suddenly, the rock-solid Sea Warriors’ hurler looked more like Bill Murray pitching than himself, walking two straight batters to load the bases.

Wong followed with a sacrifice fly to center field to plate Nitahara and slice the HPU lead to 6-1. But Murray settled down and got both Austin Cusack and Tyson Goo to fly out to end the Vulcans’ threat.

In the bottom of the ninth, sophomore Nolan Hoppie replaced Murray and ran into a little trouble with two outs — giving up a single to James, a double to Nitahara and a walk to Jordan Murai to fill the bases — before getting the final out to seal the victory.

Murray (6-2) earned the win — HPU’s fifth straight over UHH this season — and it snapped a five-game losing skid for the Sea Warriors. The HPU ace struck out two and walked five while allowing the two hits and a run.

Vulcans starter Dane Kinoshita (1-3) pitched well at times and probably deserved a better fate. But his fielding error in the first inning after the Sea Warriors loaded the bases was costly. The visitors scored two runs on the play with Kinoshita trying to cover first base on a hard-hit grounder to first baseman Murai and then mishandling the throw from Murai.

HPU scored three runs in the first and with an effective Murray on the mound, that’s all the Sea Warriors needed.

HPU added solo runs in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings to stretch the cushion to 6-0 before the hosts finally broke through for a run in the eighth off the steady Murray, who kept the Vulcans off-balance all afternoon with a variety of pitches, including a sneaky fastball and hard-breaking curve.

Kinoshita, a 5-9 junior right-hander out of Mid-Pacific Institute on Oahu, pitched five innings and took the loss. He gave up six hits and five runs — two earned — to go along with two strikeouts, four walks and three hit batters. He beaned HPU slugger Blake Amaral twice and didn’t give the talented right field much to swing at each time they faced each other.

Amaral, a former Kamehameha-Hawaii standout, finished the day 0 for 3 with two groundouts and a fly out. But he also scored two runs after being hit by Kinoshita pitches.

UHH junior Casey Bohlmann replaced Kinoshita in the sixth and hurled two innings. He allowed three hits and a run and struck out a batter. Sophomore Makana Ramie pitched the final two shutout innings, giving up three hits.

Senior Troy Ajer and juniors Russel Doi and Jace Poole each had two hits to lead the 12-hit Sea Warriors attack. Ajer also had two runs batted in while junior Kale Sumner had a triple and scored two runs.

Nitahara was the lone Vulcan to pair hits, with a single and a double. Wong (one RBI) and James each added a base hit off HPU pitching.

But on this edition of Good Friday, it was Murray that proved the difference by handcuffing UHH’s offense through eight innings while his teammates plated six runs.

HPU 300 011 100 — 6 12 1

UHH 000 000 010 — 1 4 2

UHH softball

shuts out Seasiders