Even in defeat, Rainbow Wahine seniors enjoy their moment
In his 33-year tenure as Hawaii head softball coach, Bob Coolen had never had nine seniors play at the same time in a game.
After Friday’s 2-1 walk-off win in 10 innings over Cal State Fullerton, Coolen found himself staring at his metallic board trying to figure out how it might be possible to pull off on senior day.
With the Titans pulling away with three runs in the top of the fifth inning of the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader sweep, Coolen made 13 substitutions, allowing all nine seniors, including injured Maya Nakamura, to be on the field at the same time in an 8-0 loss to Cal State Fullerton.
The Titans won the first game 4-0, mathematically eliminating the Rainbow Wahine from winning the Big West.
The Titans were up 7-0 in UH’s home finale when Coolen had Nakamura, who suffered a career-ending injury four weeks ago against Cal Poly, enter the game for one pitch at first base.
Nakamura was able to walk gingerly out on the field and play for one pitch that was thrown well outside of the strike zone before she was subbed out.
It allowed her to receive a standing ovation from the crowd.
“To get them all out there and get them all in and give them an opportunity in front of their families was my goal,” Coolen said. “(Maya) willed that to happen. She could have disappeared. She could have stepped away from the team to just take care of herself, but she was around, she was in the weight room, she was at practice and she was encouraging the girls.”
Cal State Fullerton shut out Hawaii on the day to improve to 32-16 overall and 18-4 in BWC play, percentage points ahead of Long Beach State (24-27, 19-5). The Titans end the regular season next week hosting LBSU for three games.
Hawaii (20-23, 13-9) has already clinched a winning record in conference play heading into its final three games next week at UC Davis.
The Rainbow Wahine were held to seven hits total, with two coming from senior Ka‘ena Keliinoi.
First baseman Dallas Millwood, who moved to second to allow Nakamura to play for a pitch at first, singled off the wall for a hit in her 116th game with the Rainbow Wahine since transferring from Nevada.
The 2018 Kamehameha alumna, who has started all 43 games this season coming back from an ankle injury, will join baseball coach Rich Hill’s staff next season as the first female Hawaii baseball graduate assistant.
“As I grew closer to Rich Hill, he became more serious about the offer and I told him it would be such an amazing experience,” Millwood said. “One of my really good friends, Jocelyn Alo, she just started playing with the Savannah Bananas, and women in sports, women in baseball, we’re making moves. It’s a great opportunity.”
Senior Piper Neri, who took just her second at-bat of the season against the Titans, ended the fifth inning with a running catch in left field.
Senior Chloe Agueda, who hadn’t played all season, got her first at-bat and grounded out to the right side of the infield, moving a runner up to second base.
McKenna Kostyszyn, who transferred to Hawaii from New Mexico, recorded the final four outs for Hawaii in the doubleheader nightcap, allowing an unearned run in her first appearance since March 8.
“It’s awesome that they utilized the COVID year and they took it to heart that they needed the education, they wanted to travel, and it’s really nice to see all of these different families show up for them and get them through their degrees and their education,” Coolen said. “I didn’t know how the game was going to go. You never know. Last night was sort of the culmination of everything and it was rewarding to win that one game and today I knew they would be distracted, tired, and just overwhelmed by the events of everything. It is what it is every year I’ve been doing it.”
