Hawaii looking for pitching

RENO - Hawai'i coach Mike Trapasso has been disappointed with his team's pitching through the first two games of the WAC Baseball Tournament. Neither Ian Harrington or Marc Rodrigues, both weekend starters during the season, haven't gone past three innings in their starts.

Harrington pitched two-plus innings in the 11-1 loss to Nevada, and Rodrigues, despite being given a 10-0 lead, couldn't get past the third inning.

"We're not the same (staff) as we were earlier this year," Trapasso said. "We haven't been the same since our first road trip to Sac State. We haven't been throwing our secondary pitches for strikes like we were earlier.

"With some guys it mechanical. Some guys it's mental, a confidence thing. It's not the same stuff we saw the first half of the season."

FOUL BALL MACHINE

Nevada first baseman Shaun Kort really made SJSU starter Steven Vidal work.

On his first at-bat, Kort had a 10-pitch at-bat, including several fastballs, before hitting a two-out bloop single. In the fifth, he fouled off seven straight pitches before grounding out to first base.

MENTAL LAPSE

Ex-Fallon star Owen Mackedon incurred the wrath of third-base coach Jay Uhlman when he swung at a 3-0 pitch with the bases loaded and one out.

Mackedon swung at a high fastball, and eventually struck out looking. As he jogged out to the field during the changeover, Uhlman barked at him.

BALL CARRYING WELL?

Landon Hernandez and Eli Christensen, both of whom homered, were asked about how well the ball carries at Peccole Park.

Hernandez said he didn't notice any difference between Peccole and other parks around the WAC, but he did say that the ball carries much better at Peccole than it does in Honolulu.

"I don't think about it," Christensen said. "If it carries, great. A first-pitch fastball. I was just trying to get out ahead of it."