HONOLULU — Bob Coolen’s 1,100th victory at Hawaii featured an in-person reminder of some of the best from his 33 years as the Manoa program leader.
With about a dozen members of the 2010 Women’s College World Series team on hand, the Rainbow Wahine put on a worthy show for this weekend’s UH Sports Circle of Honor inductees in a 2-1 win over Big West leader Cal State Fullerton in 10 innings on Friday night.
Ace Addison Kostrencich channeled program greats Stephanie Ricketts and Kaia Parnaby, who threw out twin first pitches, by going all 10 innings in a nine-hitter.
[Note. See below for more photos of the game.]
Kostrencich gave UH (20-21, 13-7 BWC) a chance, and it finally capitalized in the third extra inning. Seniors Mya’Liah Bethea and Ka‘ena Keliinoi put together back-to-back one-out hits. With freshman Keely Kai up to bat with two outs in the No. 9 spot – Kai was in for an ill Madixx Muramoto – Coolen called for a gambit.
Kai, an Iolani alumna, executed a fake bunt and Bethea and Keliinoi went for the double steal. Titans catcher Jessi Alcala hurried a throw to get Bethea at third and it bounced past Hannah Becerra.
“We gotta put people in motion and see what happens,” Coolen said. “Always looking for an errant throw and we got it, we got it.”
Bethea rounded third and yelled as she sprinted into home for the walk-off. Teammates piled out of the dugout and mashed Bethea into the backstop padding as UH brought CSUF (32-16, 18-4) slightly back to the pack, and remained mathematically alive for the Big West championship. It will need two more wins against the Titans in Saturday's 2 p.m./4 p.m. doubleheader to have a shot.
Members of the 2010 team – Ricketts, Parnaby, Kelly (Majam) Elms, Jessica Iwata and more – cheered right behind the current Wahine and joined them on the field afterward. Fourteen of the 21 members of that team that went 50-16 and upset Alabama in an NCAA Super Regional are expected in town for Sunday’s induction ceremony at the Royal Hawaiian Resort.
It made for a misty-eyed recollection for Coolen.
“The 2010 team, there was no drama. Everyone just played,” he told Spectrum News. “I’m emotional. It was just nice to see them all come back. We’re supposed to have more on Sunday, which is great.”
Bethea, the Big West home runs leader, is one of nine seniors who will be honored after Saturday’s home finale.
“It’s such a huge honor to have them back here. Emotions are high, everyone’s just trying to put on our best game,” said Bethea, a Las Vegas native who has numerous family members in town. “I’m glad we could put it all together today.”
Kostrencich (12-8) struck out just two against four walks, but repeatedly found ways to escape trouble.
Coolen didn’t think he’d had a pitcher go 10 innings since Parnaby in 2013.
Kostrencich, a Long Beach State transfer, said she hadn’t gone 10 innings in a game more than “once or twice” in her life, and definitely not in college. She negotiated fatigue in the later innings and when Bethea made the move for home, she was filled with profound relief.
“Evidently it was just switching between different pitches and working my (changeup) a little bit more later in the game to keep them off balance,” said Kostrencich, who is UH’s likely starter in Saturday’s nightcap.
Bethea said she was proud of both Kostrencich and Kai, the second baseman who had a shoestring catch near the foul line in right early in the game.
“She put it all together tonight,” Bethea said of Kostrencich. “Ten innings is a lot for a pitcher to throw. And she held her own, so I’m really proud of her. (And Kai), for any freshman, emotions are high, you can get a little nervous. But she held her own as well. I was so glad for her breakout tonight.”
Kamehameha graduate Colby McClinton hit a solo shot to center in the top of the second for Fullerton’s only run.
Brian McInnis covers the state's sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at brian.mcinnis@charter.com.