UH softball opens season with shutout

The University of Hawaii softball team managed just one hit in its season opener on Thursday. That lone single was all the Rainbow Wahine needed to pull out a 2-0 win over Ole Miss.

Sharla Kliebenstein delivered a two-out bases loaded single in the bottom of the sixth in support of pitcher Kaia Parnaby, who struck out 11 and gave up one hit in UH’s first game of a doubleheader to open the Oceanic Time Warner Cable Paradise Classic.

The dramatic victory pushed UH head coach Bob Coolen to 799 wins leading the program and the Wahine gave him No. 800 with a 7-2 victory over UAB in the second game.

"It’s a tribute to the players," Coolen said of the milestone. "The program is what makes a coach successful because we never hit a ball, field a ball or throw a ball. The players are the ones that go out and get the Ws.

"We’ve had a lot of highs in this program and we currently have a senior class that’s been very successful and that’s contributed to a lot of Ws in my tenure here. Getting 800 just means I’ve been coaching a long time and have come across the paths of a lot of young ladies that mean a lot to me and my family and this program. It’s a tribute to all of them that have persevered."

Parnaby has been a part of 52 of those wins and began her senior season with a sparkling performance against Ole Miss and earned the fourth save of her career against UAB. She finished the night with 19 total strikeouts while giving up one hit and no walks.

"I just wanted to get out to a good start to the season," Parnaby said. "I know they’re going to rely on me and I just wanted to prove that them relying on me is worth it."

Parnaby, a senior left-hander, was in control from the start of Thursday’s opener. She struck out the side in the top of the first and retired the first 13 Ole Miss hitters in order. She didn’t allow a baserunner until she hit RT Cantillo in the fifth then promptly struck out the next two hitters.

Parnaby went 5 2/3 innings before giving up the Rebels’ lone hit, an infield single by Brittany Broome on a grounder to third. Three pitches later, Broome took off for second and was thrown out by UH catcher Kayla Wartner to end the inning.

"I wanted to come out there and show some dominance and it kept going," Parnaby said.

Ole Miss junior Shelby Jo Fenter, who finished with 12 strikeouts, held UH without a hit through five innings, allowing just two baserunners –a walk and a hit batter — in that stretch.

UH’s decisive rally began in the bottom of the sixth with a one-out walk to Kelly Majam, who then stole second. After a strikeout, Leisha Li’ili’i and Jessica Iwata walked to load the bases.

Kliebenstein then lined a 1-2 pitch into left field to score Majam and pinch-runner Kiani Wong with the go-ahead runs.

"I was really happy because at the end of the season last year I wasn’t performing as well as I wanted to," Kliebenstein said. "Ever since last semester started I was so determined to just try my hardest to get better and try to be kind of a leader."

"It’s huge for her," Coolen said. "She was probably the most confident one stepping up to the plate. You could see it as the game went on. … It’s something that will bode well as we move forward."

The seventh was Parnaby’s only inning without a strikeout. She got a pop-out to third followed by a fly out to Kliebenstein in left, the only ball handled by a UH outfielder in the game, and closed out the win with a soft grounder to Li’ili’i at first on her 95th pitch.

In the second game, UAB — which upset No. 16 Washington earlier in the day — took a 2-1 lead in the third inning against UH freshman Keiki Carlos when Kate Armstrong looped a two-out single into shallow left to score Caitlin Attfield from second.

The Wahine tied the game in the bottom of the inning on Majam’s RBI double into left center to score Brynne Buchanan from first. Majam went to third on the throw to the plate and scored the go-ahead run when a pickoff throw went into left field.

Majam added an RBI single in the fourth and Alyssa Villalpando and Kaile Nakao also drove in runs as UH pulled way. Carlos earned the win after giving up four hits, walking five and striking out three over four-plus innings.

Parnaby struck out eight of the nine batters she faced in relief, giving her 19 in the doubleheader, which ended at 11:17 p.m.

"We’ll go home get some sleep, make sure we go to class and be ready tomorrow night," Parnaby said.

The tournament continues Friday at Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium with UH facing St. Mary’s (0-2) at 6 p.m. and No. 16 Washington (1-1) at 8.