More than half have only been here for two years.
Others have been around for all four.
But no matter how long their stay in Hawaii, the group of eight seniors honored after Saturday’s regular-season baseball finale against Nevada share one thing in common.
They all win.
UH will bid aloha to a group that all shared in last year’s regular-season Western Athletic Conference championship, a first for the Rainbows in nearly two decades.
RAINBOWS BASEBALL
At Les Murakami Stadium
» Who: Nevada (30-21, 10-5 WAC) vs. Hawaii (28-22, 8-7) » When: 6:35 p.m. today through Saturday » TV: OC Sports (Ch. 12) » Radio: KKEA, 1420-AM
Probable starters » Nevada: RH Bradey Shipley (8-3, 2.08 ERA); RH Tom Jameson (7-2, 2.13); TBA » UH: LH Jarrett Arakawa (6-5, 2.89); LH Scott Squier (3-4, 3.39); TBA |
Three of them — outfielder Collin Bennett and pitchers Jesse Moore and Matt Sisto — were also a part of the 2010 squad that won the WAC tournament and advanced to a regional final.
Hawaii hasn’t had a two-year run like that since back in the early 1990s.
"Those guys have been instrumental in a lot of wins," Hawaii coach Mike Trapasso said. "They’ve been an integral part in winning WAC championships and going to (a regional) and that’s a pretty neat thing."
Bennett, who transferred after one year of junior-college, is the only one who can finish a perfect 3-for-3, depending on how the next 11 days play out.
He’s done his part at the plate this year, leading the team with a .333 average and 30 RBIs.
"One thing I know is all three teams I’ve been on, I knew they were all talented enough to win a championship without even seeing the rest of the teams in the WAC," Bennett said. "Every team has been unique in its own way but still good enough to win a championship."
It’s rare to find a pitcher who’s a four-year starter at the Division I level, but Sisto has been exactly that.
Only Andrew McNally (1993-95, ’97) and Brady Perreira (1989-92) have started more games at UH than the right-handed Sisto, who ranks eighth with 3261⁄3 innings pitched and can crack the top 10 with one more win.
That will have to happen at the WAC tournament as Sisto likely won’t pitch against the Wolf Pack due to an injured groin.
"It’s a double whammy of both toughness and sadness because it’s my last chance to pitch in front of the fans and it’s a big series with a chance to win a championship if we can win all three games," said Sisto, who has won a career-high eight games this season.
Sisto says he can pitch, opening the door for a possible outing on Saturday if UH wins the first two games of the series. But even that might not be enough for Trapasso to allow his senior ace to take the mound.
"I don’t know if we can win the WAC tournament — with the bye or without the bye — without Matt Sisto because of how that would set everything else up with the pitching," Trapasso said. "I know he wants to pitch and I know he could and he’s closer to 100 percent, but I also know if he does pitch, he won’t be closer to 100 percent next week."
Without Sisto, Moore is a candidate to start Saturday’s finale.
He made seven starts as a junior when he also played 30 games at shortstop before injuring his shoulder.
He’s struck out 80 over his career and pitched meaningful innings in key games down the stretch on the past two championship teams.
"Whether you win two or three or only one, you want that one to be the last one," Moore said. "I know the other guys want to end on a high note and this is our chance to do so."
Of all the seniors, nobody has made a bigger jump in production from one year to the next than reliever Brent Harrison.
UH wasn’t expected to fill the void left by second-round draft pick Lenny Linsky with just one pitcher, electing instead to take a closer-by-committee approach.
Harrison, however, has stepped up to not only flourish in the closer role, but put up numbers similar to those of Linsky, UH’s single-season saves leader.
"I played (summer ball) in Kansas last summer and they made me their No. 1 set-up guy and it gave me confidence," Harrison. "I love to be out there and in that situation in a one-run game."
Harrison has allowed only four earned runs in 30 2⁄3 innings and is 2-1 with a 1.17 ERA with eight saves, which is tied for 10th-most in a single season.
"I don’t know if he’s gotten enough credit because aside from maybe strikeouts, the overall production is similar to what we saw out of Lenny the last couple of years," Trapasso said. "This guy came in to a season where there was no plan to have a closer and he just came in and earned it and saw an opportunity to grab it with both hands and never let it go."
NOTES
Fans attending Thursday’s game against Nevada will get 15 percent off purchases at the Rainbowtique until the fourth inning. Everyone making a purchase will receive a free UH Pez dispenser. Fans can also receive two churros for the price of one, compliments of Sodexo, through the fourth inning.
¯¯¯¯¯
AJ Bayus
6-0, INF, La Mirada, Calif.
Career stats
Year |
GP-GS |
AB |
R |
H |
2B |
3B |
HR |
RBI |
AVG |
2011 |
27-20 |
70 |
11 |
17 |
2 |
0 |
3 |
10 |
.243 |
2012 |
19-12 |
45 |
6 |
6 |
4 |
0 |
0 |
6 |
.133 |
TOTAL |
46-32 |
115 |
17 |
23 |
6 |
0 |
3 |
16 |
.200 |
Collin Bennett
6-1, INF/OF, Tacoma, Wash.
Career stats
Year |
GP-GS |
AB |
R |
H |
2B |
3B |
HR |
RBI |
AVG |
2010 |
63-63 |
229 |
41 |
74 |
19 |
2 |
5 |
49 |
.323 |
2011 |
47-41 |
161 |
22 |
47 |
10 |
0 |
0 |
20 |
.292 |
2012 |
48-48 |
159 |
27 |
53 |
6 |
2 |
2 |
29 |
.333 |
TOTAL |
158-152 |
549 |
90 |
174 |
35 |
4 |
7 |
98 |
.317 |
Garrett Champion
6-0, C, Santa Monica, Calif.
Career stats
Year |
GP-GS |
AB |
R |
H |
2B |
3B |
HR |
RBI |
AVG |
2011 |
40-39 |
124 |
25 |
30 |
4 |
1 |
1 |
12 |
.242 |
2012 |
29-22 |
76 |
8 |
15 |
4 |
0 |
0 |
6 |
.197 |
TOTAL |
69-61 |
200 |
33 |
45 |
8 |
1 |
1 |
18 |
.225 |
Brent Harrison
5-10, RHP, Galt, Calif.
Career stats
Year |
App |
GS |
IP |
H |
ER |
BB |
K |
SV |
W-L |
ERA |
2011 |
16 |
0 |
301/3 |
41 |
22 |
9 |
16 |
0 |
2-1 |
6.53 |
2012 |
19 |
0 |
292/3 |
27 |
4 |
5 |
12 |
8 |
2-1 |
1.21 |
TOTAL |
35 |
0 |
60 |
68 |
26 |
14 |
28 |
8 |
4-2 |
3.90 |
Jesse Moore
5-11, RHP, San Diego, Calif.
Career stats
Year |
App |
GS |
IP |
H |
ER |
BB |
K |
SV |
W-L |
ERA |
2009 |
12 |
0 |
24 |
26 |
13 |
15 |
17 |
0 |
0-1 |
4.88 |
2010 |
23 |
0 |
39 |
37 |
20 |
10 |
25 |
4 |
1-1 |
4.62 |
2011 |
11 |
7 |
432/3 |
62 |
32 |
14 |
26 |
0 |
0-3 |
6.60 |
2012 |
19 |
1 |
231/3 |
29 |
7 |
7 |
11 |
2 |
1-0 |
2.70 |
TOTAL |
65 |
8 |
130 |
154 |
72 |
46 |
79 |
6 |
2-5 |
4.98 |
Matt Sisto
6-5, RHP, Anaheim, Calif.
Career stats
Year |
App |
GS |
IP |
H |
ER |
BB |
K |
SV |
W-L |
ERA |
2009 |
14 |
13 |
821/3 |
104 |
40 |
14 |
50 |
0 |
5-4 |
4.37 |
2010 |
15 |
13 |
712/3 |
86 |
42 |
16 |
48 |
0 |
5-5 |
5.27 |
2011 |
15 |
15 |
831/3 |
81 |
34 |
28 |
55 |
0 |
5-5 |
3.67 |
2012 |
13 |
13 |
89 |
85 |
30 |
11 |
44 |
0 |
8-3 |
3.03 |
TOTAL |
57 |
54 |
3261/3 |
356 |
146 |
69 |
197 |
0 |
23-17 |
4.03 |
Zack Swasey
6-0, OF, Japan
Career stats
Year |
GP-GS |
AB |
R |
H |
2B |
3B |
HR |
RBI |
AVG |
2011 |
56-56 |
225 |
27 |
72 |
12 |
2 |
1 |
44 |
.320 |
2012 |
49-49 |
181 |
16 |
51 |
10 |
2 |
1 |
23 |
.282 |
TOTAL |
105-105 |
406 |
43 |
123 |
22 |
4 |
2 |
67 |
.303 |
Riley Welch
6-0, RHP, Scottsdale, Ariz.
Career stats
Year |
App |
GS |
IP |
H |
ER |
BB |
K |
SV |
W-L |
ERA |
2011 |
4 |
0 |
7 |
10 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
0 |
0-0 |
2.57 |
2012 |
4 |
0 |
5 |
4 |
2 |
3 |
3 |
0 |
0-0 |
3.60 |
TOTAL |
8 |
0 |
12 |
14 |
4 |
6 |
7 |
0 |
0-0 |
3.00 |