No longer bound by the same conference, familiar foes Hawaii and Nevada will meet at Les Murakami Stadium after a rare year off.

The two schools, which spent 12 years together in the Western Athletic Conference before joining different leagues, will play each other for the 65th time since 2001 on Friday night in the first of a four-game series.

Rainbow Warriors coach Mike Trapasso has been around for 58 of those meetings, but will see a new-look Wolf Pack team under first-year coach Jay Johnson.

Johnson replaced Gary Powers, who retired last year after 31 seasons and 937 wins with Nevada.

"It’s a new coach and really a new team from the last time we’ve played them — very few guys left over from that team we played two years ago," Trapasso said. "Jay, being a first-year head coach, will have the team be a reflection of him and not Gary Powers, so nothing from all of those years playing Nevada in conference will be similar. We’re approaching it like we’re playing somebody brand new."

The Wolf Pack will be just the second team UH has played this year not currently ranked in the top 25 of any of the major polls.

Hawaii has played the fourth-toughest schedule in the country according to BoydsWorld.com and is 7-9 overall after losing three of four at Texas, which currently is second in the country in RPI.

Junior Jordan Richartz, a transfer from Bellevue Community College, hit .462 (6-for-13) with three RBIs against the Longhorns, who are 16th in the country with a 1.99 team ERA.

Forced into a designated hitter role because of a shoulder injury that will require surgery after the season, Richartz’s batting average has steadily climbed to .308 after a 2-for-17 start.

He’s hit safely in nine of his past 11 games and leads the team with 10 RBIs.

"I’ve gotten acclimated to the pitching here now at the Division I level and I’m feeling confident every time I step into the box," Richartz said. "I thought I was ready until (Oregon’s) Jake Reed froze me up twice on a 95 miles per hour fastball. I think you can tell I’m a lot more comfortable and have a lot more rhythm at the plate."

Richartz is one of three UH starters hitting over .300 as Hawaii closes in on the 20-game mark, which is when Trapasso likes solidifying an every day lineup.

Freshman Marcus Doi will start in left field when healthy, but that might not be until after the UC Santa Barbara series in two weeks.

Doi, who is hitting .400 (12-for-30), has battled a groin tear all season and it flared up again last Friday in Texas, forcing him to miss the final three games of the series.

"We’re going to let that thing cool down because it’s been pretty aggravated and he needs to rest for two or three weeks because it’s a significant injury," Trapasso said.

Trapasso hinted Thursday that freshman left-hander Quintin Torres-Costa, who hasn’t pitched in more than a year after having Tommy John surgery, could potentially pitch this weekend.

His elbow is good to go but he’s currently dealing with tenderness in his throwing shoulder.

"He could (pitch) if the shoulder feels good but I think we’re looking more at UAB," Trapasso said. "It’s really close. Once we get over this hurdle with inflammation in the shoulder we’ll see him."

Hawaii has won eight of the past 12 meetings against Nevada and hasn’t dropped a series to the Wolf Pack since 2009.

Nevada is playing its first nonconference series since opening Mountain West Conference play with six losses in nine games.

Junior Kewby Meyer, a 2011 Kamehameha alumnus, leads the team in hitting (.314), hits (22), doubles (7) and runs scored (12).