Hawaii Tribune-Herald
Hawaii Tribune-Herald
The UH-Hilo softball team is playing at the Tournament of Champions, which is a bit of a misnomer because two of the best Division II teams are not there.
The tournament, hosted by Cal State Stanislaus, features the three West Region conferences: PacWest, California Collegiate Athletic Association, and Great Northwest Athletic Conference.
All of the CCAA and GNAC teams that qualified for the NCAA Division II West Regionals last season are at the three-day tourney at Turlock, Calif.
The two PacWest teams — national runner-up Dixie State and Cal Baptist — are not at the tournament. The Red Storm are ranked 19th in the country while the Lancers are currently ninth.
Still, that didn’t stop the Vulcans from scoring a major upset with a 3-0 win over Cal State Monterey Bay on Friday, and that’s no April Fool’s joke.
The Otters, from the CCAA, advanced to the West Regionals last season.
But in a bid to sweep a pair of NCAA postseason teams from last year, the Vuls struck out.
Sonoma State, also from the CCAA, defeated UHH 5-2 in the back end of a doubleheader.
The Vuls have now lost five of their last six games, including four straight earlier to Dixie State and Cal Baptist.