UH-Hilo’s Callen Perreira has been doing this college softball coaching thing for 30 years, but on March 30 at Concordia he saw a first.
With each pitcher working on a no-hitter entering the seventh, Perreira looked up and saw a scoreboard that read zeroes all the way across.
“I’ve never seen anything like that,” he said.
Another oddity was the road trip itself. In 13 days, the Vuls (23-14, 16-8 Pacific West Conference) played 17 times, and one 12-game PacWest stretch saw them get just one day off.
Never a night, seemingly, in the same place.
“I’ve never seen anything close to that,” Perreira said.
And if the Vuls have their way, he still hasn’t seen anything yet. With 12 regular season games to go, starting with a noon home doubleheader Saturday against Hawaii Pacific, the expiration date is still unknown.
The survival stage of the season is pau. It’s UHH’s turn to sink or swim among the Sharks.
“As a team, we just wanted to come together and prove to ourselves that we could do it,” junior Vevesi Liilii said. “With all the problems against us, we could still come together as a team.”
UHH got back home Monday from their whirlwind tour and got a little rest — but not too much rest. Sophomore standout Kiarra Lincoln said she was hitting with her sister, Kamehameha softball standout Dioni Lincoln, the very next day.
The two-game set against the Sharks (26-17, 18-7) marks the biggest home date for the Vuls since Perreira returned as coach in 2017.
“Every team has its up and downs,” Lincoln said, “I think because of the chemistry we have, we never have a super bad game.”
Of UHH’s 10 losses on the trip, seven came by one run, including three at the end-of-the-road Tournament of Champions.
“There is no excuse to be tired,” Lincoln said. “It did have an affect on us, but we need to be more mentally strong.”
With the first release of the regional rankings still 11 days away, UHH is in fourth place, just one and a half games behind the second-place Sharks in the PacWest standings. The teams also will meet in a doubleheader April 28 in Honolulu to close the regular season, but Saturday will be the Vuls’ first chance this season to face Hawaii Pacific drop-ball specialist Jordan Curry, who boasts an 18-5 record and 1.80 ERA. The senior right-hander has seven shutouts this season, including three at the Tournament of Champions.
Vuls pitchers have combined to throw six shutouts, including three by Isabelle Mejia (8-2, 3.16 ERA) and two from Valerie Alvarado (6-5, 3-11), the two two pitchers whom Perreira expects to get starts Saturday.
After carrying the Vuls in the circle earlier in the season, Mejia went through struggles at Azusa, didn’t pitch against Concordia, then rebounded last weekend against Humboldt State, firing six solid innings.
“Hopefully, she’s back,” Perreira said. “We’ve shown the ability to play with everyone. We can play with anybody.”
Speaking of things the veteran coach has never quite seen before: count Lincoln’s sweet swing among them.
The 2017 Kamehameha grad continues to make the sizable jump from BIIF play to NCAA Division II look seamless. Lincoln leads the Vuls in runs scored (29), triples (2), home runs (4) and RBIs (27), and her .313 average is second behind Maria Steadmon (.315).
“I guess I’ve adjusted as college went on, because college coaches will find holes in your swing, and they will pitch it there all the time,” Lincoln said. “You have to make the adjustment, mentally, because small things in your swing will help you cover those holes.”
With Lincoln and Waiakea grad Skylar Thomas leading the way with four home runs apiece, the Vuls have hit a PacWest-best 27 bombs so far.
Saturday’s doubleheader marks a home opener of sorts for Liilii. The Iolani grad and transfer from Arizona Western returned from injury just in time to see the Vuls have consecutive doubleheaders against Dominican moved to Kailua-Kona.
“While I was injured I was busy doing drills,” she said. “Just seeing them play gave me a drive to hurry up and get here so I could help.”
Liilii has been vaulable since her return, playing in the outfield and at first and hitting .312 with three home runs.
“We all have that drive to hit,” she said. “A lot of times we’re like, “Sorry’, if we don’t get a hit.
“We say, “Don’t worry, you’ll get it the next time.”’
