Vulcans continue long homestand, host Saints for four
 
Hawai`i Hilo (0-4) vs. Saint Martin's (0-0)
Sunday, Feb. 11, 6 p.m., Wong Stadium
Monday, Feb. 12 (DH), 4/7 p.m., Wong Stadium
Tuesday, Feb. 13, 6 p.m., Wong Stadium
Live Stats at hiloathletics.com,
 
Hilo Headlines: UH Hilo will continue a seven-week homestand with a four-game set against St. Martin's of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, Sunday-Tuesday (Feb. 11-13). The Vulcans opened the season last weekend, dropping four games to Midwest power Augustana.
 
Home, Sweet Home: The Vulcans will play 31 home games this season, 32 if you count the Alumni game (Feb. 24). That's 22 home dates. Their first 20 games this season will be at Wong Stadium, before they hit the road on March 24.
 
Best Deal Ever: You can pick up your season ticket to all of those games for just $60. Yes, sixty dollars!! Join Kal's Pals by calling 932-7603 or email head coach Kal Miyataki at kmiyatak@hawaii.edu. In addition to the game tickets, you will also receive a Vulcan camo tech shirt, a cooler with Vulcan logo and gift certificates to Kenechi's, Kuhio Grill and Kozmic Cones.
 
Vikings Victorious: Augustana, picked to finish second in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, swept the season-opening series by the counts of 15-4, 4-3, 9-5 and 12-6. The Vulcans had leads in games two and three, but the Vikings rallied back in each to head back to South Dakota with a 4-0 record.
 
Scoresheet filled: One of the goals for head coach Kal Miyataki in the series was to get players into the line-up, to play all Vulcans in uniform. Mission accomplished. 18 different position players got ab-bats, and 14 different players took the mound.
 
By the Numbers (Offense): Micah Carter, serving in the designated hitter role, hit .400 in the four games, starting in three of them. He also had a double, walked, and was hit by a pitch. Senior shortstop Edison Sakata is hitting .333, while Phillip Steering is also over the .300 mark at .308. Steering and Jonathan Segovia have a pair of RBI, while Mana Manago leads with three runs scored. Steering was also walked four times.
 
By the Numbers (Pitching): Freshman Kyle Alcorn was impressive in his collegiate debut, allowing no earned runs in 4.2 innings of starting work. He gave up just two hits against a slugging Augustana team and fanned seven. Fellow freshman Travis Burleson allowed just one earned run in five innings on the mound, giving up four hits and striking out six.
 
Scouting the Saints: Saint Martin's (Lacey, Wash.) is picked to finish fifth in the GNAC this year, after finishing 17-30 a year ago with a 14-25 conference mark. Aaron Shoup returns to anchor the pitching staff, and along with outfielder Steven Sordahl, were both Second Team All-GNAC picks in 2017. Relief pitcher Luke Hare is a pre-season all-west region selection, recording four saves last season with a 1.96 ERA. The two teams last met in a four-game series hosted by the Saints in 2008, with the Vulcans winning all four contests. After playing the Vulcans, the Saints will play a four-game series at Hawai`i Pacific.
 
Around the Horn: No. 13 nationally ranked Azusa Pacific and Point Loma opened the 2018 season with sweeps. The Cougars traveled to San Francisco State and took down the Gators, while the Sea Lion hosted and took all three games from visiting North Alabama. Fresno Pacific won one of three games against No. 9 nationally ranked Chico State.
 
The Coach: Head coach Kallen Miyataki is in his fifth full season as the leader of the Vulcan program, but his history in a UHH uniform goes much deeper than that. He had previous roles as an associate head coach, assistant coach and player for the Vulcans. He was the catcher, captain and team MVP for UH Hilo in 1983, and after a stint at UH Manoa as a grad assistant and assistant coach, he came back to Hilo for a 14-year run as an assistant (1988-2001). He was the associate head coach for three years (2004-06) before taking over the controls of the program in the fall of 2014.