HILO, Hawai`i--Leah Gonzales picked up two wins in the pitching circle and veterans Brinell Kaleikini and Kiarra Lincoln provided winning offense as UH Hilo opened their Pacific West Conference softball season with a pair of wins over Azusa Pacific at the UHH Softball Field.

The home team walked it off with a sacrifice fly off the bat of Lincoln in the opener to win it in eight innings, 5-4. Kaleikini had kept the game alive one inning earlier with a two-out, two-strike, two-run single to tie the game at 4-4. Gonzales picked up the win in relief, and then went the distance in the second game for the 5-1 victory.

The Vulcans are 2-0 in conference play and 7-7 overall. The Cougars fell to 4-9 on the year and they are now 0-4 in the PacWest. The two squads will meet again on Friday in a noon doubleheader.

When all was said and done after a twinbill win, Lincoln was 4-for-7 with a home run, a double, four RBI, four runs scored and the winning hit. Kaleikini was 3-for-5 with four RBI and the game-saving hit in game one. Gonzales pitched a total of 11 innings and allowed just one run. 

In the opener, Daniella Toschi hit a two-run bomb for the Cougars off of Vulcan starter Valerie Alvarado in the second. UH Hilo would even the game at 2-2 in the bottom half when Lincoln drove in two with a double. 

The Cougars would get the lead back in the fourth (3-2) when Amanda Woods doubled to lead off the inning and would later score on a sacrifice fly. APU added insurance in the fifth on another sac fly to make it 4-2 and chase Alvarado from the game.

That lead looked pretty secure with APU's Kat Ung in the pitcher's circle. But she was replaced in the sixth, and the Vulcans then went to work in the seventh. With one out, pinch-hitter Alana Alvarez singled, and back-to-back walks loaded the bases, bringing Ung back into the game. 

Ung popped up the first batter she faced, and with a 3-2 count was just one pitch away from ending the game. But Kaleikini slapped a single to right field to score two runners and send the game to the eighth. 

Gonzales worked around a hit batter and a single in the top of the eighth, and Kamalei Labasan got the bottom half of the inning started with a double to right-centerfield. Skylar Thomas followed with a looper to centerfield to send Labasan to third. After a walk and a fly out, Lincoln ended the game with a deep fly ball to send Labasan easily home. 

Gonzales pitched four innings, allowed no runs, four hits, no walks and she struck out three. Lincoln had three RBI in the contest.

Gonzales toed the rubber again in the second game, and got offensive help immediately when Lincoln homered to lead off the first. UHH added two more runs in the third on three hits--one an RBI bunt by Markie Okamoto and the other on a sacrifice fly from Kaleikini (3-0).

Two more runs crossed the plate for the Vulcans in the fifth when Kaleikini bunted home a run and Labasan singled in another. Meanwhile, Gonzales continued to work out of trouble as the Cougars had at least one runner on base every inning but couldn't score, until the seventh. Emily Moran led off APU's last chance with a double and would score on Becca Jewell's single to make it 5-1. The Cougars would load the bases, but the senior right-hander would get the final out on a pop-up.

Gonzales improved to 4-1 with the two wins, pitching 11 innings and scattering 15 hits. She didn't walk a batter all day and gave up just one run. Lincoln was 3-for-4 in the second game with three runs scored and the home run. Kaleikini was 2-for-2 with two RBI.

Jenna Gorman was 3-for-4 in the nightcap to lead the Cougars.