Denver The 40th season of Western Athletic Conference baseball gets underway tonight when Hawaii hosts Florida State in a four-game series. The Rainbow Warriors take on the second-ranked Seminoles at 6:35 p.m. (HT). Four of the other five teams play their first games this weekend, while Rice opens its season Feb. 7 in the Astros College Classic.
Hawaii will have a new coach in tonights game as Mike Trapasso makes his debut. He replaced Les Murakami who coached the Rainbow Warriors for 30 years. UH is led by senior first baseman Gregg Omori who led the team last year with a .367 batting average and 63 RBI.
The other teams in the conference beginning their seasons this weekend are Fresno State, Nevada, San Jose State and WAC newcomer Louisiana Tech.
Fresno State was picked second in the WAC coaches preseason poll and are ranked 11th nationally by Collegiate Baseball. Senior Bob Runyon was picked the preseason Pitcher of the Year in the WAC. Last year, Runyon was 10-1 with a 3.54 ERA and 93 strikeouts. The Bulldogs play a three-game series at Santa Clara starting Friday afternoon.
Nevada was ranked 35th in the nation by Collegiate Baseball and was picked third in the WAC coaches poll. The Wolf Pack return the top two hitters in the conference from last year. Third baseman Mike Gillies hit .402, and first baseman JaRell McIntyre hit .388. Nevada travels to Pepperdine for a three-game series beginning Friday afternoon.
San Jose State plays St. Marys in San Jose on Friday, travels to Moraga to take on the Gaels on Saturday and return home for the final game on Sunday. Louisiana Tech begins its first season in the WAC hosting Mississippi Valley State in a doubleheader on Saturday and finishes the series with a game on Sunday.
Last years WAC champion, Rice, opens its season next Thursday when it plays in the Astros College Classic in Houston. The Owls will face Baylor, Texas A&M and Texas Tech. Rice is led by the preseason Player of the Year, third baseman Hunter Brown. Brown hit .335 with 44 RBI and 25 doubles last year.
The conference season begins Friday, March 8. Each team will play three games home and away for a total of 30 WAC games. The winner of the regular season will receive the NCAAs automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
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