Matt Wong tied the game with an RBI double in the bottom of the eighth inning and Hawaii scored two more runs on a passed ball and an error to win the opener of a four-game series against Rutgers 11-10 tonight at Les Murakami Stadium.
Wong finished 3-for-5 with three RBIs and Jordan Donahue had a season-high three hits, scored three times and drove in two runs to lead Hawaii (5-8), which trailed 9-7 going to the bottom of the eighth inning.
UH improved to 5-0 when it scores at least five runs and more than doubled its entire offensive output in a four-game series loss to Vanderbilt last weekend.
Tai Atkins (1-1) pitched 2 1/3 innings of relief with four strikeouts, but gave up a two-out RBI single to Danny DiGeorgio in the top of the ninth to make it 11-10 with the tying run at second.
Junior right-hander Dalton Renne, the sixth UH pitcher used in the game, entered in relief and got Ryan Lasko to fly out to right-center to earn his first save of the season.
>> PHOTOS: Hawaii vs. Rutgers
It was a struggle for the UH bullpen after starter Andy Archer exited with a 7-1 lead to start the top of the fifth.
Archer allowed an unearned run on three hits and had six strikeouts without a walk, but was pulled after a season-low 73 pitches.
UH’s five relievers combined to give up nine runs on 10 hits in five innings with five walks and two hit batters.
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