Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 WAIPAHU, Hawaii (April 9, 2016) – The Hawaii Pacific baseball team held Military Appreciation Day and Throwback Night, and punctuated the special events with a pair of victories over visiting UH Hilo.
 
The Sharks claimed the opener 5-4 and won the return matchup 7-0 (seven innings) to begin a four-game PacWest Conference series at Hans L'Orange Park.
 
The Sharks (24-12, 16-10 PacWest), who recently returned from a 5-3 Northern California road trip, took the first game in walk-off style as backup catcher Robert Fram blooped a single – his first hit of the season – down the line in right to score Tyler Tokunaga from second base. Earlier in the home half of the ninth, Tokunaga singled in his brother Tanner to tie the game at 4.
 
HPU senior hurler Rico Garcia (5-3) picked up the complete-game victory in Game 1 after surrendering an earned run on eight hits. Kyle Detwiler (6-0) picked up the win in Game 2, and tossed five scoreless innings to out-duel heralded Hilo starter Jordan Kurokawa (2-5).
 
Tyler Tokunaga led the offense with three hits, while Austin Inabata went 2-for-2 in the opener. Tanner Tokunaga posted three hits in the return matchup and Keola Himan went 2-for-2 with a towering home run to left.
 
The Vulcans (4-23, 3-21) received two hits apiece from Kyle Yamada and Jacob Grijalva in the opener.
 
Garcia, a prep standout at Saint Louis School, was named to the National Collegiate Baseball Writers of America Preseason All-West Region First Team and earned a spot on the Preseason All-PacWest Team. He led the Sharks with a 6-4 record last season and a 2.18 ERA through 10 starts, including four complete games. The Kapolei native also paced HPU in 2015 with a school-record 87 strikeouts over 74 1/3 innings pitched, while opposing batters hit just .186 against him.
 
Garcia was named to the All-PacWest First Team in 2015 and was also honored as HPU's Male Athlete of the Year. Earlier this season, he set the program record for career innings pitched and continues to build on that mark.
 
The Sharks are aiming to improve on their 27-20 record from last year, which included a 17-15 mark in conference play. HPU was picked to finish seventh this season in a very competitive 10-team PacWest Conference via a preseason vote by league coaches. The team is guided by 11^th-year skipper Garett Yukumoto, who is the program's winningest coach at 313-208-1.  
 
HPU returns to Hans L'Orange Park on Sunday, April 10 (doubleheader at 11 a.m./2:30 p.m.) to conclude the home slate against UH Hilo.