WAIPAHU, Hawai'i – Hawai'i Pacific University overcame a bad start, but had a nightmare of a seventh inning as Drury took the final game of a five-game series 14-8 on Sunday afternoon at Hans L'Orange Park.
 
The Sharks (4-5) dropped the series to the Panthers (7-5) with the loss after splitting doubleheaders on Friday and Saturday.
 
The Sharks were led offensively by senior first baseman Jared Bannister of San Ramon, Calif./Bishop O'Dowd who was 2-for 2 at the plate and drew four walks in six plate appearances while posting an RBI and a run scored. He was the only Shark with a multiple hit day. Freshman leftfielder Cole Kashimoto of Kaneohe, Hawai'i/Saint Louis went 1-for-3 with two RBI for HPU.
 
HPU used eight pitchers in the contest with sophomore righthander Cole Mayeshiro of Mililani, Hawai'i/Mililani, being the most effective, going five innings with five strikeouts while allowing an unearned run on five hits with two walks.
 
The Sharks were stunned in the first inning by the Panthers who plated five runs on one hit. HPU suffered two errors. Junior lefty Nick O'Connor of Las Vegas, Nev./Chaparral faced four batters without recording an out, hitting two and walking two more in allowing four runs, three earned,  without a hit. After a leadoff walk, Drury's Jackson Dierenfeldt went to second on an error by O'Connor on a failed pickoff attempt, followed by back-to-back hit batsmen to load the bases. When O'Connor walked the Panthers Aaron Mann to score the first run and keep the bases loaded, he was lifted for Mayeshiro. A ground ball to short that resulted in a fielding error drove in the second run. A walk scored the third run before Mayeshiro struck out the next two batters. Jacob Mitchell followed with a two-RBI single to give the Panthers a commanding 5-0 lead.
 
The Sharks nearly recovered in the bottom of the fourth. A leadoff throwing error put senior third baseman Joe Gallagher of Sacramento, Calif./Del Campo on. After a walk, the Sharks scored their first run when Kashimoto drilled an RBI single to left. A walk loaded the bases for senior designated hitter Jake Selco of West Hills, Calif./El Camino Real, who drew an RBI walk for the Sharks second tally. DU starter Collin Fraley was pulled for Logan Pittman who issued back-to-back walks to Bannister and junior Braxton Wehrle of Las Vegas, Nev./Bishop Gorman to pull the Sharks within one at 5-4. Gallagher came back up with the bases loaded and put the ball in play, but was ruled to have been hit with the ball outside the batter's box to end the inning.
 
The Panthers retook control in the top of the sixth, scoring three runs on a throwing error and a two-RBI single for an 8-4 advantage.
 
Then in the seventh, Drury plated six runs on two RBI singles, a two-RBI double, a throwing error on a stolen base attempt, and a passed ball to put the Panthers up 14-4.
 
HPU scratched back for four runs in the eighth thanks to a pair of wild pitches to score one run, a bases loaded walk, a passed ball and an RBI single from redshirt freshman pinch hitter Joseph Abell of St. Louis, Mo./Parkway North.
 
Pittman (1-0) was credited for the win going 1.1 innings allowing one hit with the two walks and a strikeout. Starter Fraley went 3.2 innings allowing just one hit, but was charged for the four unearned runs on seven walks with three strikeouts. Dylan Frandsen was one of the seven DU pitchers used who hurled two-thirds of an inning allowing four runs, two earned without a hit, but suffered four walks to go with three strikeouts.
 
The Sharks will return to action at Hans L'Orange Park on Thursday when they open a four-game PacWest Conference series with Azusa Pacific. Thursday's single game is set for 6:30 p.m.