BERKELEY – California continues its tour of tournaments as the team heads to Hawai'i for a five-day, five-game slate on Tuesday.
 
Their fourth road trip begins just a few days after closing the Mary Nutter Classic in Palm Springs with a 4-1 tournament record, including a doubleheader on Sunday that ended with a dramatic 6-5 comeback win over Long Beach State.
 
The Golden Bears (15-1) leave the state for the first time this season as they head to Honolulu for the 2018 Texaco Malihini Kipa Aloha Tournament and face host-team Hawai'i on Wednesday at 6 p.m. (PT).  The Bears-Rainbow Warriors series favors the Blue and Gold who lead 23-10.
 
It will be a special trip for Bears pitcher Kamalani Dung, a native of Waianae, Hawai'i, who will get to play for the first time in her home state as a collegiate athlete. Dung transferred from Fresno State after the 2017 season.
 
Typically an annual trip for the Bears, Cal took 2017 off to play in the Puerto Rico Tournament in honor of former head coach Donna Terry, the namesake of the softball stadium in San Juan. Cal and UH last faced off in 2016 when the Bears edged their Big West opponents 3-2.
 
Hawai'i holds a 6-6 record and is coming off a tough 1-4 weekend falling twice to Loyola Marymount in a doubleheader and twice to Weber State, before pulling out the third game against the Wildcats to finish on a high note.
 
The Rainbow Warriors are led at the plate by junior Nicole Lopez with .410 batting average, nine runs and 16 hits, while Brittany Hitchcock (2.97 ERA) and Dana Thomsen (3.00 ERA) share the load in the circle each with a 3-3 win-loss record.
 
While Cal's competition will be strong throughout the week, the Bears head into their fourth week of contests battle-tested.
 
Last week, Cal recovered from two deficits to beat North Carolina (4-3) and Long Beach State (6-5), while run-ruling CSUN (8-0) and blanking Fullerton (3-0). Cal's lone loss of the season was a 5-1 fall to then sixth-ranked Texas A&M. However, Cal did not go gently in the loss or any other game through the weekend.
 
In the last stretch, Cal outscored its opponents 22-13, posting four homers, two from freshman Mikayla Coelho (.412), who also led with 7 hits. Freshman Sabrina Nunez led from the plate with a .600 batting average.
 
The pitching corps continues to be a force, with Zoe Conley (0.95 ERA) leading in the circle. The redshirt junior stepped in as relief during Cal's comeback win in the top of the second with the Bears down three runs and stalled Beach's offense. She holds and 8-1 record. Dung (1.63) has also been noteworthy this season with a 7-0 win loss record.
 
Aside from sightseeing, on the diamond Cal will see UTEP (9-& on Thursday at 1 p.m., James Madison (9-2) on Friday at 11 a.m., East Carolina (6-9) on Saturday at 11 a.m. and Longwood (6-4) on Sunday at 9 a.m.
 
The Bears hold a combined 4-3 record against the programs, having never faced the Miners and going 0-2 with the Dukes. Cal last faced any of the four programs in 2015 when it just edged Longwood 4-3 in eight innings.
 
Overall, the Bears have built strong momentum so far outscoring opponents 96-22 this season and combining for a .334 average at the plate while holding opponents to a .186 clip.
 
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