IRVINE, Calif.—The No. 23/25-ranked University of Hawai'i softball team was voted to capture the 2013 Big West softball title by the nine head coaches in the annual preseason poll on Wednesday. The Rainbow Wahine received four first-place votes and 76 total points to edge out defending champion Long Beach State who also had four first place votes but 73 overall points.
 
Hawai'i is returning to the Big West after spending the last 16 seasons as a member of the Western Athletic Conference. In its original stint in the BWC from 1985-96, UH won one conference crown and advanced to two NCAA tournaments in 1994 and 1995. In their finals season in the WAC in 2012, the 'Bows started the year on a school-record 21-game win streak; won its fourth WAC title; and punched a ticket to its 10th NCAA tournament. Hawai'i finished the season ranked No. 22 in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association poll with an overall record of 44-9.
 
The Rainbow Wahine enter the 2013 season ranked No. 23 in the NFCA/USA Today poll and No. 25 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll released on Tuesday. Hawai'i returns 13 letterwinners with one redshirt while welcoming six freshman into the fold. UH is led by senior All-Americans Kelly Majam and Jessica Iwata with senior all-conference pitcher Kaia Parnaby in the circle. Majam and Iwata enter their senior campaigns as two of the most prolific hitters in school history. As a junior, Majam is already the school's career leader in home runs (54) and walks (117) and is closing in fast on the career hits record (180) and the career runs record (176). Last season, Iwata passed former All-American Tyleen Tausaga to capture the UH career RBI record with 159. She is also No. 2 in home runs to Majam with 47; No. 3 with 145 runs scored; and No. 4 with a .373 batting average. Much will be expected of Parnaby this season after spending the past three years behind All-American pitcher Stephanie Ricketts. But Parnaby is up for the challenge after posting a career-best 16-3 record with a career-high nine shutouts with a 1.47 ERA in 2012.  For her career, Parnaby has compiled a 47-15 record with a 2.09 ERA in 411.1 innings pitched while holding opponents to a .212 batting average with 452 strike outs to just 104 walks.
 
Hawai'i opens the season next week with the Oceanic Time Warner Cable Paradise Classic, Feb. 7-9. Ole Miss, UAB, St. Mary's (CA), and No. 16 Washington will all be in Honolulu to kick-off the season.


2013 Big West Softball Preseason Coaches Poll

No.	School	Pts.
1.	Hawai'i (4)	76
2.	Long Beach State (4)	73
3.	Pacific (1)	58
4.	UC Santa Barbara	52
5.	UC Davis	51
6.	Cal State Fullerton	33
7.	Cal Poly	24
8.	UC Riverside	22
9.	Cal State Northridge	16

( ) First-place votes