HONOLULU — The Hawaii softball team kept pace with the top teams in the Big West by splitting Saturday’s doubleheader against then-leader UC Santa Barbara at Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium.

Milan Ah Yat’s go-ahead, sixth-inning solo shot gave UH a 4-3 win in the opener, but UCSB, which opened the week as the league leader, responded 5-3 in the nightcap to snap the Rainbow Wahine’s longest conference winning streak in six years.

Friday’s game was rained out. As of now, there are no plans to make up the game, UH coach Bob Coolen told Spectrum News on Sunday.

UH (26-15, 12-7 Big West) remained in third place heading into a four-game conference week. UH heads back to the road earlier than usual for a make-up game at Cal State Northridge (19-22, 12-8) at 9 a.m. Hawaii time Wednesday. The original game was rained out at CSUN on March 14.

From there, the Wahine head up the Central Coast to face last-place Cal Poly (8-33, 3-18) for three games starting Friday.

Cal State Fullerton, meanwhile, has won 10 straight to seize the top spot since losing two of three to UH. The top six teams will qualify for the inaugural Big West tournament at Cal State Fullerton.

With a six-hitter from Macy Brandl (13-5) UH extended its winning streak to six, the program’s longest in conference play since taking seven in a row spanning three different series in 2019.

Catcher Izabella Martinez hit a two-run homer in the third and had an RBI single to left in the fifth. UCSB got homers from Ainsley Waddell and Tehya Banks to tie the game at 3 in the top of the sixth. Ah Yat responded with her fifth homer of the season to add to the University Lab School graduate’s heroics in her first year with the program.

Center fielder Chloe Borges ended it with a catch on the run.

In the nightcap, however, UCSB (25-19, 14-6) got a Waddell two-run long ball off the glove of right fielder Larissa Goshi, the meat of a four-run fifth inning. It tied the UCSB team single-season record of 39.

Addison Kostrencich (11-10) took the loss with five runs allowed in 4 1/3 innings while Millie Fidge threw 2 2/3 innings of scoreless relief.

Chloe Borges got a two-out RBI in the bottom of the sixth. In the seventh, Carys Murakami reached on a one-out single and Ah Yat followed with a four-pitch walk. But Malaya Johnson came on in relief, struck out Jamie McGaughey and retired pinch runner Sunni Kahanu at second on a fielder’s choice for the save.

Brian McInnis covers the state’s sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at brian.mcinnis@charter.com.