A day after a split with Stanford and UC Davis, Hawaii dipped four spots to N0. 10 in the AVCA Collegiate Beach Volleyball poll released Tuesday, then split another pair of matches in Davis, Calif.
The Rainbow Wahine opened Tuesday’s play with a 4-1 loss to No. 11 California and rebounded to sweep host UC Davis 5-0 to even their record at 2-2.
UH’s Kylin Loker and Riley Wagoner earned the BeachBows’ lone win against Cal with a 21-17, 21-12 victory over Grace Paulson and Katie Smoot at the No. 5 flight. UH’s No. 1 flight of Harlee Kekauoha and Brooke Van Sickle went to three sets before Cal’s Ainsley Radell and Jordan Polo pulled out a 21-11, 23-25, 15-11 win.
The BeachBows then rolled past UC Davis for the second straight day. Loker and Wagoner went 2-0 on the day with a 21-13, 21-11 win over Summer Bouquet and Jackie Walker. UH’s No. 2 flight of Amber Igiede and Pani Napoleon held off Megan Luly and Heather Reed 21-13, 10-21, 15-13 in the lone three-set match.
UH continues its season-opening road trip with a drive south to San Luis Obispo, Calif., to face five fellow Big West members over a two-day round-robin event. UH faces UC Davis and Cal State Northridge on Friday.
3 Sharks selected for honors
A trio of Hawaii Pacific University Sharks were honored Tuesday by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association.
Junior Amy Baum and senior Olivia West were named honorable mention. Baum also was named honorable mention on the Division II Conference Commissioners Association All-America team.
Meanwhile, head coach Reid Takatsuka was chosen as the West Regional finalist for the United States Marine Corps/WBCA Division II National Coach of the Year.
The Sharks wrapped up the season with a 13-1 overall record and 12-0 PacWest Conference record. The lone blemish for HPU came in a loss in the NCAA Division II Women’s West Regional, which ended a 38-game win streak dating back to 2019.
Baum led Division II in assists at 8.6 per game. West, a Utah State transfer, led the PacWest Conference in scoring with 18.2 points per game.
Takatsuka, a five-time PacWest Coach of the Year winner, was honored for the first time by the WBCA.
