Hawaii has played some of its best volleyball after its more disappointing defeats.
The goal now is to find that level of play without suffering too many more losses.
The Rainbow Wahine return home to continue Big West play against Cal State Fullerton on Friday and UC Irvine on Saturday following a 1-1 road trip last weekend in Southern California.
The Rainbow Wahine (10-5, 3-1) had won 12 consecutive sets before dropping three in a row at Long Beach State in a match that UH led at the 17-point mark in all three sets.
UH responded with an emphatic sweep of UC San Diego, winning every set by at least seven points.
Coach Robyn Ah Mow admitted she wasn’t totally surprised by Friday’s loss after watching practice throughout the week.
She credited her team’s resilience of Saturday, but is still trying to find that consistency to play at a high level for a longer period of time.
“We’ve got to figure it out and talk to the girls and (be) like, ‘What is it?’,” Ah Mow said before Tuesday’s practice. “Playing tentative, why? I don’t know. We’ve played already five weeks. … The train is going to keep moving and you’ve got to figure it out.”
Outside hitter Riley Wagoner, who along with middle Amber Igiede has played on the previous three UH teams that won the Big West and played in the NCAA Tournament, said it’s always difficult to find a high level of consistency throughout a season.
A lot of it is more than just physical ability on the court.
“It’s part of the process almost every year, but it’s definitely a little bit more drastic this year than I’ve had in my other previous years I’ve been playing,” Wagoner said Tuesday. “There’s a lot of mental pieces that go into that. Trying to piece things together and figure out how the mental side of things can affect our game and how to cope with the things we deal with in each set I think has been a big factor for us this year.”
Entering the Big West season, Hawaii had been in every match, with the only lopsided defeat coming at the hands of current No. 5 Oregon.
The Beach were the second team to sweep Hawaii this year despite trailing 17-16 in each set. The same problems that arose in losses to TCU, Liberty and UCLA again presented themselves at the most inopportune times.
“Sometimes they do surprise me,” Ah Mow said. “Like I said, the practices didn’t go the way I thought it would. I kind of gotta get on some players here and there. I always tell them if you’re an athlete you’ve got to have that chip on your shoulder. You’ve got to have that competitive side.”
It wasn’t all bad for the Rainbow Wahine against the Beach, who snapped an 11-match losing streak to UH. Hawaii outblocked Long Beach State 12-8 and held them to a lower hitting percentage than the Tritons a day later.
Hawaii had only one ace with 10 service errors against LBSU but turned that around the following night, with junior Paula Guersching getting five aces in her first start in place of Caylen Alexander, who missed her first match of the season.
“I feel like we have a lot of depth this year. We have a lot of depth that can play and it’s just about being consistent,” Ah Mow said. “If we can get nine to 10 players consistently coming to practice and doing the same things, then that’s better for us. We can interchange lineups and what-not.”
Hawaii is 91-1 all-time combined against its two opponents this weekend.
Rainbow Wahine Volleyball
At SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center
Friday
Hawaii (10-5, 3-1 Big West) vs. Cal State Fullerton (1-12, 0-4), 7 p.m.
Saturday
Hawaii vs. UC Irvine (3-12, 1-3), 7 p.m.
TV: Spectrum Sports (Ch. 1016)
Radio: KKEA, 1420-AM / 92.7 FM
