VOLLEYBALL

UHH defeats Fresno Pacific in 4 sets

Marley Strand-Nicolaisen had 18 kills and Sienna Davis came up with 15 digs to lead Hawaii Hilo to a 15-25, 25-21, 25-16, 25-20 volleyball victory over Fresno Pacific in Hilo on Monday night.

The Vulcans improved to 8-11 overall and 3-11 in the PacWest.

Rupia Inck had a match-high 22 kills for the Sunbirds (11-9, 6-7).

Earlier in the day, Strand-Nicolaisen was named the freshman of the week after helping the Vulcans to a 1-1 week.

The Ka‘u High graduate had 41 kills, five aces and three block assists in nine sets. She also had 34 digs.

Seasiders rise up to No. 4 in D-II poll

Brigham Young-Hawaii, riding an 11-match win streak, moved up a spot in Monday’s AVCA Division II Coaches Top 25 to No. 4.

The top two teams ahead of the Seasiders (18-1, 13-1 PacWest) remained the same, with Concordia-St. Paul (22-1) the unanimous No. 1 followed by Tampa. Minnesota-Duluth (22-2) moved up a spot to No. 3, while Central Missouri (22-1) dropped two spots to No. 5.

Chen 3-peats as conference player of week

Thanks to what is being considered the most dominating performance by a PacWest player during a single week, Brigham Young-Hawaii junior hitter Shih Ting Chen earned her third consecutive conference player of the week honor.

Chen led the then-No. 5 Seasiders to a 3-0 week with sweeps of Fresno Pacific, Dixie State and Academy of Art. She led the conference in points with 55 kills, five aces and a block assist, averaging 6.72 points per set as BYUH ran its win streak to 11.

Chen hit .357 on the week, with just nine errors on 129 attempts. She also had 34 digs.

Chaminade’s Walker is defender of week

Chaminade sophomore libero Branda Walker was named the defender of the week after helping the Silverswords volleyball team to wins over Academy of Art and Fresno Pacific. The libero out of McKinley had 43 digs in eight sets, ranking third in the conference with 5.38 digs per set.

SOCCER

Top freshman honors for UHH’s Novella

Hawaii Hilo freshman defender Anthony Novella was named the freshman of the week, scoring the Vulcans’ lone goal against Holy Names.

Novella punched in the tying goal in the 73rd minute, his third score of the season. Holy Names won 2-1, with the match winner coming with 56 seconds left in regulation.

UHH women earn first regional ranking

Hawaii Hilo is ranked fifth in the NCAA Division II West Region poll, a first for the program.

The Vulcans (9-3-2, 6-3-1) are the only PacWest team in the top 10 of the Oct. 23 rankings. The top six teams in the final poll earn spots in the NCAA D-II national championship tournament next month.

The PacWest regular-season champ gets an automatic berth. Cal Baptist (9-1-0) leads the conference standings.

Vulcans’ Hufford is freshman of week

Hawaii Hilo goalie Jenna Hufford recorded two shutouts last week en route to being named the conference’s freshman of the week.

Hufford had 10 saves, three in a 4-0 blanking of Holy Names and seven in a double-overtime draw with UHH.

Nakata chosen as defender of the week

Cal Baptist senior goalie Rosie Nakata, a Mililani High product, was named the defender of the week in helping the Lancers to a pair of shutouts on the road.

Nakata made six stops, four in a 3-0 win at Dominican and two in a 6-0 victory at Notre Dame de Namur.

BYUH ties Academy of Art in 2 overtimes

The Brigham Young-Hawaii men’s soccer team battled Academy of Art to a double-overtime scoreless draw Monday in Laie.

The Seasiders (7-3-3, 5-2-2) and Urban Knights (8-4-2, 5-2-2) couldn’t manage a goal over 110 minutes, but combined for 47 fouls, including four yellow cards.

Hawaii Pacific men win, women tie

Brais Garcia scored on a pass from Felipe Silva in the 79th minute to lead the Hawaii Pacific men’s soccer team to a 1-0 win over Holy Names on Monday in Kaneohe.

The Sea Warriors improved to 9-4-2 overall and 7-2-1 in league play. The Hawks fell to 4-9-3 and 3-6.

» Monday’s match between the HPU and Holy Names women ended in a 1-1 tie after two overtimes. Courtney Okazaki netted a first-half goal for the Sea Warriors (5-7-1, 3-4-2) after a Hawks defender slipped and fell on the Atherton Field turf. Ashlyn Ubongen scored the equalizer for Holy Names (4-9-1, 0-7-1) in the 82nd minute.

GOLF

Vulcans men ruling Rose Invitational

The Hawaii Hilo men’s golf team dominated the Dennis Rose Invitational’s first day, posting a team score of 13-under 563 in two rounds on Monday at the Waikoloa Kings’ Course, 15 shots clear of second-place Cal State-Stanislaus.

Chris Shimomura is in first place at 7-under 137, followed by Vulcans teammates Corey Kozuma (70-68—138) and Dalen Yamauchi (71-70—141), who are tied for third.

Chaminade (611), Brigham-Young (620) and Hawaii Pacific (628) are in seventh, eighth and 10th.

Cal State Chico is in first place on the women’s side at 614, six shots ahead of Hawaii Hilo (620). Hawaii Pacific (714) is in eighth place in the nine-team field.

UHH’s Kristen Sawada is at 153, tied for sixth.