Four of the players who helped carry Hawaii to its 25th consecutive NCAA volleyball tournament appearance will carry All-Big West accolades into Friday’s first-round match against Illinois in Seattle.
Senior middle Emily Maglio, who played in all 107 sets for the Rainbow Wahine (20-7) this season, earned her third consecutive first-team honor. Joining her were senior libero Savanah Kahakai, junior hitter McKenna Granato and sophomore setter Norene Iosia.
Maglio led the conference for a second consecutive year in blocks (151 total) and blocks per set (1.50), which ranks her 21st and 13th nationally. The Canadian national also was second in hitting percentage (.392) and had 21 double-digit kill matches as well as two double-doubles (kills-blocks).
It was the second first-team honor for Kahakai and Iosia, who also played all 107 sets. Kahakai led the Wahine with 402 digs with 85 assists and 23 aces. The Farrington High graduate had 22 double-digit-dig matches and ranks No. 3 all-time at UH in digs with 1,403, trailing just Elizabeth Ka’aihue (1,416) and Kim Willoughby (1,460).
Iosia had team highs in assists (1,022) and aces (34) with 15 double-doubles (assists-digs), finishing second to Kahakai in digs (281) and to Maglio in blocks (67).
Granato ranked fourth in the Big West in kills en route to earning her first all-conference recognition. She has a career-high 390 kills and was second for UH in aces (33) in leading the Wahine with 444 points (kills, blocks, aces).
Conference champion Cal Poly had two of the three top honors, with Sam Crosson named coach of the year and senior setter Taylor Nelson player of the year. Mahalia White of UC Davis was named freshman of the year.
Hawaii faces Illinois (21-10) in a 3 p.m. match Friday at the University of Washington’s Alaska Airlines Arena Hec Edmundson Pavilion. It is the fourth time in eight seasons that the Wahine are opening the NCAA tournament at UW.
Host and No. 8 seed Washington (24-7) takes on LIU Brooklyn (20-9) in the second match.