The education of Hawaii’s freshman players continues this week as the 19th-ranked Rainbow Wahine make their second road trip of the volleyball season.
All five of the newcomers have had serious on-the-job training, including Saturday’s nerve-testing reverse sweep of Cal State Fullerton, where freshman middles Tiffany Westerberg and Braelyn Akana were switched to outside hitter against the Titans. It showed the versatility of the rookies, something that may again happen this week with junior hitters Jolie Rasmussen and Brooke Van Sickle not yet cleared due to injuries.
“It’s just playing volleyball,” said Westerberg, a hitter in Set 2 who moved back to middle in Set 3 when Akana entered the match on the outside. “Wherever Coach Rob (Robyn Ah Mow) wants to put me that’s what I’m going to play. Wherever the team needs me.
“Braelyn coming in just shows how good our team is, that anyone can come off the bench and play great.”
Akana had only played in two sets of one match prior to Saturday’s 22-25, 20-25, 25-23, 25-15, 15-12 win over Fullerton. In the final three sets, she finished with six kills with one error and was in on four of the team’s 14 blocks as Hawaii avoided losing to the Titans for the first time in 41 meetings.
“I think we learned a lot from last weekend,” said freshman hitter Riley Wagoner, who had nine kills when playing in the first three sets. “We learned how to adjust to different scenarios, that we need to stay focused and play more consistently.
“Our freshmen are really versatile. We don’t care where we play as long as we help the team.”
The same can be said for senior Norene Iosia, who reprized her setter-hitter role from last season on Saturday starting in Set 3. Hawaii scrapped the offense it had been running, where Iosia and senior setter Bailey Choy alternated setting three back-row rotations, for Iosia setting when in the back row and playing outside for three front-row rotations.
“Norene was a huge factor, she played like it was the last game she’d ever play,” Westerberg said. “That’s how we should all get on board and start playing.”
Hawaii (13-2, 3-1 Big West) again continues to be the “lone wolf” in the nine-team conference, where the Wahine are the only match for an opponent the majority of weeks. It again happens this week, where Hawaii is at Cal Poly (12-5, 5-0) Friday then makes the 100-mile trek back down the 101 to play UC Santa Barbara (15-1, 5-0) Saturday; it’s the lone contest of the week for the Mustangs and Gauchos.
Cal Poly is riding a 27-match home winning streak — the longest active in the country — and are 6-0 this season at Mott Athletic Center. The last time the Wahine won in San Luis Obispo was a five-setter in 2016.
Friday is “White-Out Night” for Cal Poly, still without All-American senior opposite Torrey Van Winden (concussion protocol). The Mustangs have relied on junior hitter Maia Dvoracek, the conference player of the week three of the past four weeks, who is averaging 3.77 kills per set and is second nationally in aces (44).
UCSB continues to ride the arm of senior hitter Lindsey Ruddins (4.33 kps) to the program’s best start since 2002. The Gauchos’ only loss came on Aug. 31 at Colorado.
Last season, Hawaii won in the Thunderdome in five, but UCSB returned the favor at the Stan Sheriff Center, sweeping the Wahine the night after Hawaii upset then-No. 11 Cal Poly in five.
“It’s one match at a time,” Wahine assistant Kaleo Baxter said. “Both teams are well-coached, both have attackers who we’re very familiar with (Dvoracek and Ruddins). It’s a matter of getting them out of their comfort zone, disrupting them and what they like to do, and us converting digs into points.
“Both places are difficult to play. Every team is basically a rival and we know they play their best against us.”
Note
Hawaii looked to avoid the problem with its last road trip by leaving Wednesday morning. The Wahine were scheduled to leave the Thursday before the Baylor Invitational but didn’t depart Honolulu until Friday, not arriving in Waco until Friday evening before their Saturday afternoon match with then-No. 17 Missouri.
BIG WEST WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL
All times Hawaii
>> Friday, 4 p.m. No. 19 Hawaii (13-2, 3-1) at Cal Poly (12-5, 5-0)
>> Saturday, 4 p.m. No. 19 Hawaii at UC Santa Barbara (15-1, 5-0)
>> TV: None
>> Radio: 1500-AM
>> Streaming video: BigWest.tv
>> Series: Hawaii leads Cal Poly, 40-7; leads UC Santa Barbara, 41-9.
