RAINBOW WAHINE VOLLEYBALL
Wahine survive scare at Boise
From staff and wire reports
BOISE, Idaho » It wasn't just a letdown. It was a meltdown, in what was supposed to be the easier of the two road matches this week.
Yet somehow Hawaii managed to survive its own poor passing and an inspired effort from Boise State. The 13th-ranked Rainbow Wahine scrambled most of the night in Bronco Gym, including holding off five game points in Game 3, before turning back the Broncos 30-28, 30-32, 32-30, 30-22.
The victory clinched at least a share of the Western Athletic Conference title for Hawaii (22-5, 14-1) which wraps up the regular season at Idaho (10-16, 9-5) tomorrow. The Vandals took over third place from Nevada (15-13, 9-6) last night by sweeping the Wolf Pack in Moscow, 30-24, 30-23, 30-20.
"We need to regroup and be ready for Idaho," Hawaii coach Dave Shoji said. "We're expecting a tough match from them. We're feeling very fortunate right now, fortunate to win both Games 1 and 3.
"We got some breaks at the end of Game 3 and we also started playing like we should have all match. We almost waited too long."
Senior hitter Sarah Mason had her second consecutive double-double (25 kills, 12 digs) and added four aces to lead Hawaii. Sophomore hitter Jamie Houston also had 25 kills, while junior middle Juliana Sanders was in on a career-high 10 blocks.
Senior middle Cameron Flunder and sophomore hitter Jeanette Jenkins led Boise State (11-16, 4-10) with 16 kills each, and freshman middle Arlee Tamietti -- who didn't play against the Wahine in Honolulu -- added 13 kills.
The match lasted 2 hours, 7 minutes, about 45 minutes longer than when the Wahine swept the Broncos in Honolulu Oct. 9. Last night, Hawaii played from behind in every game, with the most impressive rally coming in Game 3.
Trailing 29-24, the Wahine began digging out of the deep hole with a kill by Mason that staved off the first of five game points. Senior reserve Cayley Thurlby served for the next five points, including an ace, that led to Hawaii serving for the game at 30-29.
The Broncos tied it on a kill by Jenkins, but two BSU errors gave the Wahine the 2-1 edge. Hawaii trailed early in Game 4, catching the Broncos at 15 then breaking away on a 6-0 serving run by senior setter Kanoe Kamana'o to help finish it off.
Shoji considers Boise State to be the best serving team in the WAC. The Broncos lived up to his expectations with nine aces ... but none after Game 2. The Wahine also had nine aces, led by Mason's four, and Hawaii won the blocking battle 17-6.
"It was hard to get any emotion after the quick turnaround we had," Shoji said. "We had a very emotional match on Sunday (against New Mexico State), then had to get on a plane Monday. We had nothing going as far as energy or emotion, but we had enough when it counted and played well enough to win."
Hawaii def. Boise State 30-28, 30-32, 32-30, 30-22
RAINBOW WAHINE (22-5, 14-1 WAC)
|
g |
k |
e |
att |
pct. |
bs |
ba |
d
|
Sanders |
4 |
8 |
4 |
21 |
.190 |
0 |
10 |
1
|
Gregory |
4 |
6 |
2 |
14 |
.286 |
0 |
5 |
2
|
Houston |
4 |
25 |
11 |
55 |
.255 |
2 |
2 |
8
|
Kamana'o |
4 |
2 |
1 |
4 |
.250 |
0 |
7 |
7
|
Duggins |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.000 |
0 |
0 |
3
|
Mason |
4 |
25 |
3 |
45 |
.489 |
0 |
4 |
12
|
Kaufman |
4 |
6 |
4 |
14 |
.143 |
0 |
2 |
1
|
Thurlby |
2 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
-.500 |
0 |
0 |
3
|
Woolford |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.000 |
0 |
0 |
1
|
Lee |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.000 |
0 |
0 |
16
|
Totals |
4 |
72 |
26 |
155 |
.297 |
2 |
30 |
54
|
BRONCOS (11-16, 4-10)
|
g |
k |
e |
att |
pct. |
bs |
ba |
d
|
Klein |
4 |
4 |
2 |
17 |
.118 |
0 |
2 |
3
|
Kelley |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.000 |
0 |
0 |
2
|
Hewitt |
4 |
6 |
2 |
16 |
.250 |
1 |
0 |
0
|
Flunder |
4 |
16 |
2 |
24 |
.583 |
0 |
4 |
1
|
Claussen |
4 |
8 |
7 |
26 |
.038 |
0 |
1 |
13
|
Tamietti |
4 |
13 |
12 |
36 |
.028 |
0 |
2 |
2
|
Rose |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.000 |
0 |
0 |
9
|
Starring |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.000 |
0 |
0 |
1
|
Ardron |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.000 |
0 |
1 |
0
|
Stroud |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.000 |
0 |
0 |
17
|
Jenkins |
4 |
16 |
7 |
43 |
.209 |
0 |
0 |
2
|
Totals |
4 |
63 |
32 |
162 |
.191 |
1 |
10 |
50
|
Key -- g: games; k: kills; e: hitting errors; att: attempts; pct.: hitting percentage; bs: block solos; ba: block assists; d: digs.
Aces -- Hawaii (9): Mason 4, Houston 2, Kamana'o 2, Thulby. Boise State (9): Flunder 3, Tamietti 3, Stroud 2, Claussen. Assists -- Hawaii (64): Kamana'o 60, Sanders, Duggins, Mason, Thurlby. Boise State (59): Klein 54, Rose 2, Flunder, Claussen, Stroud.
T -- 2:07. Officials -- Tom Given, Conrad Johnston. A -- 675.
WAC standings
|
Conference |
Overall
|
|
W |
L |
Pct. |
W |
L
|
Hawaii |
14 |
1 |
.934 |
22 |
5
|
New Mexico State |
12 |
2 |
.857 |
29 |
2
|
Idaho |
9 |
5 |
.643 |
10 |
15
|
Nevada |
9 |
6 |
.600 |
15 |
13
|
San Jose State |
8 |
6 |
.571 |
17 |
10
|
Utah State |
6 |
8 |
.429 |
13 |
16
|
Boise State |
4 |
9 |
.308 |
11 |
15
|
Fresno State |
2 |
12 |
.143 |
4 |
22
|
LaTech |
0 |
14 |
.000 |
6 |
25
|
Yesterday
Hawaii def. Boise State, 30-28, 30-32, 32-30, 30-22
Idaho def. Nevada, 30-24, 30-23, 30-20
Tomorrow
Hawaii at Idaho, 5 p.m. HST