Sunday, October 28, 2001
Wahine start slow Despite being the top two hitting teams in the conference, Hawaii and Nevada battled mostly at the serving line and the net.
before beating Pack
After losing game 1, UH
gets stronger and wins in 4By Grace Wen
gwen@starbulletin.comBefore 5,088 at the Stan Sheriff Center, the 11th-ranked Wahine defeated the Wolf Pack 26-30, 30-26, 30-23, 30-15. UH improved to 16-4, 8-0 in the Western Athletic Conference. Nevada falls to 13-5 and 7-3.
Nevada posted five aces and kept Hawaii's passing out of sync most of the night. The Wahine, however, answered the Wolf Pack's serving with a huge game at the net. Nohea Tano had nine block.
Nevada scored first on a Hawaii serving error. The missed serve was only a preview of the Wahine's struggles at the serving line. UH had 14 serving errors to two aces.
"We came out unemotional and lethargic," Hawaii coach Dave Shoji said. "Midway through the first game, we were tied ... we weren't really doing anything."
The two teams fought to 14-14. With Shannon Stemler at the serving line, Nevada took a 19-14 lead. Two kills by Michele More gave Nevada a 26-18 lead it wouldn't relinquish. A Stemler kill finished the first game for Nevada.
"They were good in the middle in the first game," Maja Gustin said. "We didn't expect that so much."
Hawaii almost let a 25-18 lead slip away in the second game. Jennifer Carey gave the Wahine a much needed lift with her hitting, scoring the next three points for Hawaii. A three-point serving run by LaBossiere brought the score to 28-26, but Hawaii closed the game with kills by Gustin and Kim Willoughby.
Willoughby hammered 25 kills, while Gustin blasted 17 as Hawaii outhit Nevada .301 to .127.
Hawaii's blocking in the next two games exploded. The Wahine wall quickly made anyone forget about the terrible passing that stalled the offense most of the night. The Wahine had six blocks and added four more in the fourth game to suffocate the Wolf Pack.
Hawaii plays Boise State today at 5 p.m. The Broncos have struggled in their first year in the WAC with a 1-7 record.
Note: Tanja Nikolic's parents were in attendance from Kastel Luksic, Croatia... San Jose State outlasted Fresno State 29-31, 30-28, 30-21, 15-30, 15-12 in Fresno.
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