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The Warriors made sure the Anteaters didn't move up the food chain last night. UH sweeps feisty Irvine
By Grace Wen
gwen@starbulletin.comThe Hawaii volleyball team trounced UC Irvine 35-33, 30-20, 30-25 in front of a crowd of 3,273 at the Stan Sheriff Center.
The third-ranked Warriors improved to 17-6 overall and 14-4 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation.
The Anteaters dropped to 11-14, 5-13. The Warriors are still in third place behind conference leader Pepperdine. The Waves swept second-place UCLA in Malibu to gain sole possession of first place.
"We were pretty businesslike," Hawaii coach Mike Wilton said. "I'm not sure about the zeal department.
"Our serving kept them out of any kind of rhythm. I don't think we were particularly sharp. I think we really need to start getting ready to go."
Added Warrior middle blocker Dejan Miladinovic:
"We made the game close. I don't know what it was, but once we got warmed up, we got into the groove. We couldn't find a solution for (Erick) Helenihi but we pretty much shut down every other hitter. I'll take that win."
Helenihi hit .327 with a match-high 26 kills. But the Warriors outhit the Anteaters .360 to .283. Outside hitters Costas Theocharidis and Eyal Zimet led Hawaii again. Theocharidis had 17 kills while Zimet chipped in 13.
The Anteaters had no bite yesterday but they were definitely stickier early in the match. UCI started the match with a subtle lineup change that kept it close. After being nearly invisible Friday, Helenihi moved to opposite and tallied more kills in Game 1 then he did in the previous night's match. Helenihi had 13 kills and was a nuisance for Hawaii's defense. UCI led 14-11 behind Helenihi's hitting. Hawaii evened the score at 17 with a tip by Theocharidis. The Anteaters took a 25-23 lead off a kill by Helenihi. Neither team held more than a two-point advantage after Hawaii reached game point. A kill by Theocharidis and a block by Tony Ching ended the marathon game.
Before the start of the second game, Miladinovic and UCI assistant coach Mike D'Allessandro nearly had an altercation during the side change. Miladinovic had to be restrained by teammates, but the exchange fueled the Warriors.
"He definitely brought me into the game," Miladinovic said. "The game was kind of slow before that. He brought some energy to us. I think it was useful for the way we beat them in the second and third game."
The Warriors jumped out to a 9-5 lead in Game 2. Theocharidis scored four consecutive points with two kills and two aces for an 18-11 lead. Hawaii increased its lead to 10 after a kill by Zimet on a combination play.
The Anteaters didn't have much left in Game 3 and seemed all but deflated after Hawaii grabbed a five-point lead at 14-9.
"Every team that's well-coached will adjust," UCI coach Charlie Brande said. "Our set selection wasn't quite what it should've been. Our focus wasn't what it should have been. To beat a team like this, you have to be strong emotionally and mentally."
Next up is UCLA next Friday and Saturday.
"UCLA will be spoiling for a fight," Wilton said. "I hope we can get some people out here to come and watch."
Hawaii def. UC Irvine
35-33, 30-20, 30-25Anteaters (11-14, 5-13)
g k e att pct. bs ba d Bemus 2 2 2 8 .000 0 2 0 Kniffin 3 0 1 1 -1.000 1 2 4 Watumuli 3 3 1 9 .222 1 4 3 Helenihi 3 26 10 49 .327 0 2 5 Jensen 3 6 2 18 .222 0 1 5 Weichert 3 6 0 10 .600 0 3 1 Pelzer 2 5 2 11 .273 0 0 2 Tucker 3 0 0 0 .000 0 0 8 Shea 1 0 0 0 .000 0 0 1 Ichinose 3 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 Fell 1 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 Totals 3 48 18 106 .283 2 14 29 Warriors (17-6, 14-4)
g k e att pct. bs ba d Miladinovic 3 3 2 7 .143 0 7 2 Tuyay 3 4 0 4 1.000 0 1 6 Zimet 3 13 5 25 .320 0 3 4 Theocharidis 3 17 3 40 .350 0 3 2 Ching 3 8 3 14 .357 0 3 6 Thomas 3 6 0 8 .750 0 2 3 Chala 2 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 Podlewski 3 0 0 0 .000 0 0 8 Nordberg 1 0 2 2 -1.000 0 0 0 Totals 3 51 15 100 .360 0 19 31 Key--g: games; k: kills; e: hitting errors; att: attempts; pct.: hitting percentage; bs: block solos; ba: block assists; d: digs.
Aces--UCI (1): Weichert. Hawaii (6): Zimet 2, Theocharidis 2, Ching, Thomas. Assists--UCI (47): Kniffin 45, Helenihi 2. Hawaii (48): Tuyay 43, Ching 2, Podlewski, Theocharidis, Thomas.
T--1:38. Officials--Ernest Ho, Dan Hironaka A--4,770.
UH Athletics