[ WAHINE VOLLEYBALL ]
Wahine prepare
for WAC showdownsUH takes on Fresno St. and
Nevada, who are both undefeated
in conference play
Coming into this week's play, there are three women's volleyball teams in the Western Division of the Western Athletic Conference with undefeated league records.
By Sunday, there will likely be only one. Very likely.
No. 2 Hawaii puts its WAC winning streaks of 66 regular-season games and 75 overall on the line at the Stan Sheriff Center against the only two teams to take a game off the Rainbow Wahine last season. Hawaii (13-1, 1-0) hosts Fresno State (12-3, 3-0) tomorrow and Nevada (8-7, 2-0) Saturday.
Last season, the Bulldogs broke Hawaii's streak of 16 straight WAC sweeps by taking the Wahine to five in a match played at Fresno State. It was only the fifth time in their WAC history that the Wahine had gone to five games in regular-season play.
The Wolf Pack took the Wahine to four before losing in the title game of the WAC tournament.
"Traditionally, these have been the toughest two (WAC) matches that we have," said Wahine associate head coach Charlie Wade. "I know we say this a lot, but Fresno is A LOT better than people realize. They have one leftside hitter (junior Kristen Fenton) who is really good. We couldn't slow her down last year.
"We don't know much about Nevada right now, but I do know that their middle (sophomore Salaia Salavea) is a big, physical kid."
Fresno State is on the road for the fourth time in five weeks. The Bulldogs opened at home last week with victories over Rice and Tulsa, extending their winning streak to five straight.
"This is a tough road trip for us," said FSU coach Lindy Vivas, a Punahou School graduate. "And it will be tougher if we don't get more people to contribute for us. Kristen is an excellent player, but we need more power than just from her."
Fenton is the reigning WAC Player of the Week following her two 20-plus-kill matches vs. Rice and Tulsa. Against the Owls, she had 24 kills, including 15 kills in Game 2, and is now 134 kills short of becoming the ninth Bulldog to hit the 1,000-kill mark.
Junior middle Tiffany Bishop, a transfer from Air Force, had a season-high 20 kills against Rice. The 6-foot Bishop also leads the team in blocks (1.21 bpg).
The Bulldogs also feature freshman hitter Tuli Peters (Kahuku High School), who is second on the team in digs, including coming up with 22 in a win over Oregon State.
Fresno State received four points in the latest Top 25. The Bulldogs' only losses were to Idaho State in five back on Aug. 30; to host San Diego in four; and then-No. 19 Long Beach State in five at the USD Invitational.
"They've played a very tough schedule," Wade said. "It went five twice. They are just a few points away from being 14-1 and being in the Top 25. Clearly, they're the second-best team in the conference."
Hawaii has a 30-0 lead in the series and is 90-4 in games vs. FSU. The Bulldogs still hold the UH opponent record for fewest points in a match when being swept by the Wahine in 1983 15-2, 15-0, 15-0.
Vivas said last week that she hoped the Nov. 9 match with Hawaii in Fresno would be played in the new Save Mart Center (16,116). Yesterday, the school made it official, moving the match from North Gym (1,400) to the new arena as well as from Saturday, Nov. 8, to Sunday, Nov. 9.
Nevada, which is 1-15 against Hawaii all-time, will play at San Jose State tomorrow before making the trip for Saturday's match. The Wolf Pack opened WAC play 2-0 for only the second time in school history.
Sophomore Christine Harms leads the young Wolf Pack with six double-doubles for the season, averaging 3.12 kills and 2.76 digs. Salavea, last year's WAC Freshman of the Year, is averaging 1.10 blocks per game.
Nevada's starting lineup is comprised of two juniors, three sophomores and two freshmen.
Perhaps the most telling statistics for Nevada is its team hitting percentage (.164).
As a team, Hawaii is hitting .346.
Two Wahine are expected to reach milestones this week. Senior middle Maja Gustin is just 14 kills shy of becoming the 14th UH player to reach 1,000 kills, and senior hitter Lily Kahumoku is 18 kills short of passing Suzanne Eagye for No. 4 on the all-time kill list.
WAC Women's Volleyball
Who: No. 2 Hawaii (13-1, 1-0) vs. Fresno State (12-3, 2-0), 7 p.m. tomorrow; Hawaii vs. Nevada (8-7, 2-0), 7 p.m. Saturday. Preceded by UH alumnae match, 5 p.m.
Where: Stan Sheriff Center.
TV: Live, KFVE Channel 5.
Radio: Live, KKEA 1420-AM.
Tickets: $3-$14.
