[ WAHINE VOLLEYBALL ]
Wahine empty bench,
sweep UTEP
EL PASO, Texas >> The fiesta started early yesterday for the Rainbow Wahine volleyball team.
No. 2 Hawaii used an extended Happy Hour -- 82 minutes -- en route to sweeping Texas-El Paso 30-16, 30-19, 30-20 in an afternoon match at Memorial Gym. It was the 16th consecutive victory for Hawaii (17-1, 5-0 Western Athletic Conference) and kept the Wahine's WAC winning streak rolling at 70.
A UTEP homecoming crowd of 1,200 didn't get to see UH senior All-American Kim Willoughby, who remained in Honolulu with strep throat. But they saw the entire Wahine roster get into the match, led by senior All-American Lily Kahumoku's 16 kills and 11 digs.
"We got what we wanted, which was a win," said Hawaii coach Dave Shoji. "And everybody played and got some quality time in. It's not hard to keep our players motivated. They all like playing and getting to play against other teams. I don't see any kind of letdown."
The Wahine weren't pushed often by the injury-plagued Miners (5-15, 0-6). The longest UTEP was able to hang was in Game 2 when an ace by senior Jennifer Abbruzzese pulled the Miners to within 16-13.
A kill by Maja Gustin -- celebrating her 24th birthday -- jump-started a 4-0 run by UH for a 20-13 lead. UTEP closed to 21-16 only to have junior Susie Boogaard account for four consecutive points -- three kills and a block assist.
Kahumoku had another two kills and the game-ending ace as Hawaii went on a 5-3 run to close it out.
Game 3 wasn't close, as Kahumoku's three kills and two block assists helped the Wahine open the game with seven unanswered points.
When UTEP coach Scott Swanson finally called a timeout, his team was trailing 19-6 and Hawaii had just scored six straight points, five behind Boogaard's serve. The Miners got as close as 27-19before the Wahine closed it out.
Hawaii hit .427 to UTEP's .126. Boogaard finished with a season-high nine kills, hitting 563 with no errors in 16 swings; Duggins added eight kills and was in on five of the team's 11 blocks.
With Willoughby out, Boogaard was moved to the left side, her natural position and the spot she'll be in next season.
"I was having a great time," said Boogaard, who had six kills in seven attempts in Game 2. "I like hitting on the left side."
Hawaii def. UTEP
30-16, 30-19, 30-20
WAHINE (17-1, 5-0 WAC)
MINER (5-15, 0-6 WAC)
g k e att pct. bs ba d Tano 3 7 1 12 .500 0 3 4 Arnott 2 2 1 10 .100 0 1 5 Kahumoku 3 16 4 28 .429 2 2 11 Kamana'o 3 0 0 0 .000 0 0 2 Gustin 2 6 0 7 .857 0 1 1 Duggins 3 8 3 14 .357 0 5 3 Boogaard 3 9 0 16 .563 0 1 5 Lundqvist 2 0 1 2 -.500 0 3 0 Eckmier 1 2 1 5 .200 0 2 2 Thurlby 3 1 0 1 1.000 0 0 2 Villaroman 3 1 0 1 1.000 0 0 11 Totals 3 52 11 96 .427 2 18 46
Key -- g: games; k: kills; e: hitting errors; att: attempts; pct.: hitting percentage; bs: block solos; ba: block assists; d: digs.
g k e att pct. bs ba d Bennett 3 2 2 5 .000 0 2 2 Stacy 3 5 5 19 .000 0 0 0 Abbruzzese 3 10 7 37 .081 0 0 8 Brisnahan 3 6 1 18 .278 0 1 3 Reeves 3 12 6 31 .194 0 2 4 Gabriel 3 0 0 1 .000 0 1 3 Moreno 3 0 0 0 .000 0 0 6 Enriquez 3 0 0 0 .000 0 0 3 Totals 3 35 21 111 .126 0 6 29
Aces -- Hawaii (3): Arnott, Kahumoku, Boogaard. Miner (5): Abbruzzese 2, Brisnahan, Gabriel, Moreno. Assists -- Hawaii (49): Kamana'o 30, Thurlby 11, Tano 4, Kahumoku, Boogaard, Lundqvist, Villaroman. Miner (30): Gabriel 27, Enriquez 2, Reeves.
T -- 1:22. Officials -- Bruce Grant, Rory Arisumi. A -- 1200.
