[ WARRIOR VOLLEYBALL ]
RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@STARBULLETIN.COM
Hawaii setter Kimo Tuyay served during last night's match vs. Cal Baptist at the Stan Sheriff Center. The Warriors swept.
Warriors get back
with sweepHawaii avenges a loss to the NAIA’s
top-ranked team, Cal Baptist,
with a resounding victory
How long had it been since the last home victory?
Only 30 days?
Just 720 hours?
It seemed like forever since the Hawaii men's volleyball team left the Stan Sheriff Center with a win.
The fifth-ranked Warriors were 0-for-March at home before last night's nonconference rematch with California Baptist. And, counting the Feb. 28 contest with UCLA, Hawaii had dropped four in a row at the Sheriff Center.
It took 93 minutes to change all of that. The sigh of relief could be heard all the way back in Sacramento, Calif., the hometown of UH junior Delano Thomas.
Thomas celebrated the move from middle back to outside hitter with a career-high 23 kills as Hawaii swept Cal Baptist 30-28, 30-17, 30-26 in front of 2,850 (4,338 tickets). It was the first loss in more than two months for the Lancers (17-3), the NAIA's top-ranked team, and it snapped their 17-match win streak.
"I was sick and tired of losing," Hawaii senior setter Kimo Tuyay said. "Even though it doesn't count in league, a win is a win. I think we played really well.
"I looked at our stats and we were 6-5 at home ... it's good to have a win. We have some big matches coming up and we'll need to practice hard."
Hawaii (14-8, 10-6 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) will next host No. 2 Long Beach State (21-4, 14-3) on Friday and Saturday. The 49ers swept Stanford last night 30-28, 30-22, 30-19.
With sophomore middle Mauli'a LaBarre sidelined with an ankle injury Friday, Thomas moved back to middle, where he played the past two seasons. The 6-foot-7 Thomas, one of the few Warriors who could go over the tall Lancer block, had seven kills in Friday's five-game loss.
Thomas had five by the end of Game 1, 13 by the end of Game 2. And when the Warriors needed him the most -- in the tight Game 3 -- Thomas came through.
His 21st kill gave Hawaii a 23-21 lead; his 22nd put his team up 25-23. His last ended it as Thomas finished hitting an outrageous .655, with just four errors on 29 swings.
"I hadn't been playing much middle this year and I definitely can take a bigger swing (on the outside," Thomas said. "We came out with more determination. We definitely blocked better and touched more balls.
"It has been a while since we've won at home. We played well tonight. I'm proud of the guys."
Said Hawaii coach Mike Wilton: "I thought we did some good playing Friday, but we followed the prescription to a T. We played real steady ball and didn't let them go on any prolonged runs. Mau was huge tonight and Delano had a huge night. It really is beyond any one single player. It was a team deal. Our chemistry guys were busy being chemists.
"No question this is big going into Long Beach. We deserved to have this kind of result tonight."
Tuyay had an outstanding match, keeping the Cal Baptist block honest. Tuyay even had a career high with two solo blocks, both coming in Game 1.
The Warriors outblocked the Lancers 10.5-3.5 last night. On Friday, Cal Baptist had a 17-15.5 edge.
A big key was the Hawaii defense, which finished with 30 digs, 11 by libero Alfred Reft. Cal Baptist hit .217 as a team -- .118 in the first two games and .410 in Game 3.
"The difference was (Friday) we kept our composure, we didn't let them score that many points in a row and our passing was a little better than it was today," said Lancer opposite Shaun Dyk, who finished with 13 kills. "We were ready, we knew they were doing that (Thomas to the outside). We tried to adjust, but they played well. They played excellent defense and they dug our balls."
Matt Bender added 13 kills for the Warriors, hitting .500. The effectiveness of Thomas from the left side and Bender on the right stretched the Lancer block.
"There was not much I could change other than do things better," Cal Baptist coach Ryan McGuyre said. "For much of our guys this is their first time in Hawaii period. Our gym seats maybe 1,200. The atmosphere here is so good.
"I think that iron sharpens iron. To be the best you want to play the best and that's what we were looking for coming out here. My wife (former Wahine player Jen Roberts) is an alumna so I'm rooting for Hawaii to go all the way to the NCAA championship. Our goal is to win the NAIA championship."
Seidu Ajanako led the Lancers with 15 kills and Shamsu Awudu added 10.
Hawaii def. California Baptist
30-28, 30-17, 30-26Lancers (17-3)
g k e att pct. bs ba d Sheffer 1 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 Johnson 3 2 1 3 .333 0 1 1 Kusio 3 6 3 15 .200 1 2 0 Velasco 2 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 Scotia 1 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 Rose 3 3 4 12 -.083 0 0 0 Ajanako 3 15 5 29 .345 0 0 6 Langstraat 1 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 Awudu 3 10 7 22 .136 0 1 5 Hagstrom 3 0 0 0 .000 0 0 4 Dyk 3 13 4 34 .265 0 1 5 Totals 3 49 24 115 .217 1 5 21 Warriors (14-7)
g k e att pct. bs ba d Tuyay 3 1 0 3 .333 2 2 6 Muise 1 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 Reft 3 0 0 0 .000 0 0 11 Azenha 3 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 Bender 3 13 2 22 .500 0 2 6 Woodward 3 3 3 13 .000 0 2 1 LaBarre 3 4 2 9 .222 0 4 2 Thomas 3 23 4 29 .655 0 2 3 Stanhiser 3 4 2 7 .286 1 3 1 Totals 3 48 13 83 .422 3 15 30 Key -- g: games; k: kills; e: hitting errors; att: attempts; pct.: hitting percentage; bs: block solos; ba: block assists; d: digs.
Aces -- CBU (5): Dyk 2, Johnson, Kusio, Awudu. Hawaii (4): Azenha, Bender, LaBarre, Thomas. Assists -- CBU (47): Johnson 41, Dyk 3, Ajanako, Awudu, Hagstrom. Hawaii (45): Tuyay 42, Bender 2, Reft.
T -- 1:33. Officials -- Ernest Ho, Dan Hironaka. A--2,850.
