When last spotted at the Stan Sheriff Center, the Hawaii women's volleyball team was rolling to its eighth consecutive victory, an 81-minute sweep of Boise State.

Three matches and nearly three weeks later, the only things that have changed for the Rainbow Wahine are their ranking—from No. 7 to No. 6—and their win-streak—now at 11.

Oh, and there's also a matter of confidence. Hawaii (12-2, 5-0 Western Athletic Conference) swept all three road matches using a variety of lineups while playing through various injuries and illnesses.

“;We definitely have quality depth,”; associate head coach Mike Sealy said. “;We had quality last year, but it wasn't as talented as this year.

“;I don't know if we have improved much since we last played at home. We still have two identities. The goal is to stay focused on being the good one.”;

A few things should help Hawaii do that in this week's WAC matches. One, freshman hitter Kanani Herring (sprained ankle) is expected to play in the front row for the first time since the Sept. 20 match against Boise State.

Two, the Wahine are preparing for two teams they just saw: Louisiana Tech (2-11, 0-6) tomorrow and New Mexico State (10-7, 5-1) on Sunday.

“;We could see minor changes in both those teams,”; UH head coach Dave Shoji said. “;But it's nothing that we can't handle.

“;We had a good road trip. You always want to get a sweep on the road if you can because once you drop a game, it excites the crowd and the other team. We like to get out 3-0.

“;We had a bunch of different lineups on the road, which didn't lend itself to any kind of continuity. We'll use Friday as another gauge as to whether we're getting better.”;

What pleased Shoji most was the way his team got the sweep at New Mexico State, a match sandwiched between anticipated sweeps at Louisiana Tech and San Jose State. Hawaii was down 18-13 in Set 3 against the Aggies but was able to close it out on a 12-5 run.

“;It was nice to see the team respond like that because it took the crowd out of it,”; Shoji said. “;It was nice to come back on a good team like that.”;

“;It was awesome,”; junior middle Amber Kaufman said of the rally against New Mexico State. “;I loved beating them in three.

“;I think the more we play together, the more chemistry we get. We realize we have to play well to beat teams, that we can't take a day off and expect to win. We're just working on getting the best chemistry possible and be at the top of our game before the (NCAA) tournament. As long as we play our game, we'll be fine.”;

Notes: Associate head coach Kari Ambrozich returned from maternity leave earlier this week and resumed her administrative duties. She returns to active coaching in 2009. ... Former Rainbow Wahine hitter Sarah Mason (2005-06) has an offer to play professionally in Puerto Rico and plans to leave in December.