RENO, Nev. » Hawaii's fast start was encouraging, but in the end top-seeded Fresno State simply had too much firepower.

The eighth-seeded Rainbow Wahine built a quick eight-point lead in the first 3-plus minutes of the game, but fell victim to two big first-half runs by the Bulldogs. Fresno State went on to beat Hawaii for the ninth consecutive meeting, eliminating the Rainbow Wahine 83-55, in yesterday's quarterfinal game of the Western Athletic Conference women's basketball tournament at Lawlor Events Center.

Hawaii ended its first season under Dana Takahara-Dias at 10-20, and continued its futility in the WAC tournament. The Wahine defeated San Jose State last year in a play-in game, but has failed to advance to the semifinals the past seven years.

Fresno State (26-5) has now knocked out UH in the quarterfinals three of the last four tourneys.

“;It was not the way we would have liked to end it,”; junior point guard Keisha Kanekoa said. “;Coming to the tournament, though, and playing the No. 1 seed was a good experience for the younger players.”;

That part is true. UH has 11 players returning next year, so getting a taste of postseason play, albeit a small one, is always good.

However, good doesn't begin to describe the quick start for the Rainbow Wahine, who played well at both ends of the floor in building a 12-4 lead.

“;We hit some shots,”; Kanekoa said, finishing with 12 points and five assists. “;We opened up very hard.”;

“;It didn't surprise me,”; said senior forward Dita Liepkalne, adding 12 points and six assists. “;We tend to start good, and then we tend to drift off a little. We were playing good defense.”;

Hawaii's start didn't surprise Fresno State coach Adrian Wiggins.

“;Hawaii gave a good effort,”; he said. “;They came out ready to play. Look at their last few games and they've been playing everybody tough.”;

Kanekoa scored five of Hawaii's first 12 points. Julita Bungaite had a 3-pointer in the early barrage, while Allie Patterson and Breanna Arbuckle added baskets.

Kanekoa also contributed on the defensive end of the floor, holding the Bulldogs' leading scorer Jaleesa Ross to no points in that early stretch.

FSU wouldn't be denied, though, setting UH opponent records in a WAC tourney with 53.4 percent shooting overall and 11 3-pointers made. The 28-point loss margin was also the largest for the Wahine since the tournament started in 1997.

Ross, who finished with 15 points, got loose for a couple of 3-pointers, the second tying the game at 14 with 12:55 left in the first half. Her third 3-pointer of the half gave the Bulldogs the lead for good at 19-18 and started a 12-0 surge that ended with Fresno State on top 28-18 with 8:38 left.

“;I think it helped my teammates a lot,”; Ross said, referring to her first two 3-pointers. “;I got loose a couple of times and this let my teammates take it to the hole. I let them (teammates) know they could drive on my side of the court, to take it to the hole.”;

The recipients of the UH strategy were Bulldogs Hayley Munro (11 points), Joh-Tenna Filipe (10) and Rosie Moult (10). Fresno State had 38 points in the paint.

“;I'm impressed with Jaleesa Ross,”; Takahara-Dias said. “;I keep saying that she is pound-for-pound the best player in the WAC. Fresno State has a complete team and can hurt you in many ways.”;

The Bulldogs kept up the pressure defensively the rest of the half, and the Rainbow Wahine couldn't buy a basket. After an 8-for-15 start from the field in the first 8 minutes, UH went 4-for-13 the remainder of the half.

Liepkalne ended the 12-0 drought with a basket to make it 28-20, but Fresno State went on a 17-5 run to up its lead to 45-25 with 3:13 to go. A three-point play by Taja Edwards and 3-pointers by LaShay Fears and Ali Drennan keyed the surge.

“;We came out hard, fast and furious, but we were unable to maintain that,”; Takahara-Dias said. “;We ran into a Fresno State team that is very strong offensively and defensively. They have been in this position many times. It's hard to stay with a team when they're shooting 62 percent. They shot phenomenal in the first half.”;

The Bulldogs did that, but they also played some solid defense. They forced 13 UH turnovers in the first half, converting them into 17 points.

“;We established the pace,”; Wiggins said. “;We were able to force some mistakes to help generate our offense.”;

It didn't get any better for Hawaii in the second half. The Bulldogs, who went unbeaten in the regular season, used surges of 8-3 and 17-7 to open their biggest lead of the contest, 74-38, with 14:02 remaining.

Arbuckle finished with 11 points and pulled down five rebounds, but turned the ball over seven times. Hawaii got just eight points from its bench, four by Rebecca Dew.