Big West-leading Rainbow Wahine take on Roadrunners

Hawaii middle blocker Skyler Williams ranks second on the team with 38 blocks this season. The Rainbow Wahine lead the Big West with 2.47 blocks per set. Honolulu Star-Advertiser photo by Jamm Aquino.

And then there was one …
With UC Santa Barbara’s four-set loss at UC Davis on Saturday, Hawaii enters Saturday’s match with Cal State Bakersfield as the lone undefeated team in Big West play.
The Rainbow Wahine (10-5, 7-0 BWC) will try to end the weekend alone in first place when they take on the Roadrunners (10-5, 3-4) at SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center in the third meeting between the programs. UH swept a two-match series with CSUB in 2015. The Roadrunners joined the Big West in 2020 but had their women’s volleyball debut delayed by the pandemic.
CSUB closed the non-conference portion of the schedule with the best record in the Big West at 7-1 with four matches canceled. The Roadrunners won road matches at UC Davis and UC Riverside but were blitzed by Cal Poly on Tuesday.
UH opened its homestand with a 25-19-25-19, 25-22 sweep of Cal Poly on Friday. Amber Igiede led UH with 13 kills and Brooke Van Sickle added 10.
Updates for tonight’s 7 p.m. match follow below:
SET 3
>> CSUB out to a 2-0 lead on two UH errors. UH answers with a kill by Wagoner off an assist by Ikenaga and a Wagoner/Igiede block to make it 3-3.
>> Wagoner with her third kill of the set off a bump set from Igiede to make it 6-5 CSUB. Elesaia wins a joust at the net and her tough serve leads to a lift call on Lang to give the Roadrunners a 10-7 lead.
>> UH ties it at 11-11 on Wagoner’s kill off the block to end a long rally that included two digs by Lang. Lang with a double-double with 30 assists and 10 digs. A Boiseau tip is blocked by Igiede and UH leads 14-13. Lang’s tip falls for a kill to give UH a 15-14 edge at the media timeout.
>> Both teams scramble to keep a rally alive before Boiseau ends it with a kill in the middle. Elesaia scores with a tip and Milica Vukobrat gets her eighth kill to give CSUB a 17-15 lead. Timeout UH.
>> Van Sickle goes cross court to end CSUB’s 3-0 run. Williams and Leoniak combine on a block of Vukobrat. Leoniak gets a kill from the right side and Van Sickle follows from the left. Suddenly UH leads 19-17. Timeout CSUB.
>> Lang remains on the service line and Van Sickle turns an Ikenaga bump set into a kill. McCluskey hits long and Williams and Van Sickle put away two more kills. UH on an 8-0 run and leads 23-17. Timeout CSUB.
>> CSUB finally gets Lang off the service line but an error gives UH match point. Williams puts it away for her ninth kill and UH wins it 25-18, 25-20, 25-18. Rainbow Wahine (11-5, 8-0) alone in first place in the Big West.

SET 2
>> Leoniak stays in to start the second set. CSUB again jumps ahead with a 4-0 lead, with some shaky passing for UH. Elesaia’s ace makes it 5-0. Leoniak hits wide. Timeout UH.
>> Van Sickle gets one to fall off the block for UH’s first point of the set and her second kill of the match. Leoniak sets up Van Sickle for a back-row kill to make it 8-5 CSUB. Roadrunners go up 12-6 on an ace by Haley McCluskey.
>> UH on a 4-0 run to close to 12-10. Williams and Van Sickle combine on UH’s fourth block. Igiede with two digs to keep a rally alive and CSUB hits out. Timeout CSUB.
>> Van Sickle goes down the line to get UH within a point. CSUB keeps the lead with a block by Brooke Boiseau. Williams taps down an overpass to make it 15-14 and UH ties it up on an Igiede/Wagoner block. A CSUB error gives UH a 16-15 lead.
>> Eight straight sideouts makes it 20-19 UH. A Williams/Van Sickle block of Makanova gives UH a 21-19 edge. Makanova’s tip lands out, CSUB challenges that UH was in the net. Call Stands, UH leads 22-20. Williams ends a long rally with her sixth kill. Wagoner gets a touch call on her swing and UH has set point, 24-20. Timeout CSUB.
>> A dig by Ikenaga sets up Lang for a back set to Leoniak. The timing isn’t perfect but Leoniak’s roll shot falls in the middle of the CSUB defense. UH wins the set 25-20 and leads the match 2-0.


SET 1
>> Familiar starting lineup for UH: OH Brooke Van Sickle, MB Amber Igiede, OH Riley Wagoner, MB Skyler Williams, S Kate Lang, OH Braelyn Akana, L Tayli Ikenaga.
>> CSUB’s Seleisa Elesaia starts the match with serve and the Roadrunners score the first three points of the match. After a Williams kill in the middle, CSUB goes on another 3-0 run and its quickly 6-1 Roadrunners. CSUB had put away 4 of its first five swings. UH is 1-for-8 with two errors. Early timeout for UH.
>> CSUB gets a block coming out of the timeout to go up 7-1. Martyna Leoniak subs into the front row for Akana.
>> Williams and Leoniak team on a block and Ikenaga goes back for a four-point service run and UH closes to 7-6 on a Leoniak kill from the right side. After a CSUB kill, Leoniak gets another kill and a CSUB error tie the set at 8-8. UH takes its first lead on an Igeide/ Wagoner block. Leoniak with a big swing down the line from the back row for her third kill. CSUB hits long twice in a row and UH leads 12-8. Timeout CSUB. UH is now on an 11-1 run.
>> Leoniak’s six-point run on the service line ends with a CSUB kill. Teams trade sideouts and Van Sickle goes off the block for her first kill of the night. CSUB hits wide and UH leads 18-11. Timeout CSUB.
>> CSUB’s Hana Makonova gets a kill in the middle after the timeout. The next serve is ruled out but CSUB will challenge. Call stands, UH leads 19-12. Williams gets her third kill, Wagoner goes off the bock for her first, Igiede kill in transition makes it 22-14.
>> CSUB on a 4-0 run with two blocks on Wagoner to close to 22-18. After a service error, Wagoner comes up with a dig in the back row right to Kate Lang at the net for an assist at Igiede. Lang goes to Igiede again on set point and UH wins it 25-18.


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