Rainbow Wahine look to extend streaks vs. Titans

One of two undefeated teams left in Big West women’s volleyball, Hawaii closes its first conference homestand of the season by taking on Cal State Fullerton today at SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center.
The Rainbow Wahine (6-5, 3-0) have swept through their first three Big West matches to extend their conference winning streak to 14 dating back to the 2019 season. They’ll look to build on Friday’s sweep of Long Beach State and keep pace with UC Santa Barbara (8-8, 4-0) atop the conference standings.
Cal State Fullerton (4-6, 1-2) opened the Big West season with a win over Cal State Bakersfield then lost to Cal Poly in five sets and was swept by Long Beach State on Tuesday before making the trip to Honolulu. The Titans have yet to earn a win against UH in 42 all-time meetings.
Cal State Fullerton kills leader Julia Crawford is the younger sister of Seattle Mariners shortstop J.P. Crawford. Setter Elizabeth Schuster is a cousin of Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Juju Smith-Schuster.
Updates as UH closes homecoming weekend follow below:
SET 5
>> Starting group back in the UH to start the race to 15.
>> Lang opens with an ace off the tape. Akana hits long, no touch 1-1.
>> Van Sickle tip drops, Wagoner tip touches the antenna, 2-2.
>> Williams hammers in the middle. Igiede’s diving save extends a rally and Fullerton hits long, UH up 4-2.
>> Ala’ilima-Daley off the block. Titans serve goes long. Janelle Gong back to serve for UH and Wagoner off the block. Van Sickle fires from the back row. UH up 7-3. Timeout Fullerton.
>> Crawford gets a kill on a UH net violation. Crawford again down the line, Titans close to 7-5. Titans go back to Crawford this time she’s blocked by Igiede and Lang. A Van Sickle/Igiede roof makes it 9-5. Wahine scramble on defense to extend a point and Van Sickle pounds a kill in the middle. UH up 10-5. Timeout Fullerton.
>> Crawford with a kill out of the timeout, 10-6. Igiede off the block in the middle. Igiede back to serve at 11-6. Wagoner’s dig set up Van Sickle down the line. Net violation on Fullerton and it’s 13-6.
>> Williams attack goes wide. Van Sickle hits into the antenna. UH can’t handle a Crawford ace and the Titans close to 13-9. Timeout UH.
>> Williams hits long. UH challenges a touch. Call stands, 10-13.
>> Van Sickle goes off the block to give UH match point. Van Sickle ends a rally and the match. Hawaii survives in five. 25-13, 25-20, 25-27, 13-25, 15-10.

SET 4
>> Ala’ilima-Daley opens with a kill then teams with Nicole Shuhandler to block Van Sickle. After a Crawford kill and UH error Fullerton leads 4-0.
>> Van Sickle gets UH’s first point of the set with her 13th kill and Fullerton hits into the net. But the Titans run off the next three points to force a UH timeout at 7-2.
>> Back-to-back kills for Shuhandler gives Fullerton a 9-3 lead. Mylana Byrd in for Lang at setter.
>> Wagoner’s kill down the line makes it 10-5, but Fullerton goes on a 4-0 run with two UH net violations and a hitting error and an ace off the tape. Titans in control up 14-5.
>> Ala’ilima-Daley’s back-to-back kills gives the Titans a 19-9 lead and Dominique Velarde follows with an ace. Kendra Ham in for Wagoner. Westerberg in for Akana.
>> UH strings together three points, but the Titans block Ham and Lyla Traylor serves up an ace to make it 22-12. UH fends off a set point but Igiede hits into the net and Fullerton forces a fifth set with a 25-13 rout.

SET 3
>> Fullerton opens the set with a kill to take its first lead of the match. UH moves ahead on two Titan errors and a Van Sickle ace. Akana puts away her sixth and seventh kills to give UH a 5-2 lead and now has a new career high.
>> Titans close to 8-7 before a net violation on a Van Sickle kill. Van Sickle angles a kill and its 10-7. A touch is called on Makena Ala’ilima-Daley’s kill. UH challenges, Call stands and CSF closes to 11-9.
>> Akana adds her eighth kill and Igiede ends a rally. Titan error gives UH a 15-10 lead at the media timeout.
>> Fullerton on a 4-1 run to close to 16-14. Igiede sends back a tip and Crawford answers with a kill to make it 17-15. Timeout UH. Titans block Igiede and Elizabeth Schuster serves up an ace to tie it up at 17-17. Wagoner hits into the net and the Titans lead. Van Sickle ends CSF’s 4-0 run with her 11th kill. Titan attack goes long and UH leads again at 19-18.
>> Titans get the serve back and Danielle Jefferies and Haley Carmo block Van Sickle to take a 20-19 lead. Crawford gets her 11th kill and UH calls its second timeout down 21-19.
>> Camo’s kill in the middle gives the Titans a 22-20 lead. Van Sickle answers for UH. Titans block Williams to take a 23-21 lead.
>> Wagoner finds the back corner and Igiede gets her ninth kill to tie it at 23-23. Akana goes cross court and UH has match point. Timeout Fullerton.
>> Ala’ilima-Daley gets a kill to fall in the middle of the UH defense and its deuce. Igiede error gives Fullerton set point. Wagoner pushes a kill into the middle to make it 25-25. Crawford goes off the block and Carmo blocks Wagoner. Fullerton hands UH its first set loss in Big West play 27-25.

SET 2
>> Van Sickle and Akana kills open the set for UH. Titans turn back Wagoner for their first block. Wagoner comes back with a kill and Akana goes off the block. A Titan attack is blocked back, they challenge and the call stands, UH up 5-1.
>> UH gets two more points with Ikenaga on the service line and leads 7-1. Ikenaga already with 11 digs.
>> The Titans put together a 3-0 run and close to 12-10 on a Wagoner error. Williams ends the run with a kill in the middle. Wagoner has no blockers up and get her fourth kill. A long rally ends with a Titan error into the net. UH up 15-10 at the media timeout. Kate Lang already has her second straight double-double with 16 assists and 11 digs.
>> A Crawford kills brings the Titans to 18-14. An Igiede/Van Sickle block sparks a 4-0 UH run and the Wahine lead 22-14. Titans come back with the next three points and UH takes it first timeout of the match leading 22-17. Tiffany Westerberg into the match for Van Sickle.
>> Williams kill ends a long rally to give UH set point. After a service error and an ace, Van Sickle re-enters at 24-20. Van Sickle handles the next serve and Williams puts away the kill to end the set 25-20.

SET 1
>> Same starters for UH: OH Brooke Van Sickle, MB Amber Igiede, OH Riley Wagoner, MB Skyler Williams, OH Braelyn Akana, S Kate Lang, L Tayli Ikenaga.
>> Kate Lang goes back to serve and UH opens the match with a 5-0 run. Skyler Williams puts down the first kill and Brooke Van Sickle puts away the next four.
>> Fullerton puts together a three-point run before a serve into the net. Van Sickle back to serve Akana and Williams team up on a block, a serve goes into the net but Fullerton is called for a rotation violation, Williams block, Williams kill, Akana kill down the line and it’s 11-3. Timeout Titans.
>> Igiede gets her first kill then has a hand in back-to-back blocks. After a Crawford kill out of the back row, Igiede gets a solo block for UH’s fifth of the set and a 16-7 lead.
>> Akana and Williams are credited with a block when the Titans can’t get it back over the net, and UH leads 20-10. Timeout Fullerton. UH hitting .400 with no errors. Fullerton at .059.
>> Two more blocks gives UH eight for the set. An Akana/Igiede block gives UH set point and Akana hits off the hands to give UH the set 25-13.