The No. 8 University of Hawai’i Rainbow Wahine beach volleyball team (20-3) continues its 10-day road trip with a series of critical matches this week in Southern California. The red-hot BechBows–winners of 18 straight dual matches–will have its win streak put to the test with five straight nationally-ranked squads on the docket this week.
Three of those five opponents are ranked in the top five, starting with a matchup at Mapes Beach on the campus of No. 2 UCLA (18-1) this Wednesday, March 29 at 12 p.m. HT. The teams met earlier this season in Honolulu with the Bruins handing UH a 4-1 loss in the season-opening Outrigger Duke Kahanamoku Beach Classic.
Following its match at UCLA, UH will head south to Manhattan Beach for the East Meets West Invitational, March 31-April 1. Over the course of the two-day tournament, UH will face a gauntlet of ranked opponents, taking on No. 3 Florida State (21-2), No. 5 LSU (17-5), No. 11 Georgia State (13-7) and No. 16 Florida International (9-9).
UH’s 18-match win streak is the second-longest in program history to the 2018 squad which won a school-record 32 straight matches. The BeachBows have not lost since the opening weekend of the season when it fell to then No. 9 Stanford, 3-2, on Feb. 25.
This Week’s Schedule
Wednesday, March 29
at No. 2 UCLA……………….12:00 p.m. HT (LIVE STATS)
East Meets West Invitational (Manhattan Beach, Calif.)
Friday, March 31
vs. No. 2 Florida State…………………8:30 a.m. HT
vs. No. 11 Georgia State………………….12:00 p.m. HT
Saturday, April 1
vs. No. 16 Florida International…………6:30 a.m. HT
vs. No. 5 LSU…………………..9:30 a.m. HT
All-Time Series Records: The ‘Bows are 6-13 all-time against UCLA, including 0-2 at Mapes Beach…the ‘Bows have dropped 10 straight to UCLA dating back to 2018…UH is 4-8 against Florida State… the teams will meet for the first time since the Semionle’s 3-2 win in the 2019 East Meets West…FSU has won the last three meetings with UH…UH and Georgia State will meet for the first-time ever…it will be the first of three regular-season meetings this year as UH will also host the Panthers in Honolulu, April 15-16….the ‘Bows are perfect 6-0 against Florida International…three of those wins have come in Manhattan Beach…UH is 3-3 against LSU…the teams will meet for the fourth time at the East Meets West with the Tigers winning two of the previous three meetings.
‘Bow Bits: UH has used 16 different combinations of pairs this year…the No. 2 pair of Kylin Loker–Riley Wagoner (15-6) have played together in 21 of 23 matches…2022 All-Americans Kaylee Glagau and Brooke Van Sickle have played the last 20 matches together and are a scorching 19-1 this year, including a perfect 17-0 at the top of the order…the veteran tandem has won 16 straight matches, the fifth-longest streak in school history…the No. 4 pair of Ilihia Huddleston and Jaime Santer are a perfect 12-0 this season and have not dropped a single set when paired together…four true freshman – Sarah Burton, Sophie Buschmann, Caprice Lorenzo and Sydney Miller – have also seen competition this year…Miller has seen the most action, going a stellar 14-1 with partner Chandler Cowell while playing exclusively at the No. 5 flight.
Versus Ranked Squads: UH is 91-76 (.545) all-time versus ranked squads, including 5-3 this season….three of the five wins have come against conference rival Long Beach State…one of three losses has come against this week’s opponent, UCLA.
