The University of Hawai’i women’s volleyball team (18-6, 15-1 Big West) returns home to host their final homestand of 2022. Friday’s crucial match is a WHITEOUT against Big West rival Cal Poly (16-11, 13-4 BW) at 7:00 P.M. HT..

In the spirit of the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, UH Athletics in partnership with Food Vault Hawai’i will host a food and toiletries drive for Friday’s match. Fans are encouraged to donate non-perishable food items from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Gate A. 

Sunday, Nov. 20th is Senior Night against CSU Bakersfield (7-22, 4-13 BW) at 5:30 P.M. HT.. The Rainbow Wahine will be honoring its lone senior, Mylana Byrd after the match against the Roadrunners. Both matches will be played at the SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center. 

RAINBOW WAHINE VOLLEYBALL – WEEK #13 INFORMATION
Opponent | Date | TimeCAL POLY | Friday, Nov. 18, 2022 | 7:00 p.m. HT
CSU BAKERSFIELD  | Sunday, Nov. 20, 2022 | 5:30 p.m. HT
LocationSimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center (10,300) – Honolulu, O’ahu
TicketsETicketHawaii.com
Promotions    Fans are encouraged to visit the sports marketing table (located at Gate A) to register to participate in the promotions and win great prizes. “Family Pack” Promotion: A “Family Pack” promotion is available for the remaining women’s volleyball regular season home matches. With the purchase of two adult tickets, fans will receive one youth (ages 4-high school) ticket free for every youth ticket purchased (maximum of two free tickets). “Family Pack” tickets for women’s volleyball can be purchased at the SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center Box Office in advance and or on game day.Group Rate Packages: Groups of 24 or more qualify for group rate pricing. Group tickets are available for purchase online at www.etickethawaii.com.FRIDAYFirst Hawaiian Bank is the sponsor of Friday’s “Pack the House” match and will distribute 200 Rally Towels at Gate A and award great prizes throughout the night. Fans are encouraged to wear white UH apparel on Friday. In the spirit of the Thanksgiving Holiday, UH Athletics in partnership with Food Vault Hawai’i will host a food and toiletries drive. Fans are encouraged to donate non-perishable, unopened, unexpired food and toiletry items from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Gate A. (For more info on Food Vault Hawai’i – CLICK HERE)SUNDAYThe University of Hawaii Federal Credit Union is the sponsor of Sunday’s “Show UHM Your Aloha” Senior Night match and will distribute 3,000 Senior Night Team Photos prior to the match at Gate A.”Show UHM Your Aloha” to the Senior Class. Fans are encouraged to wear their favorite Aloha apparel and bring ti leaves to the senior night festivities.Visit the sports marketing table (located at Gate A) to participate in the promotions and win a UHFCU prize pack including a Google mini.
Game Day InformationSimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center Game Day Information page
Game Day Rosters CLICK HERE (PDF)
TelevisionSpectrum OC16 – Ch. 16 (SD) or Ch. 1016 (HD) – Kanoa Leahey (Play-by-Play), Chris McLachlin (Color); Scott Robbs, Lisa Strand, Kirsten Sibley (Pre/Post Game)
Live StreamESPN+ (Blacked out in Hawai’i)
Friday – Cal Poly  |  Sunday – CSU Bakersfield
RadioESPN Honolulu | 1420 AM / 92.7 FM | Tiff Wells (play-by-play)
Live Audio StreamESPNHonolulu.com  | Sideline Hawaii App
Live StatsFriday – Cal Poly
Sunday – CSU Bakersfield
Game NotesHawai’i  (PDF)  |  Cal Poly (PDF)  |  CSU Bakersfield (PDF)
Social Media@HawaiiWVB Twitter | #HawaiiWVB #GoBows | @HawaiiWVB Instagram | Facebook Facebook

**On Tuesday, Cal Poly defeated CSU Bakersfield in four in San Luis Obispo, 25-11, 25-21, 11-25, 25-23

HAWAI’I VS. CAL POLY MUSTANGS (16-11, 13-4 Big West)California Polytechnic State University LogoSeries vs. Cal Poly: UH leads series, 43-9
Streak: CP won 1 
Head Coach: Caroline Walters (Third Season)

  • In the first round, Cal Poly handed Hawai’i its lone loss of the conference season thus far. UH hung on to win a marathon second set, but the Mustangs pulled away in the end for the four set win, 25-22, 31-33, 25-21, 25-19. CP’s Maia Dvoracek was unstoppable and led the Mustangs with 21 kills four aces, and 15 digs – all match-highs. In the loss, Amber Igiede led UH with 16 kills and five blocks while Caylen Alexander put down 13 kills.
  • The CP win over UH snapped their five-match losing streak against Hawai’i. 
  • Last week, Cal Poly won both their matches, defeating UC Davis in five followed by a sweep at UC Riverside
  • Last season, UH swept Cal Poly at home, 25-19, 25-19, 25-22, and UH won in three on the road 25-22, 25-18, 25-20.
  • Cal Poly fell in their first seven matches of the year. Since then, they have gone 16-4 overall

HAWAI’I VS. CSU BAKERSFIELD ROADRUNNERS (7-22, 4-13 Big West)Bakersfield LogoSeries vs. CSUB: UH leads series, 5-0
Streak: UH has won five
Head Coach: Giovana Melo (Ninth Season)

  • On Oct. 14th, CSU Bakersfield gave Hawai’i all they could handle, as UH won in five, 23-25, 25-15, 25-14, 18-25, 15-8. The match had huge momentum swings. In the first set, In Set 2, CSUB jumped out to a quick 4-1 lead to start the match and never trailed. UH staved off a pair of set points, but CSUB held off the ‘Bows, 25-23. Hawai’i dominated Sets 2 and 3, 25-15, 25-14, but the Roadrunners fought back to even the match at 2-2 winning Set 4, 25-18. UH however, pulled away in the end for the road win. CSUB’s Haley McCluskey had a team-high 14 kills while Hana Makonova had five blocks. UH’s Wagoner had a match-high 19 kills while Igiede put down 17 kills with a team-best eight blocks and two service aces.
  • Last season in CSUB’s first official year in the Big West, UH swept the ‘Runners in Honolulu, 25-18, 25-20, 25-18. In Bakersfield, the ‘Bows won in four, hard fought sets, 26-24, 24-26, 25-13, 25-19.

HAWAI’I HEAD COACH ROBYN AH MOWUniversity of Hawaii LogoOVERALL RECORD: 104-35 (Fifth Season)
RECORD AT HAWAI’I: Same
BIG WEST RECORD: 75-9 (Fifth Season

  • Ah Mow, who is in her fifth season (sixth overall – BWC did not play in 2020 due to COVID-19) was voted BWC Coach of the Year the last two seasons (Co-Head Coach in 2019) and was named the 2019 AVCA Pacific North All-Region Coach of the Year. The two-time first team AVCA All-American and three time Olympian setter took over the program following legendary head coach Dave Shoji. Ah Mow has led her alma mater to back-to-back Big West titles. Last year, the ‘Bows upset SEC runner-up, No. 24 Mississippi State in the NCAA First Round (in Seattle, Wash.) in a five set thriller, 17-25, 25-14, 25-13, 21-25, 15-11. Ah Mow led UH to four consecutive NCAA Tournaments, extending UH’s streak to 28-straight and 39 overall NCAA appearances.

LAST TIME OUT …

  • Last week, the Rainbow Wahine logged a pair of road sweeps at UC San Diego and UC Irvine. In the two matches combined, Riley Wagoner recorded team-highs of 27 kills and a 4.50 k/set average. Amber Igiede had 26 kills with a team-best .444 hitting percentage committing just two errors in 54 swings. She also led UH with 12 total blocks and three service aces.
  • At UCSD, UH overpowered the Tritons, holding them below 20 points all three sets, 25-14, 25-19, 25-15. Wagoner notched her fifth double-double of the season, posting team-highs of 14 kills and 11 digs (tied with Talia Edmonds). Igiede added 12 kills and team-highs of 6.0 blocks and two aces. The first set the momentum swing back and forth. UH led early on but the Anteaters would eventually leapfrog the ‘Bows at 22-21. Hawai’i however would tie then overtake UCI, winning the final three-straight points for the 25-23 win. In Set 2, UH was uber efficient out hitting UCI, .440-to-.029 and siding out at a 76% clip which helped UH take a 2-0 lead winning the frame, 25-15. The Anteaters would not go down without a fight. UCI took the early lead, and led 9-12, but the ‘Bows bounced back to score the next four to take the lead at 13-12. UH would never trail again. The Rainbow Wahine scored seven of the last 10 points to seal the sweep with a 25-20 Set 3 win.
  • Hawai’i tied its season-long eight match win streak with a sweep at UC Irvine, 25-23, 25-13, 25-20. 
  • UH enters this week having recorded four-consecutive sweeps with 12 sweeps overall.
  • UC Irvine snapped UH’s streak of holding opponents below 20 points in a set at eight-consecutive sets. In the last four matches, UH has help their opponents below 20 points in nine off 11 sets played. 

WHERE HAWAI’I RANKS

  • Hawai’i was listed in the AVCA’s (American Volleyball Coaches Association) Top 50 Teams list for 2022 which came out on Wednesday. UH is the lone Big West team in the Top 50, but four of the teams faced in the pre-season are included as well–Pittsburgh, San Diego, Southern California and UCLA. In the extended Top 100 teams, Cal Poly, Long Beach State and UC Santa Barbara are all included. Also in the Top 100 are two more pre-season opponents – Texas A&M and Texas State. The only team that UH faced in the preseason not included was West Virginia.
  • In Nov. 13th’s NCAA RPI, Hawai’i rose four spots to No. 35. Fellow Big West teams–Long Beach State (74) and UC Santa Barbara (85) are in the Top 100. Cal Poly is right outside, ranked No. 107 while UC Irvine comes in a No. 120.
  • As a team, Hawai’i leads The Big West in three statistical categories:
    • Assists Per Set (334 ranked) – No. 30 NCAA
    • Hitting Percentage (332 ranked) – No. 36 NCAA
    • Kills Per Set (334 ranked) – No. 33 NCAA
  • Individually, junior middle blocker Amber Igiede and Kate Lang are among the league leaders
    • Amber Igiede
      • Hitting Percentage (150 ranked – No. 4 NCAA / No. 1 Big West
      • Points Per Set (150 ranked) – No. 35 NCAA  / No. 1 Big West
      • Blocks Per Set (150 ranked) – No. 33 NCAA / No. 2 Big West
      • Total Blocks (189 ranked) – No. 76 NCAA / No. 3 Big West
    • Kate Lang
      • Assists Per Set (150 ranked) – No. 46 NCAA / No. 2 Big West
      • Total Assists (150 ranked) – No. 100 NCAA / No. 3 Big West

NEWS & NOTES

  • HONORING BYRD – This Sunday, the Rainbow Wahine will be honoring its lone senior Mylana Byrd. After playing two seasons at Alabama, Byrd arrived in Honolulu right before COVID-19 hit the world. She has been the ultimate team-player who has become the team leader both on and off the court. Although she has not seen a lot of playing time this season, Byrd understands how important her role is, which is why she continuously pushes the A-Side in practice to make the team better while improving herself. The biological engineering major will graduate this Dedember with a Bachelor’s in Science.IGIEDE LEADING THE WAY – Junior middle blocker Amber Igiede not only leads The Big West in hitting percentage and points/set, she leads Hawai’i with 320 kills, 3.68 kill/set, 31 block solos, 81 block assists, 112 total blocks, a 1.29 blocks/set average, and 411.5 total points. She is tied for second on the team (Kate Lang) with 20 service aces and has recorded 80 digs, most of which coming in just one back row rotation. Igiede has tallied 22 double-digit kill games this season with 43 for her career. She has led Hawai’i in blocks in 20 of UH’s 24 matches this year–including the last 10-straight games.
  • LANG SETTING IT UP – Sophomore setter Kate Lang is second overall in the league averaging 10.36 assists/set. But in Big West only matches, Lang has a league-leading 11.11 assists/set average. Lang has orchestrated the offense to a Big West-best .259 hitting percentage in overall games. In conference, she has UH hitting at a league-high .287 clip. After her 34 assists at UC Irvine last Saturday, she tied her assist total from last season exactly at 901 as well as her blocking totals with 37 both in 2021 and ’22.
  • WAGONER’S ALL-AROUND ARSENAL – This season, junior outside hitter Riley Wagoner has emerged as a terminator at the pin. Her variety of shots/hitting savvy + a high volleyball IQ + strong defensive skills = Wagoner being the the glue that holds the team together through thick and thing as the most versatile player on the floor. She is second on the squad with .293 kills, 3.37 kill/set average, and 206 digs, and third on the team with 19 service aces and 37 blocks. At UCSD last week, she posted her fifth double-double of the season with 14 kills and 11 digs (both team-highs). she now has racked up 16 double-digit kill and 10 double-digit dig matches this year. 
  • ALEXANDER RISING – Freshman Caylen Alexander has been fearless all year playing at outside hitter. The rookie from Alpharetta, Ga. is third on the team with 234 kills and 2.72 kill/set average. She leads Hawai’i with 30 service aces–10 more than the next UH player. She has dealt out at least one ace in 16 matches this year–including the last four-straight in which she has seven during that span. On defense she continues to improve, recording 105 digs and 16 blocks. Alexander has recorded 11 matches with 10+ kills–including a career-high 18 twice (at UC Davis and vs. UCLA). Earlier this season, Alexander tied former UH player Hanna Hellvig winning her fifth Big West Freshman of the Week award. It is the most for a Rainbow Wahine since the award was created in 2015.
  • AKANA’S IMPROVED EFFICIENCY – After missing a few games due to illness, junior Braelyn Akana returned to the court a changed hitter. In the first 12 games, Akana had 58 kill and had a .110 hitting percentage. In the last nine matches since making her return at Cal Poly, Akana has put down the same amount of kills (58) but has come through with some key kills while hitting .305 during that span. She has been in on at least one block in seven of the last nine matches–including the last six-straight. 
  • IKENAGA BACK TO OLD SELF – After missing the first three games of her young career due to an injury, sophomore libero Tayli Ikenaga is leading the back row. Last week she recorded back to back 10+ dig games with 10 at UCSD and 16 at UCI. She has been a steadying, calm force on defense for UH. In serve receive, she has just 12 errors in 228 attempts. This season, she has scoooped up a team-high 235 digs while recording 14 matches with double-digit digs.
  • WESTERBER HOLDING DOWN THE MIDDLE – Junior middle blocker Tiffany Westerberg has held her own playing opposite of Amber Igiede. Westerberg, who floated from playing at the pins and in the middle over the first two years of her career, has proven to be a solid commodity in the middle this season. She has put down at least one kill in UH’s 24 matches while notching at least one block in 20 of 24 games. 
  • EDMONDS STEADY IN THE BACK ROW – Junior transfer Talia Edmonds is fourth on the team with 235 digs playing as defensive specialist. She and Ikenaga have proven to be a solid one-two punch in the back row all season. While Ikenaga was out with an injury, Edmonds stepped up to wear the different colored jersey and popped up a team-season best 28 digs at UC San Diego. Overall she has added 42 assists and seven service aces. 
  • IRON WOMEN – Only five Rainbow Wahine have played in all 87 sets – Edmonds, Igiede, Lang, Wagoner and Westerberg. Only four players (Igiege, Lang, Wagoner, and Westerber) have started all 24 matches.