By: ESPN Honolulu Rainbow Wahine play-by-play voice, Tiff Wells
1 – Wins Without No.9. Coming off a tough 0-3 start to the season (for the fourth time ever in program history) to the weekend, the Rainbow Wahine also understood they might not be playing with Tali Hakas in Week 2. A mid-opening set injury in the week 1 finale against San Diego, Hakas left the floor and didn’t return. “Not available” is the wording we’ve received with no time-table for her return. The all-around production from the Israeli National is noticeable when you look at the statistical rankings amongst the Big West Conference leaders and Hakas’ name pops up quite a few times. Moving into a coach/cheerleader role for the time being has allowed a true freshman (Cha’lei Reid), a six-rotation outside (Stella Adeyemi) and a third-year player in the program (Tyla Reese Mane) to receive in-match feedback from someone who has played for her National Team. While it was extremely tough to fall to 0-4 after last Thursday’s 3-2 loss to San Jose State, the ability to come back and play a match the next day was the best medicine for this group. Two Set 1 comebacks on both Friday (against Utah Valley) and Sunday (St. John’s) led to two convincing 3-0 wins…lots of smiles, joy and an Outrigger Invitational title (by virtue of winning the tiebreaker). The proof is there that they can win while Hakas is unavailable.
2 – A New CEO For The Mānoa Roofing Company. Before Mānoa it was Cheney, Washington. Prior to that it was Provo, Utah. For Bri Gunderson, she has seen a lot of places and gone through some pretty cold winters as well. So, when the opportunity came about to play one final season and to do so in the Aloha State for the Green and White, she jumped at the chance. And the blocking numbers have come with her as well. 18 total blocks in the 11 sets played last week (and she came off the bench in two of them), Gunderson had nine alone in the 3-0 win against Utah Valley. Her nine blocks equaled the amount Utah Valley had as a team and for her efforts during the Outrigger Invitational, she was rewarded with a spot on the All-Tournament Team. Her 1.43 blocks per set currently leads the Big West Conference and ranks 37th in the nation.
3 – Recognition For Three Times Two. The awards didn’t stop on Sunday after UH went 2-1 in the Outrigger Invitational and keeping the tournament championship trophy on the island. For the efforts over the weekend, both Bri Gunderson and Stella Adeyemi were named to the All-Tournament Team, while freshman Cha’Lei Reid was named the Most Valuable Player. Gunderson hit .489 for the tournament with 26 kills, seven aces and 18 total blocks. For Adeyemi, she had 38 kills and 29 digs, along with two aces. 26 (career-high) of Reid’s 50 kills came in Thursday’s loss to San Jose St. 10 more aces to her ledger while hitting .275, Reid has become the go-to left side for UH. The awards didn’t stop there when Monday rolled around. For the first time ever, Reid received Big West Conference Offensive Player of the Week. Bri Gunderson took home the Conference’s Defensive Player of the Week. One double-double while averaging 10.27 assists per set in the Invitational, freshman setter Adrianna Arquette was awarded Setter of the Week by the BWC.
4 – Dealin’ Aces. Two of the more noticeable differences from last year to this season for Rainbow Wahine Volleyball include the blocking…and the serving. Both took their turns in the limelight this past weekend. Three spin servers (Cha’Lei Reid, Adrianna Arquette and Audrey Hollis) give UH the opportunity to score points from the service line and ultimately, put pressure on the opponents’ serve-receive. If you happened to blink or look down at your phone while UH was on serve during Sunday’s match against St. John’s, you may have missed an ace or two…or 16. Yes, the Bows scored 16 service aces in the 3-0 win. One off tying the program record of 17 (set in 2017 against Cal St Fullerton), Hawai`i had eight aces alone in Set 2 as they recorded the most aces in a match since October 2017 against CSUN. Career-highs for Reid (6) and Mane (5) paved the way for numerous UH scoring runs as the Bows served in bounds at 89 percent. Reid currently leads UH with 15 service aces and her .68 aces per set has her leading the Big West and at No.31 in the nation. As a team, UH leads the conference with 2.32 aces per set (13th in the nation). Every coach will say a key is to win the serve and pass game; clearly UH did just that over the course of the 90-minute match. While the expectation shouldn’t be 16 aces in every match, continued service pressure will put this team in good positions to score points throughout the rest of the season.
5 – Stacking Defensive Efforts. While Hawai`i hit a season best .330 (42-13-88) in the 3-0 victory over Utah Valley and had the 16 aces against St. John’s, it was the defensive efforts in both of those matches that really stood out. We mentioned last week that in 31 matches last season, UH had just four matches where they recorded 10 or more total team blocks. Through six matches this season, they’ve reached that benchmark twice already as Bri Gunderson leads the way at the net. UH owned the stat sheet as they held advantages in blocks (12-9), digs (35-23) and hitting percentage (.330 to .174). Even with a day off in between matches, UH carried over Friday’s defensive effort into Sunday as they opened the match with 23 digs (41 for the match). Libero Victoria Leyva led the way with a match-high 13. While the Bows had five blocks, they stymied the Red Storm offense to just 18 total kills as St. John’s hit -.012.
6 – 1, 2 Step. Maybe Cha’Lei Reid and Stella Adeyemi have the Ciara and Missy Elliott hit among their playlist as they get hyped for a match. But for both throughout the Invitational, they had many types of attacks that led to kills. Tips, rolls, high off the block, tools and hard driven attacks into the seems, Thursday saw both hit over .200 (.242 and .205) as Reid put away 26 kills and Adeyemi added 13. Throughout the weekend both players varied their shots and kept the defense on their toes. Friday featured a career-high 17 kills for Adeyemi while hitting a very impressive .433 and Reid added 15 kills with a .312 percentage. Reid hit .318 with nine kills on Sunday as Adeyemi chipped in eight. For however long Tali Hakas remains out, the UH offense will continue to need both production and efficiency from these two outside hitters.