This loss is going to hurt for the rest of the season because the UH-Hilo volleyball team had Cal Poly Pomona on the ropes and a victory seemingly in the bag.
Despite leading 2-0 in sets, the Vuls couldn’t close the door and fell to the Broncos 18-25, 11-25, 25-21, 25-20, 15-11 in their season-opener Monday at UHH Gym, where fans starting going home before the final set. It was a near-capacity crowd of 863.
For most of the match, Cal Poly struggled everywhere, except for the brilliant setting from junior Alina Smith, who was born with hands of silk.
The visitors from the California Collegiate Athletic Association had hitting miscues and mental mistakes but had one thing in much better supply than UHH: tons of athleticism.
That was obvious in the final set. Cal Poly’s Andrea Bosnic clobbered five of her 15 kills, including a soaring missile from the back row for match point.
Deanna Blaine drilled 17 kills to lead the Broncos (2-2), who had a .187 hitting percentage. Alexandra Gresham added 11 kills on a .308 clip.
Marley Strand-Nicolaisen had 17 kills on 54 swings for a .167 average to lead the Vuls (0-1), who finished with a .253 hitting average. Siera Green added 16 kills on 34 attacks for a nice .353 hitting clip.
In the 25-18 first set, Cal Poly got stuck in a weak rotation and was its own worst enemy with unforced errors (hitting, serving, ball-handling) .
The Vuls scored eight straight points to close Game 1, including five late unforced errors: three straight blocks, followed by two hitting errors.
At times, Cal Poly looked like six strangers on the court with major malfunctions in communication. In the first set, setter Smith was blocked by a teammate and the ball fell to the floor. In the second set, a Bronco ran into Smith when she was attempting a set. The ball, again, fell to the floor for another easy point.
In 25-11 second set, the Vuls reeled off seven consecutive points to grab a comfortable 24-10 cushion. Armani Moultrie closed the game on a thunder shot off a Cal Poly overpass.
Before UHH’s point run, Cal Poly put in 5-foot-6 freshman outside hitter Kyla Wasko, providing inspiration for all those BIIF players who think they’re too short to play collegiate ball. She tooled shots off the block and had two kills on five swings.
Besides committing unforced error after unforced error, Cal Poly looked like it was in desperate need of a remedial class of 101 Serve-Receive passing. The Broncos sent errant passes to Smith, who couldn’t find any rhythm with her hitters.
Through the first two sets, Cal Poly, across the board about the same size but a tad more athletic, had a negative .017 hitting clip, including 17 hitting errors. UHH blasted balls at sizzling .412 percentage, including just three hitting errors.
Strand-Nicolaisen was on fire through the first two sets: 11 kills on 24 swings, one hitting error, and a .417 hitting percentage. She had three kills from the back row.
Perhaps a more shocking stat through two games was UHH out-blocking Cal Poly, 6-0. Moultrie led the early blocking party with 2.5 stuffs.
In the third set, Cal Poly won 25-21 but didn’t have an easy team, giving away free points like Halloween candy. UHH’s last five points were on unforced errors: two serving and three hitting.
After the second set, there’s a 10-minute break, and Cal Poly coach Rosie Wegrich likely showed her team a passing the volleyball video on her iPhone. The visitors stopped shanking balls and gave Smith a chance to set up her athletic hitters. The Broncos made a ton of clean passes, especially in transition — when the ball is going back-and-forth.
Blaine had five kills while Bosnic and Gresham had four each. They are Cal Poly’s most athletic hitters; only Strand-Nicolaisen matches that trio’s ability to jump and explode as an attacker. She cooled down and had three kills on 12 swings, with four hitting errors in Game 3.
UHH’s Green had nine kills on 22 swings for a .318 average through three games. At 5-11, she’s roughly the same size as the aforementioned four players but not as athletic. Green, from Fremont (Calif.) College, knocked down her kills with savvy hitting, going off the block and finding holes.
Tied 18-18 in Game 4, UHH sort of self-destructed down the stretch, committing unforced errors and falling asleep on the court. During a five-point Cal Poly run, UHH had two hitting errors, allowed an ace, and a lollipop kill by Bosnic, who hit a ball to libero Mina Grant that bounced off her and fell to the floor.
