The University of Hawai`i at Hilo Vulcan Volleyball team continued to show its youth, both positively and negatively, in a pair of losses on the final day of the Vulcan Classic volleyball tournament.
In the 11:00 a.m. match, the Vulcans took the first set from five-time defending Canadian Interuniversity Sport champion University of British Columbia 27-25, but fell in the next three sets, 25-19, 25-17, and 25-11, to drop to 0-3 on the season. In the 7:00 p.m. nightcap, the Vulcans fell in straight sets, 25-18, 25-15, 25-18 to Augustana College. UH Hilo finished the Vulcan Classic with losses in all three of its matches, dropping to 0-4 overall.
At times, the young Vulcans showed youthful enthusiasm, laughing off tough moments and encouraging one another when momentum was clearly out of their favor. At other times, they have shown the opposite, losing focus and intensity when an opponent has gone on a run late in a match, with the fourth set of the British Columbia match as a prime example.
At the end of this weekend’s action, Reyes has a better idea of what his team is made of.
“We certainly found are weaknesses, which are many,” stated the UH Hilo head coach. Reyes was quick to point out the positives that he sees in his group, though. “I like our freshman defenders…our serving was good in this tournament, especially in the last three matches.”
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UH Hilo was outmatched by the size of British Columbia in the first match of the day. The Thunderbirds won the next three sets thanks in large part to a height advantage of at least four players standing over six feet tall. The visitors tallied 14.5 total team blocks, a large advantage to the lone block the Vulcans earned. Lisa Barclay led UBC with 19 kills, while Rosie Schlagintweit followed up with 14 kills.
Sophomore Olivia Lane was the only Vulcan to reach double digits in kills, tallying 10 with no errors. The Vulcans had an .016 attack percentage for the match.
In the second match, the Vikings of Augustana displayed dominance on the defensive end, swarming to every ball hit by a UH Hilo player. Meanwhile, Jordan Spatenka stepped up in the second and third sets to give an added boost to a promising Viking offense, leading the team with 12 kills in 31 attempts. Taylor Hrdlichka added 10 kills.
Freshman Bria Morgan led UH Hilo with 10 kills in the match.
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The Vulcans return to the court on Friday and Saturday against Southern Arkansas University. Friday’s match begins at 7 p.m., and will air on ESPN Radio and ESPNHawaii.com. Saturday’s match will start at 4 p.m.
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