Hawaii senior Emily Hartong leaves Big West volleyball the way she found it. She clobbered the conference when the Rainbow Wahine rejoined it last year and never let up.

For her sheer dominance, and that hammer of a right arm, Hartong was named BWC Player of the Year again Monday by the conference coaches.She ranks eighth in the country in kills (4.64 a set) as 11th-ranked and seeded UH prepares to host Idaho State in a first-round NCAA tournament match Friday at the Stan Sheriff Center. Hartong is sixth in career kills at UH with 1,456, but the All-American’s most eye-popping number might be .298 — her hitting percentage over a remarkable career.

“One thing that separates her from other athletes,” says senior teammate Ali Longo, “is that no matter what, if it’s a good set she’s going to hit the crap out of the ball. She’s just going to be up high enough jumping that she’s going to go after it. That relentlessness and her jumping … it’s like, ‘I’m going to go over you or hit it as hard as I can and see what happens.’”

Longo, senior setter Mita Uiato and freshman opposite Nikki Taylor join Hartong on the 16-player first team. Middles Jade Vorster and Kalei Adolpho are honorable mention. Taylor, a Kaiser graduate, is one of two freshmen on the first team, with UC Santa Barbara hitter Ali Spindt, who is Freshman of the Year.

UH coach Dave Shoji figures that was a close call, and might have been closer if he had made Taylor a six-rotation player from the beginning. In the last seven matches she is hitting 34 points higher (.323) and averaging over a kill higher each set (3.58).

“Her numbers in the last six to eight games were phenomenal,” Shoji said. “Once we made the change, her offensive output increased dramatically.”

‘Iolani graduates Chelsea Hardin (Cal Poly) and Mahina Haina (Cal State Northridge) were also honored, Hardin on the first team and Haina earning one of 11 honorable mentions.

UC Santa Barbara’s Nicole Latagne Welch and CSUN’s Jeff Stork are Co-Coaches of the Year.

Hawaii shared the Big West title with those teams and all three are in the NCAA tournament.

Uiato has been all-conference the past three years and was all-region last season. Those teams will be announced next week, with the selections eligible for All-America honors. Uiato needs 26 assists to move past Dani Mafua and into fifth on the UH career list.

“You’ve got to look at her the same way you look at Kanoe Kamana‘o and Robyn (Ah Mow-Santos),” Shoji said. “She is right up there with the great UH setters.”

Longo is the only libero on the first team, after being ignored last season. She is averaging just over four digs a set — second in the Big West — but it might be the times she doesn’t touch the ball that got her in this time.

“Coaches recognize that Longo passed half the court for us,” Shoji said. “That was someone they didn’t want to serve, that’s why she got recognized. They have to try and avoid her.”

Hartong’s selection gives the Wahine a Player of the Year honor every year since Angelica Ljungquist in 1995. Hartong joins Olympian Teee Williams-Sanders (1988 and ’89) as two-time BWC Players of the Year from Hawaii.

“Emily probably could have made All-American in the middle the past two years,” Shoji said. “For her to make that transition to outside hitter is unheard of. She not only made the transition, but she did it very, very well.

“One thing she has always had is a great arm swing. A lot of effective middles don’t have that great arm swing and couldn’t play outside. She’s different.”

The Wahine (24-4), who closed the regular season with eight wins, dropped six spots to No. 17 in Monday’s NCAA RPI. Creighton, a team UH beat on the road the first month of the season, is 16th and playing in Kansas this week, while UH hosts Idaho State, Arizona State and Brigham Young.

Tickets go on sale today at 9 a.m. Television coverage will also be announced today, according to UH.