The bottom line was the service line.
Top-ranked UCLA took advantage of Hawaii’s numerous missed serves for a 25-21, 25-20, 25-21 volleyball sweep Friday night in the Stan Sheriff Center.
"We could have served in bounds better," said UH coach Charlie Wade, whose Warriors fell to 6-8 overall and 3-6 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. "That was pathetic. It was absolutely pathetic. In the first set, we outhit ’em and we outblocked ’em, and it was whatever it was, 25-21. They sided out 70 percent and we missed eight serves. Look at the math."
In the first set, the Warriors put in play only 64 percent of their serves (14 of 22). After two sets, it was 67 percent (28 of 42).
"It’s usually something we’re pretty good at," Wade said of UH’s serving. "We’re at 85 percent on the year. Tonight, it was pathetic."
Opposite attacker Taylor Averill erred on three of his four serves. Middle blocker Nick West missed his first five serves.
Wade said West had missed each "by about a foot. He had pretty good pace. It’s just that they were out by a foot. It’s not like they were horrible misses. But they’re points for the other team."
The Warriors finished with 17 service errors and no aces. What’s more, they scored only 14 natural points on 64 serves. The Bruins had 25 natural points.
"They’re way too good for us to shrink the match that much," Wade said. "We handed them points where they didn’t have to do anything."
Wade said it might take a "couch and lab coats" to figure out the implosion.
He added: "One of my favorite sayings is: I don’t know what you’re thinking. I know what it looks like you’re thinking."
The Bruins usually have an inside-out approach, emphasizing quick sets to the middles. The Warriors tried to construct double blocks in front of middles Weston Dunlap and Thomas Anberg, forcing the Bruins to set the pin attackers.
Left-side hitter Gonzalo Quiroga blasted 16 kills, with no errors in 21 swings. He hit a cranium-numbing .762.
"Once before," Quiroga said of his history of error-free matches.
UCLA coach Al Scates scanned the scoresheet with amazement.
"No errors," Scates said. "I knew he was hitting well, but not that well."
The Bruins had nine kills launched from behind the 3-meter line. Quiroga had four kills on bics — spikes off quick sets to the middle of the back row — and scored another four on roll shots over double blocks.
"It’s a lot of practicing," Quiroga said of the repertoire of shots. "We practice every day at 7:30 (in the morning). All the work we put in, the reward is here."
Scates said his middle hitters usually can navigate past double blocks.
"But Gonzalo was so good, we didn’t have to go to the middle," Scates said.
Wade said the Warriors could have limited the Bruins’ options with better serving.
"You’re not going to beat them by serving soft," Wade said. "You have to push some pressure on it, and you have to sustain the pressure. If we were a little better at it, it’s a tighter match. That’s the disappointment. Tactically, we did what we thought we should do. We just never allowed ourselves to keep the pressure on."
The rematch between the teams is tonight at 7.