It has been a month since UC Santa Barbara opened the door of opportunity against Hawaii for Big West volleyball teams. This week’s Rainbow Wahine trip is about trying to slam that door shut again.

The Gauchos’ stunning upset at the Stan Sheriff Center snowballed into losses at Cal State Northridge and UCDavis two weeks later. The 12th-ranked Wahine (18-4, 7-3 Big West), who hadn’t lost a regular-season conference match since 2008, are now two matches behind 23rd-ranked Northridge (19-4, 9-1), which leads the Gauchos (13-8, 8-1) by a half match.

"After the loss to Santa Barbara a little doubt creeps into our mind," said coach Dave Shoji, whose team won five five-set Big West matches last year. "Then we beat Cal Poly and the next match was Northridge, which we knew would be challenging. There was still a little doubt in our mind, so it was hard to play loose. … Now, if we want to win the conference we need to sweep and sweep again when we get home."

And probably again the final week of the season at UC Riverside and Cal State Fullerton. Even then, with three losses, Hawaii would still need help from a conference that has proved tenacious and surprising this season.

"Maybe we gave some belief to other people too," UCSB coach Nicole Latagne Welch said. "Our team has certainly changed in terms of confidence. Hawaii might have to deal with the other end of that, but we gained tremendous confidence with that victory. Our players know they can play with anybody. Hawaii is a power in volleyball, we all know that. We could take that and run with it."

The Wahine play Cal Poly tonight in San Luis Obispo, Calif., and UCSB on Saturday in Goleta, Calif. The Mustangs took Northridge to five. The Gauchos have won their last eight — their longest streak since 2005 — while trying not to remember too much about their huge upset.

"We can’t get caught up in the past," Welch said. "It’s always tougher the second time. The thing we told the team after the first Hawaii match was, ‘You can remember this for the rest of your lives. You can think back on it later. Now it’s about how do we get better.’"

Hawaii has had the same focus since its season turned sloppy that strange night against the Gauchos. Its ballhandling has been suspect since, which has allowed opponents to camp out on the outside hitters. And, its younger players have started looking their age after a spectacular nonconference season that found UH as high as third in the NCAA RPI, a power ranking that is the foundation for postseason brackets.

The Wahine have drifted to 16th this week, after wins over UC Irvine and Long Beach State that did little to restore their confidence.

"Even though we won, the teams we lost to affected us more, personally and team-wise," said freshman Nikki Taylor. "It would be a big difference if we swept this weekend, not only for RPI and stuff like that, but for me … when I lose, it’s really personal. I hate losing, of course, and it really makes me frustrated, but there’s another level where it’s really personal. It just hurts."

Shoji isn’t talking about Santa Barbara until his team leaves San Luis Obispo, where it has stumbled in the past. He has tweaked his lineup, most noticeably giving defensive specialist Sarah Mendoza more time. She has come into the back row for either Taylor or Tai Manu-Olevao to try to stabilize the ballhandling.

Shoji is hoping his team’s recent woes are "a little lull," magnified by the lateness of the season, when opponents have plenty of film to study. He wants his team to find its comfort zone again on the road, for a few reasons.

"We’ve always been a pretty good road team and we want to get that back," Shoji said. "Where on the road doesn’t matter, it’s just how we play. I want to get back to playing well."

Notes

Gauchos coach Nicole Lantagne Welch, in her first year, isn’t quite sure what to expect in terms of fans Saturday. She knows it will be entertaining.

"We’re trying to muster up as much interest as we can, reach out to the community …," she said. "We have fun groups who get excited about volleyball. The men’s team is known for dressing up for our matches. They have theme nights."

» NCAA attendance figures are ranked by accumulated attendance, so Hawaii is still No. 1, with 110,994 fans in 15 home matches, an average of 7,400. Nebraska is averaging 8,163 in 12 matches and has drawn 97,958 fans. Missouri is next at 42,820 (2,676 average), but Minnesota is the only other school averaging more than 4,000.

» A week ago, Hawaii had four wins over teams with top-25 RPIs. This week, Texas remains No. 1 and Creighton No. 9, but Arizona (27) and UCLA (43) have dropped. Northwestern has moved up to 47th, with Wichita State 55th. Northridge is 47th and UCSB 63rd.