Rainbow Wahine stand pat in final poll

Hawaii finished the season with the same ranking it had when it entered the NCAA tournament, remaining at No. 23 in Monday’s final AVCA Coaches Division I Women’s Volleyball Top 25.

In the final Ratings Percentage Index also released Monday, the Rainbow Wahine (22-7) finished at 32. It was seven places higher than their RPI just prior to the NCAA tourney.

Hawaii saw its season end with a 3-1 loss at host Washington in the second round. The Huskies (31-3), falling to Nebraska in four in the third round, dropped from No. 3 to No. 9 in the final poll.

NCAA champion Penn State (38-3) closed the year a unanimous No. 1. The Nittany Lions also were ranked at the top in the preseason poll and the first poll of the season.

Stanford (33-2), which lost to Penn State in the national semifinal, dropped a spot to No. 2. National runner-up BYU (30-6) jumped from 12 to 3, while Wisconsin (31-3), eliminated in the quarters by Penn State, fell two spots to No. 4.

Long Beach State (27-6), which defeated Hawaii twice in five sets, finished at No. 19, a loss of four places. Three other teams that beat the Rainbow Wahine also finished in the poll: Oregon at 14, UCLA 15 and Arizona State 21.

Duke, swept by Hawaii in the NCAA first round, fell four spots to finish at No. 25.

Berger nets Player of the Week honor

Brigham Young-Hawaii senior guard Daniel Berger was named PacWest Co-Player of the Week after averaging 20 points, five rebounds and two steals per game in two Seasiders wins last week.

The Utah State transfer has scored in double figures in seven consecutive games and ranks ninth in the conference with 14.1 points per game.