Picture grit. 

It was the image of the University of Hawaii volleyball team’s 25-19, 26-24, 27-25 victory over Long Beach State in Saturday’s quarterfinals of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation playoffs. 

Finding inspiration from perspiration — and 6,119 fans in the Stan Sheriff Center — the second-seeded Rainbow Warriors advanced into Thursday’s semifinals match against No. 3 Pepperdine at UC Irvine’s Bren Center. UCI, seeded No. 1, earned the right to host the semifinals and title match, with the tournament winner receiving an automatic berth in the NCAA tournament. 

For the Warriors, none of that would be possible except for the left-side attack, libero Kolby Kanetake’s 18 digs, and Alex Jones’ closing magic. 

“That was a championship-team win right there,” UH opposite Brook Sedore said in the celebration of the Warriors’ final home match of the year. “I can’t believe we just did that.”

The Warriors resurrected from an eight-point deficit in the second set and a 24-22 hole in the third. 

Concerned? 

“How could you not be?” UH middle Taylor Averill said. “You’ve got to give it to Long Beach. They played well. Their blockers were blocking balls. They really put pressure on us.”

The Warriors cruised in the first set, but then the 49ers scored 13 of the first 18 points of the second set. With left-side hitter Dan Glamack tooling wide sets off the block and opposite John La Rusch mixing line and angle shots, the 49ers led 18-12, 20-15 and 24-22. 

Siki Zarkovic then hit off the top of the block to cut the deficit to 24-23. UH coach Charlie Wade then summoned Jones to replace setter Jennings Franciskovic behind the service line. The Warriors would score the next three points, including two coming on Davis Holt’s assisted block and solo rejection. 

“I got lucky,” Holt said, smiling. “I get lucky all the time, it seems.”

But Jones, who entered with 55 serves without an error, said it was part of the master plan. Jones targeted the seam between the 5 and 6 zone — the back middle and back left — with float serves. 

“We have to get our blockers in a position to make blocks, and that’s by making serves,” Jones said. “And we have to give our diggers a chance to make digs, and that means not getting tooled on blocks.”

In the third, the 49ers were serving for set point at 24-20. Then Zarkovic hit a line shot that found a blocker’s fingertips. Jones was summoned again, and he served three points to tie it at 24. The 49ers regained the lead at 25-24, but the Warriors scored the final three points. 

“That’s what we need to do,” Sedore said. “We played like crap at the start of the second and third sets. But it’s how you finish. Alex came through. Maybe he’s not a starter on the team, but he’s the MVP. I couldn’t imagine what it would be like without him. His leadership means so much. He’s a hell of a player.”

Wade said the Warriors played “virtually without an opposite” with Sedore struggling with his placements. Sedore finished with six kills and hit .125. That put pressure on Franciskovic, who then went to left-side hitters Siki Zarkovic and Kupono Fey. Zarkovic went 28 swings before his first error. He finished with 18 kills and hit .405. Fey, who plays the ball-handling position on the left side, contributed 17 kills. 

“Give it to Kupono for peaking at the right time,” Averill said. “We need that O2 to be peaking.”

The 49ers have statistically the best defense in the MPSF. But UH’s Kanetake might be the best defensive player. 

“I have that mind-set there’s no ball I can’t dig,” Kanetake said. “I’ll go for every ball and give 110 percent.”

That percentage, of course, is a mathematical impossibility. But Kanetake’s digs — one-wristed saves while pretzel-twisted on the court — also would seem to be improbable. 

“We refer to Kolby as his samurai warrior heritage,” Wade said. “I don’t know how he does what he does. But I always tell him to smile more. I like happy Kolby. When he’s smiling and having fun, he seems to do better. I’m like, ‘Come on, smile and have fun.’ It’s the samurai warrior in him. He’s very stoic and very determined.”

NO. 3 HAWAII DEF. NO. 11 LONG BEACH STATE 25-19, 26-24, 27-25

Key — s: games; k: kills; e: hitting errors; att: attempts; pct: hitting percentage; d: digs; bs: block solo; ba: block assists. Service Aces — 

LBSU 2 (Gregory, Yould). Hawaii 3 (Franciskovic 2, Averill)). Service errors — LBSU 7 (Martin 3, Glamack 2, Vuuren, Yould). Hawaii 14 (Franciskovic 3, Zarkovic 3, Fey 2, Sedore 2, Averill, Holt, Hartley, Jones). Assists — 

LBSU 35 (Stallings 30, Martin 2, Yould 2, 

Huus). Hawaii 48 (Franciskovic 41, Jones 3, Averill, Fey, Kanetake, Zarkovic). 

T — 2:00. A — 6,119. Referees — Larry Schwartz, Wayne Lee.