The last time there was Silly String at the Stan Sheriff Center, Dave Shoji was wearing it … as well as a paper crown as the king of Division I women’s volleyball victories.
Thursday night, there again was Silly String and another type of crown for Shoji and No. 14 Hawaii. The Rainbow Wahine clinched the Big West title — and the automatic berth in the NCAA tournament — with a 25-11, 26-24, 25-15 sweep of Cal Poly.
Senior opposite Nikki Taylor ruled the 92-minute match, with 15 kills, five aces and five blocks in helping Shoji join Penn State’s Russ Rose as the only two to reach 1,200 career victories. Senior hitter Annie Mitchem and sophomore hitter McKenna Granato added nine kills apiece for Hawaii (21-5, 14-1), which takes a nine-match winning streak into Saturday’s regular-season finale against Shoji’s alma mater, UC Santa Barbara.
“It means we’re going to the NCAA tournament,” Shoji said when asked what 1,200 wins meant. “That’s the biggest story tonight. We’ll be getting on a plane in a couple of weeks and playing somewhere.
“We’ve worked really hard for this. We didn’t have a great start (opening 0-2 and 3-3) and I’m really proud of this team persevering this season with injuries, lineup changes, incorporating a new setter (freshman Norene Iosia).
“It wasn’t real smooth, but there never was any drama.”
A crowd of 4,240 saw Hawaii keep one other streak alive while another ended. The Wahine have won 25 consecutive sets, but the Mustangs (17-9, 10-5) were the first in 16 sets to score more than 19 points with 24 in Set 2.
“The second game was tough for us,” said Mitchem, one of four Hawaii seniors who will be honored on Saturday. “I’m just happy we could get this win for (Shoji). It’s awesome for him and the program.”
Hawaii did it with a strong effort at the net (13 blocks) and service line (nine aces). And the Wahine did it for over half the match without a middle presence, with junior middle Emily Maglio and freshman Natasha Burns not putting down a kill until late in Set 2.
“We were pretty good at the pins,” Shoji said of his outside hitters. “We need to be better in the middle.”
After coming close in Set 2, the Mustangs had the Wahine off balance by taking a 7-4 lead. Freshman Emma Smith served for five straight and Hawaii blocked Cal Poly sophomore hitter Adlee Van Winden on three swings to take the lead for good at 9-7.
It was 13-9 and then it was over as Taylor took over from the service line. Six points and three aces later, the Wahine were rolling at 19-9.
“Serving is the only skill where you are the only one that affects the ball,” said Taylor, who has 113 career aces. “I’m not trying to focus on getting aces but on getting them out of system, where they become so much more predictable.”
One thing that will be unpredictable is Saturday’s postgame program by Wahine seniors Taylor, Mitchem, Tayler Higgins and Katiana Ponce.
“I think it will be pretty cool and unexpected,” Taylor said.
For Cal Poly, junior hitter Raeann Greisen finished with 12 kills, half coming in Set 2.
Note
Saturday is a designated “White-Out” Night, with fans encouraged to wear white.
