November always has brought a bit of uncertainty where Hawaii volleyball is concerned. As the regular season winds down, the questions have been about the Rainbow Wahine’s placement in the NCAA tournament.
Would Hawaii finish out as regular-season conference champion or co-champion — as the Wahine have done 25 of the past 32 years since moving from independent status in 1984? Would they get the automatic berth or be an at-large selection, the latter which happened in 1997 and 2013 when losing on a tiebreaker as league co-winner?
Would Hawaii be home for at least one more match after the Wahine celebrated senior night? That was almost as automatic as winning the conference title with Hawaii hosting the opening round of the NCAA 16 times between 1985 and 2003 but only once since 2004 (2011) when the selection committee began seeding the tournament, heavily relying on the computer-generated Ratings Percentage Index that has not favored the non-power conferences.
This November, there is no question that Hawaii (49 RPI) won’t be hosting after Saturday’s senior night. There is little question about the Wahine getting the Big West’s automatic berth; barring a complete collapse by No. 23 Cal Poly (21-2, 11-0), the best Hawaii (16-7, 10-2) can hope for is to finish second … and hope that is good enough to make the tournament.
BIG WEST VOLLEYBALLStan Sheriff Center
>> Friday, 7 p.m.
>> Cal State Northridge (10-13, 4-7) at Hawaii (16-7, 10-2)
>> Series: Hawaii leads 21-2
>> Saturday, 7 p.m.
>> Long Beach State (7-18, 4-8) at Hawaii
>> Series: Hawaii leads, 32-18-1
>> TV: Spectrum OC16 (Ch. 12/1012)
>> Radio: 1420-AM
“I feel like there’s no pressure because nobody thinks we’re going to do anything,” said Emily Maglio, one of six Wahine seniors playing in their final home match on Saturday. “But we are putting it on ourselves, to do well for the state and the university.
“We don’t want to be the first team in how many years not to make it.”
Hawaii’s only missed the postseason once, in an injury-plagued 15-12 campaign in 1992 when the NCAA tournament field was just 32 teams. Wahine head coach Robyn Ah Mow-Santos was a senior at McKinley High.
“You never know,” Ah Mow-Santos said of postseason selection. “As I keep telling them, play it out, win in three and then maybe. Maybe if (the committee members) look at all the teams we went five with … BYU, UCLA, Cal Poly …
“What drives me crazy is we’re up 2-0 and don’t come out with it, up 2-1 and don’t come out with it. I’m just looking for our team to play solid volleyball. Show that they can play a solid game without 10 service errors or this constant up and down. Control what you can control.”
The only thing in the Wahine’s control is how they perform on the court. First up is Cal State Northridge (10-13, 4-7) on Friday.
Hawaii struggled to put away the host Matadors on Oct. 14, needing strong serving runs by senior defensive specialist Gianna Guinasso, junior hitter McKenna Granato and junior reserve setter Faith Ma’afala (combined five aces) and four of Granato’s 24 kills to win Set 5 15-8. The Wahine are 3-5 when it goes to five.
Saturday’s home finale is against Long Beach State (7-18, 4-8), which Hawaii defeated Oct. 13 in four. It’s senior night for Maglio, Guinasso, libero Savanah Kahakai, outside hitters Kalei Greeley and Kendra Koelsch and defensive specialist Clare-Marie Anderson.
NOTE: This is the earliest that Hawaii has concluded its home season since 2015 when the Wahine finished a sweep of Cal State Fullerton on Nov. 1. The last time Hawaii lost on senior night was 2007 when swept by Utah State.
The Wahine have two bye weeks sandwiching their final Big West matches. Hawaii is at UC Davis on Nov. 16 and UC Irvine on Nov. 18. NCAA Selection Sunday is Nov. 26.
