Hawaii junior setter Joe Worsley was named co-defensive player of the week by the Big West, a first for the program in its inaugural season in the conference.

Worsley had back-to-back double-doubles as the third-ranked Rainbow Warriors split a two-match series with No. 2 UCLA. He had 36 assists, a career-high 14 digs with four blocks and an ace in Friday’s 3-1 victory, and 46 assists and 11 digs in a 3-1 loss on Sunday.

Worsley is averaging a team-best 2.16 digs per set this season. His 10.60 assist average is tops in the Big West and No. 2 nationally.

Sharing the weekly honor with Worsley was UC Irvine’s Scott Stadick, who helped the Anteaters defeat Brigham Young 3-2. UCI also picked up player and freshman of the week, with outside hitter Joel Schneidmiller winning both.

Also Monday, the split with UCLA had Hawaii moving into sole possession of the No. 3 ranking in the AVCA Division I-II Men’s Volleyball Top 15.

The Rainbow Warriors (7-1) were tied with Ohio State (5-2) in last week’s poll. Long Beach State (9-0), the lone remaining undefeated team, stayed at No. 1, receiving all 25 first-place votes.

UCLA (8-1) remained at No. 2, while UC Irvine (10-1) moved up two spots to No. 4, with two-time defending NCAA champion Ohio State (5-2) dropping to No. 5.

Hawaii continues its 12-match homestand this week with the Waikiki Beachcomber by Outrigger Classic. The tournament begins its three-day run on Thursday with Academy United against Thompson Rivers at 4 p.m. followed by Lees-McRae against Hawaii at 7 p.m.