The “work in progress”— also known as the Hawaii Rainbow Wahine volleyball team — continues to make progress during this spring season. The Rainbow Wahine, bolstered by their showing in last Friday’s five-set loss to Texas, today headed to the Pepperdine Invitational, where they’ll face USC, Point Loma and the host Waves in round-robin play.

The memory of their last appearance in Firestone Fieldhouse isn’t a good one, as Hawaii lost in five. Set 5 was particularly painful as the Wahine fell behind 7-1, the same score Hawaii trailed last Friday in Set 5 against the Longhorns. Unlike November, where Hawaii didn’t recover and lost 15-6, it was 15-12 against Texas at the Stan Sheriff Center.

“We’re learning how to let it go and learning from the mistakes we made at Pepperdine,” rising junior middle Skyler Williams said after Wednesday’s practice. “Every year we want to be better than we were the year before.

“What we got out of Texas was to keep fighting. Considering everyone being under the weather to go five sets against such a physical team we learned don’t underestimate ourselves and keep working at it.”

Hawaii (18-9 in 2018) only has seven returnees (plus two transfers) this spring, and most couldn’t practice last week due to various ailments. Williams is the only middle and played the entire Texas match in the front row.

“I would have liked to have served, but I’d rather play in the front,” she said, after finishing with 10 kills and seven blocks. “It was tough physically but fun playing.”

Rising junior libero Kyra Hanawahine, who transferred in from Oregon this semester, hasn’t played at Pepperdine and the Kamehameha graduate said,“I’m excited for my first away games as a Wahine. We’re definitely looking forward to getting better. We’re playing three great teams and that’s three more opportunities for us to take advantage of.”

Hanawahine and fellow Oregon transfer Jolie Rasmussen will see a former teammate when playing Pepperdine. Joining the Waves from the Ducks is redshirt freshman Chandler Duff, a 6-foot-2 middle.

Pepperdine, under former Wahine associate coach Scott Wong, has 12 returnees from the 18-9 team that lost in the NCAA second round to Wisconsin. Among those are rising senior libero Hana Lishman and rising sophomore hitter Savana Greene, both Punahou graduates.

USC has 12 back from the 22-11 squad that fell in the NCAA regional final to San Diego. Division II Point Loma was 18-11, 15-7 in the PacWest. The Sea Lions, with 13 returnees, did not make the postseason last year.

This is the final spring competition for Hawaii, which continues its offseason training block through the first two weeks of April.

“Are we where we want to be? No, but there’s progress,” Wahine coach Robyn Ah Mow-Santos said. “Spring is for getting players playing time, for the coaches to see what they can do. ‘Sibs’ (rising senior hitter Kirsten Sibley) didn’t play a lot (12 of 27 matches due to injury). We want to get her more playing time.”

Ah Mow-Santos will not travel with the team. Services for her late father, Talmage, are this weekend.