New season.

Nothing new about the end goal: an NCAA volleyball title.

“The journey is not done yet,” Hawaii junior middle Sky Williams said as the Rainbow Wahine prepared for Tuesday’s practice. “It’s not done until we’re playing in the championship in Pittsburgh, it’s game point then we cut the net and hold the trophy.

“That’s when the journey ends.”

This phase of the journey begins this week with 12th-seeded Hawaii (24-3) hosting an NCAA subregional for the first time since 2013. The first of the Wahine’s six-step program is Friday’s first-round match against Northern Colorado (26-7), the Big Sky champion scheduled to arrive today and packing a 12-match win streak.

Hawaii watched film of the Bears following Sunday’s selection show and “it’s not going to be easy,” Williams said. “They aren’t going to give us the match.

“When watching them I thought they looked like another Big West team. But all the Big West teams aren’t just going to give us points, give us the game. We have to go in and play our best.”

It’s the first time in their Wahine careers that they are home for the first week of NCAA tournament play. What they had envisioned when goal-setting before the start of the season became reality on Tuesday with the NCAA logos and banners being put in place inside the Stan Sheriff Center.

“It’s surreal,” Hawaii senior McKenna Ross said. “It means a lot to be home. I was super sad after senior night thinking that there was a chance I’d never get to play in here again.

“Now having another chance to play in here for such a big game is super fun. Being able to play in front of our fans … I think it adds fuel to our fire. It’s super reassuring that all our hard work has paid off. It’s almost like we’re starting over again, a fresh start.”

True that. All four teams are 0-0 coming into Friday’s first round.

The 4:30 p.m. opener is considered the toughest first-round contest in the bracket. No. 20 San Diego (25-4), the West Coast Conference champion, faces No. 23 Washington State (23-9), the Pac-12’s fifth-place finisher.

The Toreros have won nine in a row, a run that includes a 3-2 victory over then-No. 10 BYU that gave San Diego its first series sweep over the Cougars since 2011. Washington State snapped a three-match skid with Saturday’s 3-2 victory over No. 9 Washington in Seattle, the first time WSU has taken the series with its in-state rival since 2001.

While the other three teams played last week —Northern Colorado won the Big Sky tournament Saturday 3-2 over Weber State — Hawaii has not played since senior night on Nov. 22. The time off is a mixed plate, Wahine coach Robyn Ah Mow said.

“It’s an advantage and a disadvantage,” the former UH All-America setter said. “Everyone else is playing games and getting more experience.

“Or you can look at it as we can rest our girls, rest their legs and just be fresh.”

Ah Mow said she got “chicken skin” when walking into the arena on Tuesday, saying, “Oh there goes the blue signs,” she said of the NCAA’s signature color. “It’s an awesome feeling and great for the girls get to experience this.

“Now they have to go out and play like it is their last game. Give it all they got Friday and don’t save anything.”

The question remains whether hitter Jolie Rasmussen will be available to play this week. The junior went down seven matches into the season and has been out since that Sept. 12 match with West Virginia with a severe right ankle sprain.

Rasmussen hasn’t been cleared to fully participate in practice. Ah Mow said it was Rasmussen’s decision as to when she’d be ready.

“It’s all up to her and how her pain tolerance goes,” Ah Mow said.

Rasmussen, who transferred from Oregon in spring, was averaging a team high of 3.43 kills per set with 21 blocks in 28 sets. She had 19 kills in her Wahine debut on Aug. 30 against San Diego, a 3-2 victory over the Toreros in the Hawaiian Airlines Classic that led to her being named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player and earning Big West and national Player of the Week honors.

NCAA WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL

At Stan Sheriff Center

>> Friday — first round No. 20 San Diego (24-5) vs. No. 23 Washington State (23-9), 4:30 p.m. Northern Colorado (26-7) vs. No. 18 Hawaii (24-3), 7 p.m.

>> Saturday — second round Friday’s winners, 7 p.m.

>> TV: TBA

>> Radio: 1420-AM/92.7-FM

>> Two-day ticket package: On sale starting today, 9 a.m. Lower level, $44; upper level, $32 (adult), $26 (seniors 65-plus), $14 (ages 4-high school and college with ID)

>> Single-day tickets: On sale Friday, 9 a.m. Lower level, $25; upper level, $19 (adult), $14 (seniors), $7 (ages 4-high school and college with ID)