STANFORD, Calif. >> The crowd waiting for Gage Worsley and Patrick Gasman at Maples Pavilion on Friday night might have been a wee bit larger than for their teammates.
The two played club volleyball together for Pacific Rim Volleyball about 60 miles away in Pleasant Hill, Calif., and the entire club came out to watch the pair as No. 1 Hawaii took on No. 11 Stanford.
It was a happy homecoming indeed, as the Rainbow Warriors (13-0) continued their impressive run with a 25-15, 25-18, 25-22 sweep over the Cardinal in front of a season-high crowd of 996. It was Hawaii’s sixth consecutive sweep of the season — 11th of the year — and it snapped a four-match losing streak in Maples dating back to 2012.
>> PHOTOS: Hawaii vs. Stanford
“It’s really fun,” said Gasman, a senior middle. “I’ve had (Worsley) passing for me for years. I have total confidence in him. I’ve definitely played with people where it’s, ‘Oh, I might not get set this match because our passing is not very good.’ I can look back and have total confidence in our back row.”
“I’ve been playing behind him for a very long time,” junior libero Worsley added. “He makes my job so much easier. It’s so crazy how much easier it is behind him.”
Hawaii, which has dropped just two sets this season, will face Stanford (5-6) again today, this time at Burnham Pavilion. The match is scheduled for 4 p.m. Hawaii time.
The Northern California duo was all over the court on Friday. Gasman, a huge presence in the middle at 6 feet 10, had one solo block and three block assists including being part of the final play. Gasman joined sophomore hitter Filip Humler and senior opposite Rado Parapunov to block senior hitter Eric Beatty’s kill attempt.
Worsley, considered the best libero in the country, would have had plenty of hockey assists, if volleyball had such a stat. He was perfect on serve receive at 21-of-21 and his passing to freshman setter Brett Sheward to get the Warriors offense going.
Humler was a beneficiary, recording a career-high 13 kills. Parapunov had a match-high 15 kills.
“We’ve got some good players, there’s no doubt,” Hawaii coach Charlie Wade said. “It has not been the same thing every night. We’ve had different guys step up. Tonight, Filip was really good. Every match has had a little bit different flavor to it.”
Hawaii hit .458 to Stanford’s .179 and outblocked the Cardinal 8.5-5. Junior hitter Colton Cowell had a career-high 13 digs to go with nine kills.
“We were getting a lot of good touches out there,” Gasman said. “They threw a little change by having their freshman setter out there. But other than that, we reacted really well to what was in front of us.”
Stanford rallied in Set 3, cutting a 23-18 lead to 23-22. But a Wade timeout was followed by Stanford’s Will Rottman sending his serve long. Hawaii’s triple block ended it after 87 minutes.
Junior opposite Jaylen Jasper, son of former Warrior quarterback Ivin, led Stanford with 10 kills. The Cardinal used its sixth different starting lineup of the season with freshman Nathan Lietzke making his first start at setter. Redshirt freshman Justin Lui moved back to libero after setting the past four matches.
Wade said he was a little disappointed with his team’s serving — Hawaii had 15 service errors to just three aces.
“Our serving wasn’t very good tonight, but obviously was good enough,” Wade said. “That is the one thing that you control entirely. Tonight was a poor night for us. I think we’re at 86 percent for the year. We strive to have 90-plus as a team, in bounds, while being really aggressive. So we’re still a work in progress.”
A work in progress that is undefeated and No. 1 in the country.
“Going into the middle of our season, we have a lot of confidence,” Worsley said. “If you’re doing that, it feels good, but all that matters is the end.”
Said Gasman, “We have to stay humble and treat every team like it’s the national championship. We can’t get cocky going into any game thinking that we’re going to roll them.”