Defeat doesn’t hurt Hawaii volleyball team’s ranking

Hawaii’s first loss of the season didn’t cost the Rainbow Warriors the top seed in the NCAA men’s volleyball tournament nor their No. 1 ranking in the national coaches poll.

The Warriors (15-1) remained atop the NVA/AVCA Division I-II Coaches Poll on Monday, although by a smaller margin than the previous eight weeks.

Coming off a loss to UC San Diego in the Big West tournament semifinals last Friday, UH received 10 of 15 first-place votes cast, with the remainder going to No. 2 BYU. UH had received 15 of 16 first-place votes each week since supplanting BYU at No. 1 on March 1.

UC Santa Barbara, the Big West tournament champion, remained at No. 3, followed by Lewis and Pepperdine.

UC San Diego jumped three spots to No. 11 following its run to the Big West final.

After UCSB’s win over UCSD on Saturday to secure the program’s first Big West title and first NCAA berth since 2011, Gauchos coach Rick McLaughlin was among those who still had UH at the top of the poll.

“I consider Hawaii the No. 1 team in the country still, and I will vote that way (Sunday),” McLaughlin told reporters in the post-match Zoom session. “That’s their first loss against a team that’s playing incredibly well right now.”

UH was awarded the No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament on Sunday and could face the Gauchos for a fourth time this season in Columbus, Ohio. The Warriors have a bye into the semifinals on May 6 and will await the winner of an opening-round match between UCSB and Pepperdine set for May 4.

BYU also has a bye into the semifinals as the second seed after defeating Pepperdine for the MPSF championship on Saturday.

“When it comes to the national championship tournament, I think seeding does not matter,” UH senior Rado Parapunov said after the NCAA bracket was revealed on Sunday. “Everybody goes and pours their hearts, out and it comes down who can execute better.”

Each of the seven teams in the field will be allotted up to 175 tickets for the NCAA tournament matches, as first reported by OfftheBlock.com. Tickets will not be available for sale to the general public.