Playing in a contrasting environment compared to the series opener, No. 1 Hawaii’s second match with No. 8 Stanford went much like that first.
UH opposite Dimitrios Mouchlias put away a match-high 17 kills and teamed with middle blocker Guilherme Voss on a block on match point in the Rainbow Warrior volleyball team’s 27-25, 25-19, 25-19 sweep of the host Cardinal on Saturday in Stanford, Calif.
The Warriors opened the series with a 25-22, 25-19, 26-24 win Friday before a crowd listed at 1,703 in the spacious 7,233-seat Maples Pavilion. With Stanford hosting a basketball game against Arizona on Saturday, the volleyball match was played across the street in cozy Burnham Pavilion, which can hold about 1,300.
With ample green in the crowd packed into the bleachers, the Warriors (9-0) put up a season-high 12 blocks and extended their winning streaks to 18 consecutive matches, 24 straight sets and ninth in a row against Stanford (7-4).
“We got there at 4 p.m. (for the 6 p.m. Pacific time start) and there were 100-plus people in line waiting for the doors to open,” UH coach Charlie Wade said. “We appreciate everybody coming out and it certainly was a fun environment tonight.”
After two road trips bridged by a bye week, the Warriors will open an 11-match, five-week homestand with a series with Concordia-Irvine on Thursday and Friday at SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center.
Mouchlias had 12 kills on 23 attacks Friday and hit .517 on a season-high 29 swings to power the Warriors attack in the rematch.
“He didn’t play great last night and I knew he’d bounce back and play better tonight,” Wade said. “He had some nice turns from the service line, there’s a one-on-one block that he had, and he took some big swings for us.
“It’s nice to see us getting back into some nice rhythm and everybody contributing.”
UH’s block helped set the tone early in the win Friday and was a factor throughout Saturday’s match. UH middle blocker Cole Hogland was in on six blocks and Voss and Chaz Galloway had five each. Voss had five kills in 10 swings and Hogland had three kills in the middle.
UH outside hitter Spyros Chakas finished with six kills and had two aces in the third set. Setter Jakob Thelle had 29 assists for an attack that hit .333.
The Warriors improved their efficiency from the service line with six aces against nine errors after misfiring on 15 serves Friday.
Stanford outside hitter Will Rottman led the Cardinal with 13 kills on .320 hitting before leaving the match with an injury late in the third set.
UH went on a 6-1 run late in the first set and led 24-22 on a block by Mouchlias and Hogland. Stanford forced deuce and earned a set point on a Rottman kill. UH survived with a triple block on Rottman, and Hogland hammered an overpass of Mouchlias’ serve to end the set.
The Warriors hit .524 in the second set with 12 kills against one error on 21 attacks. They pulled away with a 5-1 run to open up a 21-16 lead and ended the set with a Galloway kill.
There were chippy moments in the match and both teams were shown yellow cards early in the third set.
Thelle and Chakas had aces in a 7-1 UH run to open the third set, but Stanford rallied to take a 14-12 lead on back-to-back kills by Alex Rottman. UH responded with a five-point surge capped by a Chakas ace. The Warriors remained in control and Mouchlias gave UH match point with his 17th kill and teamed with Voss on the walk-off block.
“The one thing I’m really pleased is that we’re pretty focused (and) playing at a high level, both productive and efficient, late in sets and late in the match,” Wade said. “That’s a really good quality to have, where when it gets down to the end, our guys stay very calm, just stay focused on what they need to do.”
