The numbers and recent history heavily favor Hawaii entering this weekend’s men’s volleyball series at UC Santa Barbara.
The Rainbow Warriors have won the past 13 meetings between the programs dating back to 2017, and lead the nation with 13.29 kills per set while ranking second with a .369 hitting percentage.
UCSB, meanwhile, ranks last in the Big West in both categories with 11.24 kills per set on .245 hitting in a 5-13 season (1-4 in conference play) to date.
All of which means little to UH coach Charlie Wade.
“They’re a lot better than their record and they have a lot of good players and I thought the entire year they’re going to play their best volleyball when we walk in the gym,” Wade said Thursday.
Wade noted that the Gauchos have pushed Big West leader UC Irvine and Long Beach State to five sets in recent weeks “and they’re playing a lot better, no doubt. They’ve got enough talent to beat anybody.”
The Warriors (20-2, 3-1 Big West) — back at No. 1 in the NVA /AVCA coaches poll after a week at No. 2 — will look to continue their success on the road this season when they face UC Santa Barbara today and Saturday at Rob Gymnasium on the UCSB campus.
The Warriors are 7-0 on the continent this season and practiced in Rob Gym on Thursday, giving them a chance to get a feel for the cozy dimensions of the auxiliary gym.
“We played there in November for that specific reason,” Wade said of UH’s fall exhibition tour in Southern California, “because it is unique and it’s been a couple years.”
Following last weekend’s series sweep at Cal State Northridge, the Warriors had a couple of days in Manoa, then turned around for their final road trip of the regular season. They enter the week tied with Long Beach State for second place in the Big West race, trailing UC Irvine (14-6, 4-0). The Anteaters face Cal State Northridge this weekend before a visit to SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center for a two-match series next week.
But UCSB will have the attention of the Warriors for the next two nights, which will include a matchup of the Warriors’ top two setters of last year.
UH senior Jakob Thelle enters the week leading nation with 10.62 assists per set, now that he’s played in enough matches to qualify to be listed on the NCAA charts.
Thelle is running the nation’s most productive attack and opposite Dimitrios Mouchlias is coming off a .500 hitting performance last week at CSUN with 21 kills and two errors in 38 swings. Outside hitter Chaz Galloway is hitting a league-best .434 with 40 kills against seven errors in UH’s four Big West matches.
“I think everybody’s excited to do everything we can to keep improving,” Wade said. “This is a veteran group, they’ve been playing in the postseason for a long time. For us to get into this time of the year, the guys are pretty confident that they know what to do to help our team win.”
UCSB setter Jack Walmer spent two seasons in the UH program and backed up Thelle last season. He made two starts in Thelle’s place early last year and served match point in the NCAA final against Long Beach State. Walmer is averaging 9.46 assists in 70 sets now playing a full-time role for the Gauchos.
Senior outside hitter Ryan Wilcox’s 218 kills is 84 clear of the Gauchos’ next highest total. Wilcox, a Punahou graduate, averages 3.03 kills per set on .237 hitting and is one of two UCSB players to see action in all 72 sets this season (libero Max Gordon is the other).
“He’s literally been their best player, or one of them, since he’s been here,” Wade said. “They set him a lot and he can score in a lot of different ways. He’s got a really good serve, they set him for six rotations and he’s a good player. He’s capable of putting a team on his back.”
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Big West men’s volleyball
At Rob Gym; Santa Barbara, Calif.
No. 1 Hawaii (20-2, 3-1) vs. UC Santa Barbara (5-13, 1-4)
>> When: Today and Saturday, 4 p.m.
>> TV: none
>> Radio: 1420-AM / 92.7-FM
>> Online: ESPN+
