In a sense, UC San Diego has spurred the development of Hawaii’s resilience over the past two seasons.
While the Rainbow Warriors have won 18 of their past 20 meetings in the men’s volleyball series with the Tritons, the exceptions carry a sense of caution as UH enters the final weekend of the regular season.
UC San Diego was responsible for the lone blemish in UH’s 17-1 season in 2021 when the Tritons stunned the Warriors 22-25, 25-23, 16-25, 25-23, 18-16 in the semifinals of the Big West Tournament in an empty SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center.
Then last year, UCSD again knocked off UH in five sets in the conference opener in La Jolla, Calif.
Both times, UH bounced back on their way to back-to-back national championships, and the Warriors had those lessons in hand after two midseason losses this season.
The Warriors responded to a loss to Penn State with a rousing win over UCLA in the Outrigger Volleyball Invitational and, the following week, earned a series split with Long Beach State after being swept to open the Big West season.
“We had two tough losses at home, which we didn’t have last season,” UH setter Jakob Thelle said. “So just coming together as a team and growing and cultivating more leadership within our team has helped us a lot going forward. … It definitely makes us more prepared for everything ahead.”
The Rainbow Warriors (24-2, 7-1 Big West) have reeled off seven straight victories to enter the series with the Tritons (8-14, 2-6) tied with Long Beach State for first place in the conference standings, with UC Irvine a game behind. UH can clinch at least a tie for the regular-season title with two wins, and the tie-breakers stand in UH’s favor against LBSU and UCI. So the top-ranked Warriors welcome the Tritons back to Manoa today and Saturday well aware of the stakes at hand.
“We’ve been through this before, so they’ve got a really clear vision on when you step on the court and compete to keep it all in perspective,” UH coach Charlie Wade said this week. “And I think we all realize this is a time of year you’re not allowed to let down at this point. You can’t miss a beat anymore.”
UCSD, under first-year coach Brad Rostratter, enters the week in fourth place in the Big West and coming off a five-set win over UC Santa Barbara on the Tritons’ senior night a week ago at LionTree Arena.
UCSD outside hitter Ryan Ka had 28 kills in 66 attacks against the Gauchos and carries the bulk of the offensive load for the Tritons.
In the two wins over UH, Ka posted 33 kills on 78 attempts to complement former All-Big West outside hitter Kyle McCauley. With McCauley completing his career last season, Ka is shouldering an even heavier work load in averaging 3.81 kills on just over nine attacks per set this spring. Ka’s average ranks third in the Big West, trailing UC Irvine’s Francesco Sani (4.04) and UH’s Dimitrios Mouchlias (3.97), the reigning AVCA National Player of the Week.
Ka had 31 kills against Ball State on March 5, and his 681 total kills is 336 ahead of 6-foot-5 freshman Josh Schellinger’s tally as the Tritons’ second-leading attacker.
“Fast jump, fast arm,” Wade said of Ka. “He’s one of the best lefts in the league and you’re going to have to know where he is early and often.”
After Saturday’s rematch, UH’s outgoing class — Thelle, Mouchlias, Kana’i Akana, Cole Hogland, Fillip Humler and Devon Johnson — will be honored in the Warriors’ senior night ceremony. But it’s first things first for the Warriors.
“We definitely have to prioritize and focus on the volleyball, because it’s the last two games of the regular season,” Humler said. “We’ve just got to leave everything out there and finish up the season strong. And then once the game is pau then there is time to enjoy senior night and have fun with the fans.”
Big West volleyball
At SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center
UC San Diego (8-14, 2-6) vs. No. 1 Hawaii (24-2, 7-1)
>> When: Today and Saturday, 7 p.m.
>> TV: Spectrum Sports
>> Radio: 1420-AM / 92.7-FM
