Different island, same result.
The Wisconsin women’s volleyball team beat Hawaii in four sets Wednesday as the Rainbow Wahine wrapped up their spring schedule with a day trip to Kauai with the visiting Badgers.
The scores were eerily similar to Tuesday, when the same teams faced off at SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center. In both matches, UH won the first set and dropped the next three.
Wisconsin won 18-25, 25-21, 25-16, 25-19 at Kauai High School’s new gymnasium Wednesday. The Badgers scored one more point in the first set Tuesday than they did Wednesday, and the Wahine totaled three fewer points Wednesday than they scored in Tuesday’s match.
Mimi Colyer led Wisconsin in kills in both matches; she had 12 on Wednesday on the Garden Isle after 20 on Oahu the day before. Carter Booth added 10 kills from the middle Wednesday and was in on six blocks.
But setter Charlie Fuerbringer keyed the Kauai match’s turning point. She served four of Wisconsin’s nine aces in a 10-0 run to close out the third stanza and put her team ahead in sets, 2-1.
Freshman Cha’lei Reid led the Rainbow Wahine attack with 12 kills.
Middle blocker Bri Gunderson capped a productive series against the Badgers with eight kills, four blocks and an ace. On Tuesday, the transfer from Eastern Washington who started her college career at BYU led UH with 12 kills and was in on four blocks. UC Santa Barbara transfer Lois Hansen finished with seven kills over the final three sets for the Wahine on Wednesday.
The 6-foot-3 Gunderson got the Wahine rolling early. Her two kills, two blocks and an ace helped UH take an 11-5 lead in the first set. Hawaii maintained the lead and Gunderson was in on back-to-back blocks to push the margin to 23-17 and Reid hammered set point.
The second set was tight throughout before Wisconsin gained some separation with a kill and block from Booth and an ace from Grace Egan. Fuerbringer’s kill on the second touch on set point evened the match.
The teams were again in a close duel midway through the third until Fuerbringer’s 10-point service run. Colyer had three kills and a block in the run.
The Badgers went on a 4-0 run to take a 10-6 lead in the fourth set and maintained a cushion through the end of the match.
The Rainbow Wahine and Badgers started the day with a joint keiki clinic in Kauai High School’s old gym. The sold-out clinic drew 80 youngsters who took part in drills with players from both teams. The festivities then moved over to the school’s brand-new gym for the match. An enthusiastic crowd welcomed home Kauai High graduate and UH associate coach Kaleo Baxter.
