Wahine sweep through Division II Sea Warriors

By Ann Miller
Advertiser Staff Writer

Hawai'i's Lauren Duggins, left, and Margaret Vakasausau stuff 5-foot-6 Summer Castillo of Hawai'i Pacific. Photos by Gregory Yamamoto • The Honolulu Advertiser

The University of Hawai'i, ranked 12th in NCAA Division I, never let the defending Division II champions in the match last night. The Wahine (18-4) won their 15th in a row, 30-14, 30-20, 30-14.

The match was watched by 3,756 at Stan Sheriff Center. HPU's home gym (St. Andrew's Priory) holds 532. It reunited UH coach Dave Shoji and HPU coach Tita Ahuna, captain of Shoji's last national championship team, in 1987.

"We haven't had many players like Tita," Shoji said. "I'd sure like to have another. We've had perhaps more talented players, but nobody with a bigger heart."

Heart is what HPU (16-4) is suddenly seeking. It was the first NCAA D-II team in history to go unbeaten last year, when it won its second national title in three years. It started this season with 14 victories, but has lost four of its last six.

Yesterday, it dropped out of the Top 10 for the first time in three years (to No. 13).

"We're having our ups and downs," admitted two-time All-American Nia Tuitele, HPU's senior captain. "It's difficult and disappointing. I just want to go out and play again.

"I know our team is way better than this."

Ahuna knows what's missing, but can't help her team find it.

Wahine Kim Willoughby gets one of her match-high 23 kills, firing over the block attempts by Nia Tuitele, left, and Andrea Wean.

The Wahine went five games with BYU-Hawai'i the last time they scheduled a local opponent. Last night, they needed less than 90 minutes. In the first game, HPU put two points together just once.

All night, UH outside hitters Kim Willoughby (23 kills) and Maja Gustin (17) soared over the smaller Sea Warriors. Both hit better than .500 and provided the most telling look at the difference in divisions.

"We can't do anything about Willoughby, you know," shrugged the 5-foot-9 Tuitele. "Hawai'i just kept coming at us. They were awesome. I'm just glad no one got hurt."

When Willoughby and Gustin were not lowering the boom, UH was sucking up pretty much everything HPU sent over. Four Wahine finished with double-digit digs as UH out-dug HPU, 60-34.

Hawai'i ran its transition game to near-perfection and never let the Sea Warriors get on one of their patented streaks. Even Shoji admitted surprise at his team's total domination, attributing some of it to the loss of a game in an early-season scrimmage at HPU.

"They brought their A-game," Ahuna said. "I wish it was at least A-minus. Not A-plus. They were fantastic. And Willoughby. We did a good job actually, stopping her from killing us."

The Sea Warriors, who start five seniors, got 12 kills from Roberta Robert and seven from Andrea Wean. The rest of the team combined for eight kills and hit .035.

"I certainly let my team know this was a big match for the University of Hawai'i as well as Hawai'i Pacific," Shoji said. "They knew Tita's history and that HPU had won a couple national titles and was ranked No. 1 earlier in the year. They took a very good approach to the game."

In essence, it was like most WAC matches. Shoji said HPU would "be very competitive in the East." UH senior Tanja Nikolic took it a step further.

"We were just into it tonight and did not let them play," Nikolic said. "It's not that they didn't show up. They have a very good team, very good players. We just didn't let them play. They would fit perfectly in the WAC."

QUICK SETS: The Wahine put their 50-match WAC winning streak on the line Friday at Nevada. The match will be broadcast on 1420 AM, beginning at 4:45 p.m. HST. ... Hawai'i plays at Boise State Saturday. ... HPU needs one win this weekend to clinch its third straight Pacific West Conference championship and qualify for the national tournament. It closes the regular season Saturday against Montana State-Billings and Monday against Western New Mexico. Both matches begin at 7:30 p.m. at St. Andrew's Priory.