USC takes four games from UH

By Stephen Tsai
Advertiser Staff Writer

Neither a bonus game nor a guest appearance from its best player could help the Hawai'i Rainbow Wahine volleyball team avoid losing a rare four-game sweep to Southern California last night in the Stan Sheriff Center.

Hawai'i's Maja Gustin hits through the block attempt by USC's Katie Olsovsky, left, and Toni Anderson. Doug Oakley • Associated Press

"They're very well coached, they're very athletic and they're very confident," UH outside hitter Lily Kahumoku said of the defending national champions.

It was mutually decided the teams would play at least four games, no matter the outcome of the first three. But even after that duration, the Rainbow Wahine still had no answer for USC's well-placed serves (10 aces), imposing block and pick-a-poison attack.

Even outside hitter Kim Willoughby, UH's best player, could not provide relief. There were questions about the availability of Willoughby, who also plays on the Rainbow Wahine basketball team. Willoughby and her basketball teammates had reservations last night on a red-eye flight to Arizona, where UH will play Arizona State in the Women's National Invitation Tournament.

"I didn't really want to play her much," UH coach Dave Shoji said, "but she did a lot of begging, and actually she played well. She didn't miss a beat out there."

Willoughby said: "Of course, I wanted to play. I didn't show up and miss three hours of sleep just to sit on the bench. I'm not one to sit on the bench, really."

Willoughby played in the final three games, amassing 14 kills, second to Kahumoku's 18. But Kahumoku committed 15 hitting errors in 66 swings, including seven rejections. USC used its middle blocker to take away Kahumoku's seam shots.

With half-full optimism, Shoji said, "They're big, physically strong, and it's tough to hit around them. I think it's good Lily saw that block, because she'll see it again next year. Now we've got some film to look at it. I think it'll do her good and I think it'll do the team some good to see that caliber of play."

The Women of Troy had the advantage of two weeks of individual training and two weeks of team training. UH entered with five spring practices. The imbalance in practice time made it difficult for UH to adjust to USC's multiple schemes.

"We're trying to incorporate more people into our offense," USC setter Toni Anderson said. "It's hard for other teams to scout 14 players."

Shoji said redshirt freshman Cayley Thurlby struggled somewhat with her sets, "but she'll bounce back. She works hard and she'll get better."

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