No. 14 HPU rolls past Chaminade
By Brandon Masuoka
Advertiser Staff Writer
Hawai'i Pacific dusted off an old scouting report on Chaminade and still managed to brush off the Silverswords, 30-24, 30-19, 31-29, in a Pacific West Conference women's volleyball match last night.
A crowd of 550 at the Blaisdell Arena watched the 14th-ranked Sea Warriors (12-2 overall, 5-0 PacWest) win their seventh straight match, and snap the Silverswords' (8-5, 3-1) five-match winning streak.
"We didn't have a lot of time to do any scouting," HPU coach Tita Ahuna said. "In fact, we didn't know what Chaminade had except for what they brought last year."
As it turned out, the out-dated scouting report did little to slow Hawai'i Pacific's relentless attack, which was led by hitters Flavia Brakling (20 kills) and Nadica Karleusa (17).
Hawai'i Pacific grabbed a half-match conference lead over defending NCAA Division II champion and sixth-ranked Brigham Young-Hawai'i (11-2, 4-0). HPU and Chaminade play again at 7:30 p.m. tomorrow in a non-conference match at St. Andrew's Priory.
Chaminade led 27-20 in Game 3, but could not finish off Hawai'i Pacific. The Sea Warriors rallied with a 11-2 run to end the game. Karleusa nailed five of HPU's final seven points.
"When the chips are down, everyone pulled together," Ahuna said. "They just had fun out there in the last couple of points. That made all the difference."
Brakling sparked the Sea Warriors early with seven kills in Game 1 and 10 in Game 2. When Chaminade keyed on her in Game 3, Hawai'i Pacific sought out Karleusa, who pounded nine of her 17 kills in the game.
"I don't know what to say," said Chaminade outside hitter Kahala Kabalis, who shared team-high kill honors with Patti Hardimon with 11. "It's a tough loss."
Regional poll: Three Hawai'i teams were ranked in the NCAA II Pacific Regional poll yesterday. BYUH was ranked No. 4, followed by No. 7 Chaminade and No. 8 HPU. The poll was based on results through Sunday.
Reach Brandon Masuoka at bmasuoka@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2458.
