FORT COLLINS, Colo. — Last time Rainbow Wahine volleyball slid into icy Fort Collins it was unbeaten and about to pound Purdue with its best passer dominating the hitting, a backup libero inspiring audacious defense and the 13th player on their 12-player roster serving the Boilermakers off the court.

Tomorrow at 2 p.m. Hawai'i time, the 'Bows and Boilermakers are together again in an NCAA Women's Volleyball regional semifinal at Colorado State's Moby Arena. Sixth-ranked Hawai'i (30-3) is seeded seventh in the postseason and 17th-ranked Purdue (26-8) is 10th — a testament to the quality and quantity of the Big Ten. Second-seeded Stanford and 15th-seeded Florida follow.

In 2004, the 'Bows left Moby 30-0, after Susie Boogaard carved up an imposing Purdue block that seemed to have forgotten her, Teisa Fotu filled in admirably for the injured Ashley Watanabe and seldom-used Kelly Ong served 10 straight to clinch a spot in the Sweet 16.

It was the Boilermakers' first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 1990 and Dave Shondell was in his second year as coach.

"It was a fun match and exciting for us," recalled Shondell, whose team upset host Colorado State a day earlier. "That tournament catapulted us into the teams we've had since. We are way ahead of where we thought we would be. When I got here, the program was in bad shape.

"I think Hawai'i will be the favorite Friday because they are Hawai'i and they don't give you any points. We probably give away more points than they do, but we probably have a little more offensive firepower so it will be an interesting match."

Purdue has not missed a postseason since, reaching regionals three times in the last four years. The Big Ten's fourth-place team has won all but one of its 12 five-set matches this year, and took it to the limit again last week against Louisville, which served for their NCAA first-round match, and Middle Tennessee.

"I've aged quite a bit this season," admits Shondell, who describes his team's personality as "kind of melancholy" and panic-free. "But it's been a nice aging process."

The only non-conference team to beat the Boilermakers this season is Utah State of Hawai'i's Western Athletic Conference, and the Aggies did it in five. All USU coach Grayson DuBose remembers about that September upset is how big the Boilermakers were, and "how physical they are all over the court."

The Aggies got around Purdue much like they swept Hawai'i a year ago — serving so hard that the middle-dominant Boilermaker offense never made it to simmer, and running their attack to warp-speed perfection.

"We were a lot faster than what they were used to seeing and we could exploit the holes in the block," DuBose recalled. "I think that UH matches up maybe better in some respects.

"They are better at the hitting positions. UH's ball control is a huge factor in their success this season. They are able to dig a lot of balls and it allows them to have chances to convert those digs for points. Purdue has (Stephanie) Lynch in the middle, but Hawai'i's two middle blockers overall are better. It should be a really physical match with big guns on both sides."

He calls Lynch "the heart of their team and attack." Shondell calls her "an absolute beast." The 6-foot-3 senior is hitting .410, which is seventh nationally, and they get her the ball enough that she is averaging a team-high 3 1/2 kills. She is also rejecting nearly 1 1/2 shots, and is ranked eighth nationally in blocking.

Danita Merlau, a 6-4 senior hitter, is the school's career attempt leader and second to Lynch in kills at 3-plus, but is hitting .161. Senior libero Kelli Miller is the career digs leader and Shondell calls 6-3 sophomore middle Kristen Arthurs his "most talented" athlete. But it is 6-1 sophomore setter Jaclyn Hart, also an offensive threat, he believes brought his team here.

Hart found a stress fracture in her back after last season and was out nine months. Shondell believes she is all the way back now, and beyond. "We are a much better team because she is a much better setter than she was four weeks ago," he said. "If we pass the ball, we are a really good team."

Last weekend, USC coach Mick Haley said ball control was Purdue's weakness, picking the Rainbow Wahine for that reason. DuBose believes serving could be the key tomorrow. Shondell has been working on both with his big girls.

"Because I have a background in high school and club volleyball, what I tried to do when I got here was get big physical athletes and really focus on serving, passing and defense," he said. "I think the match will come down to serving, passing and defense. I know that's Hawai'i's strength. Hawai'i's serving might be the best thing they do. It is really tough."

Shondell likes to watch Jamie Houston, Kanani Danielson and Amber Kaufman, but it is Aneli Cubi-Otineru who scares him.

"I think No. 13 is the most under-rated player on their team," he said. "She doesn't look like the most highly recruited player, but she's a gamer. She hits more shots than anybody else. You can't block her 1-on-1 because she has too many shots. She'll cause us problems."

The Boilermakers are no longer "just thrilled to be here." They believe it is their time to finally get past the third round. There is only one way to do that and DuBose, for one, hopes it does not happen.

"I am pulling for the Wahine," he said. "It makes my losses to them not sting quite so much if they are great. Seriously, I like UH's chances. They have prepared themselves for this match all season. They serve well and have been receiving serve well. They are deep and have a lot of experience in key positions."

NOTES

Saturday's regional final is scheduled for 4 p.m. HST and will be broadcast live on ESPNU. Hawai'i matches are broadcast live on radio at 1420 AM.

Amber Kaufman's 10-kill, .714 hitting Saturday against 12th-ranked USC was the third highest for a Rainbow Wahine with 10-plus kills in the rally scoring era (since 2001), against a ranked team. Lauren Duggins hit .769 against Ohio State in 2002 and Maja Gustin .722 against UCLA in 2001.

Florida swept Colorado State at last week's Gainesville subregional, preventing the Rams from playing at home this week. In September, CSU swept the Gators at Moby Arena, where it has won 85 percent of its matches.

Florida coach Mary Wise played for Purdue from 1978 to '80, helping the Boilermakers to two Big Ten titles.