Venting all the emotion that was missing Wednesday when sixth-ranked Hawai'i somehow salvaged a volleyball victory over Cal Poly (San Luis Obispo), the Rainbow Wahine closed their regular season last night with an impressive 25-17, 25-19, 25-23 victory over the Mustangs.

Two nights after almost nothing went right but the final score, it was tough to find anything wrong with the Rainbows (28-3), who find out their NCAA Tournament fate tomorrow. They trailed for all of one serve before a Stan Sheriff Center crowd of 5,488.

"We were better, more emotionally ready to play. I think we were just a little drained Wednesday night," said UH coach Dave Shoji, whose team won its 11th straight WAC championship last weekend. "We got a chance to recover and get back up. We knew how big this match was for us."

When it was over, an hour earlier than Wednesday, UH celebrated seniors Jamie Houston, Tara Hittle, Nickie Thomas and Jessica Keefe with video, a halau — that included freshman Kanani Danielson's cousin -and a few thousand of their closest friends offering many flowers.

Ryan Tsuji, the Rainbow Wahine's manager, volunteer and assistant coach the past seven years, was also honored with the seniors. Tsuji, whose family from Hilo came over, was the only one of the five to cry.

Houston bounced back with 15 kills to anchor the Hawai'i attack, becoming only the second Rainbow Wahine in history — after 2003 Player of the Year Kim Willoughby — to get 2,000 in her career, finishing the night with 2,009. Aneli Cubi-Otineru also rallied, hitting .421 with nine kills and one error.

Much of Hawai'i's .340 hitting could also be traced to the improved passing of Hittle, Danielson and Cubi-Otineru, who were aced 11 times Wednesday and not at all last night. Their hard work made the return of starting setter Dani Mafua — out most of the last five matches because of a hamstring injury — that much sweeter.

"Dani was really good early," Shoji said. "The tempo of the sets was like the first week of the season — fast and accurate. We watched the (season-opening) Penn State match on tape this week and our offense was really crisp that first week. We had to get back to it.

"I know it helps some to watch from the bench. You can see a lot you can't see during the match when you're playing so I'm sure she saw what kind of tempo we want and need."

For Cal Poly (16-13), desperately trying to win its way into the postseason, it was a bittersweet end. A year ago, the Mustangs reached the NCAA regionals. This season, they finished third in the Big West — a conference without a ranked team.

Their last NCAA power rating was No. 51, and that was before they lost to No. 102 UC Irvine. They went 0-6 against ranked teams.

This sweep started nothing like Wednesday's non-stop five-set chase. The Rainbow Wahine blew to a 16-10 advantage in the first set with Amber Kaufman serving half the points.

The Mustangs could get no closer than three and Houston put an emphatic end to it with her 2,000th kill. Hawai'i out-hit Cal Poly .346 to .125, and it was just warming up.

The 'Bows blasted at a .484 clip in Set 2, breaking to a 12-5 advantage with Mafua serving five straight and Houston in the midst of a seven-kill set. Cal Poly scored five of the final seven points and still it wasn't close, with Houston and Thomas stuffing two-time Big West Player of the Year Kylie Atherstone to end it with a flourish.

In the final set, it was Cubi-Otineru helping Hawai'i get separation, serving four in a row to make it 13-8. The Mustangs again made a late run, erasing three match points before Kaufman's eighth kill ended it.

"I feel much better after tonight's match," Shoji said. "I was not feeling ready (for the postseason) Wednesday for sure. This was a nice match. All parts of our game were on tonight."...

The Rainbows' place in the 64-team NCAA Tournament field will be announced tomorrow at 5 p.m. on ESPNU, with the first round scheduled next weekend at 16 home sites.

The seniors, and Tsuji, are ready for one last road trip. The assistant coach spoke movingly of his faith journey with Hittle the past five years and the way Keefe "owned the role" she was given over her career.

He marveled at Houston's physical attributes, but was more impressed at her humility.

"She can drive you nuts or she can be the best player, but more than anything else she is someone who never let anything get to her head," Tsuji said. "She never became that player that was too big to work hard or come early and clean the gym. We've had players in the past who took on that diva mentality and I don't think she had that. She worked hard every day. She is someone people see as putting down a lot of kills, but she is just such a humble person."

Thomas, who missed the last two seasons after injuring both knees, won Tsuji over with her perseverance and consistency in the face of serious setbacks.

"I'm just so proud of what she's done and come back from so much adversity," Tsuji said. "I remember that day after she tore her second ACL. She wasn't that disappointed or moping around. She was like, 'It happened and I've got to move on.' It really matured her as a person."