VOLLEYBALL WEEKLY
UH Hilo Overall Record: 18-5                      UHH PacWest Record: 14-3

Vulcans Host Cougars, Sea Lions with PWC title on the line--UHH Gymnasium
Wednesday, Oct. 31, 6 p.m. vs. Azusa Pacific (19-6 / 15-2 PWC)
Saturday, Nov. 3, 5 p.m. vs. Point Loma (16-8 / 13-4 PWC)
(Link to Live Stats and Live Video for all matches available at www.hiloathletics.com)

Hilo Headlines: The Vulcans bring home a six-match winning streak just in time to host first-place Azusa Pacific on Wednesday and Point Loma on Saturday. Both matches have Pacific West Conference title implications, with the Vulcans one full match behind the Cougars, and just one match ahead of the Sea Lions.

PacWest Logjam: As mentioned above, Azusa Pacific is in first place in the PacWest at 15-2, followed by Biola (15-3), Hawai`i Hilo (14-3), Chaminade (14-4) and Point Loma (13-4). Azusa and Point Loma will make their way to the islands this week, both to face UHH and Chaminade in a defining week for the PacWest.

Regional Ratings: The official NCAA West Region ratings came out last week, with the Vulcans just outside looking in at this point. There will be three more ratings, and with the final ranking the post-season field will be determined. The conference winners from the PacWest, the CCAA and the GNAC will earn berths, and the ratings will determine the next five teams (eight total). Here is the ranking from Oct. 24, with each teams' record at that time. (1) Western Washington 19-3, (2) Cal State San Bernardino 20-2, (3) Cal State LA 20-1, (4) Cal Poly Pomona 19-3, (5) Central Washington 16-5, (6) Alaska Anchorage, (7) Azusa Pacific 17-6, (8) Chaminade 17-4, (9) Cal State Monterey Bay 15-6, (10) Point Loma 15-7. In the regional rating points, the Vulcans would be the 11th team, just hundreths of a percentage point behind Point Loma. Biola, in their second year of the NCAA eligibility process, is not yet eligible for the post-season.
 
Five to Stay Alive: UH HIlo has the two matches with the Cougars and Sea Lions, followed by the final home match of the season on Nov. 7 against Fresno Pacific. They will then wrap up the regular season on Oahu with matches against Hawaii Pacific (Nov. 9) and Chaminade (Nov. 10).

Spooky Night Against the Cougars: The Vulcans will host Azusa Pacific on Halloween night, and the first 100 fans through the doors will receive a free bag of candy. 

Free, Free, Free!!: From here on and forever more, all UH Hilo and Hawaii Community College students will receive free admission to all Vulcan home events. Just show your student ID, and you are in!!

Senior Salute: The Saturday match versus Point Loma will serve as Senior Night for the Vulcans. After the match, UH Hilo will honor Mina Grant, Kiley Davis, Evelin Solyomvari and Basia Sauni for all of their contributions to Vulcan athletics. UH Hilo will still have one more home match on the following Wednesday against Fresno Pacific.

Streaking through northern California: The Vulcans defeated Concordia to wrap up a six-match homestand, and then won five in a row while trekking through northern and central California. They took care of business to stay in the PacWest hunt with victories over Holy Names (3-0), Academy of Art (3-1), Fresno Pacific (3-1), Dominican (3-2) and Notre Dame de Namur (3-0).

Pushing Aside the Penguins (Barely): The Vulcans had their stiffest test on the road trip against Dominican, taking the full five sets before settling the verdict. The Penguins won the first and fourth sets, before the Vulcans outlasted the home team in the fifth, 15-11.

Building a Wall: UH Hilo won the match against Dominican at the net. They had 19 blocks on the night, including seven solos. Ashton Jessee had four of the solos and 11 total blocks on the night. In the last four matches of the road trip, the Vulcans had their four highest block assist numbers of the season, including 32 against Fresno Pacific. That pushed UH Hilo into the top spot among PacWest teams in blocking with 2.49 per set. Jessee strengthened her hold on the same category individually with 20 solo blocks and 92 block assists.

Armani's Award: Speaking of blocking, junior middle blocker Armani Moultrie earned PacWest Defender of the Week honors on Oct. 22 for her work in two wins over Holy Names and Academy of Art. The Inglewood, Calif. native led the conference in blocks per set for the week. She had two solo blocks and four block assists in the Vulcans straight-set win against Holy Names. In the next match, Moultrie had six block assists in four sets against Academy of Art.

Defending the Court: If the ball gets past the block, Mina Grant and others have been there to keep the ball in play. Grant has 307 digs on the season (4.58 per set), fourth best in the PacWest. She has 1,480 digs in her career, with the Vulcan career record listed at 1,559 by Tanya Fuamatu (1992-95). Bria Beale is next behind Grant this season with 259 digs, followed by Basia Sauni's 212.

Hitters from Every Angle: The Vulcans offensive attack comes from many angles, with five different players tallying at least 118 kills so far on the season. Bria Beale leads with 227 kills, with Alexandria Parisian at 217, Evelin Solyomvari 209, Ashton Jessee 145 and Teisa Tuioti 118. 

PacWest Percentages: UH Hilo leads the PacWest in opponent hitting percentage (.143), meaning of course that opponents are having a having a hard time getting a ball down against the Vulcans. Similar category, UHH is second in opponents aces (1.16).
 
Winning Runs: The six-match win streak for the Vulcans is their longest of the year. They have also had winning runs of five matches and four matches earlier this year.
 
Fun at Home: The Vulcans are 7-3 this season at Vulcan Gymnasium, and between that, the great food and a general fun time, UH Hilo leads the Pacific West Conference in home attendance at 436 per match.
 
Taking Care of Business: 11 of UH Hilo's 18 wins thus far have come in a very efficient three sets. They have also won three five-setters (Cal State Dominguez Hills, Biola and Dominican), and four 4-set matches (Academy of Art twice, Hawaii Pacific and Fresno Pacific). They have dropped two matches that went five (UC San Diego, St. Martin's).

Cougars and Sea Lions Bring 1-2 Punch to UHH: The Vulcans welcome two of the hottest teams into Vulcan Gymnasium this week. Azusa Pacific is the conference front runner and is ranked seventh in the west region. The Cougars are on a three-match winning streak, which includes revenge victories over rivals Biola and Point Loma, the only two teams that they had lost to in conference play. Julianne Miller is second in the PacWest in hitting percentage (.413) and is fourth in blocks (1.03). Katarina Radisic leads the Cougars in kills (2.80) and ranks third in the PWC in aces with 32. APU defeated the Vulcans in three sets back in September (25-23, 27-25, 25-12) in Azusa, but the Vulcans lead the all-time series between the two teams, 9-6. Point Loma had won eight straight matches until a loss to Biola last week, but nonetheless are one of the hottest teams in the conference right now. They have the top assist maker in the PacWest in Cara Keturakis (9.58 per set) and the top service ace producer in Jaime Cymbaluk (34). Freshman sensation Rachael Schlect is third in the PacWest in kills (3.39). Earlier this season, the Vulcans rolled the Sea Lions in San Diego (25-23, 25-19, 25-17), but don't expect that kind of match on Saturday. Point Loma leads the all-time series between the two teams, 7-4.

Winning Ways: UH Hilo's 18 victories is already the most for a Vulcan team since the 2010 UHH squad finished the year at 18-5. The 2009 UH Hilo squad is the next measuring stick, and they went 25-2. That Bruce Atkinson-coached team won the Pacific West Conference title and advanced to the NCAA tournament, falling in five sets in the first round to Alaska Anchorage.
 
The Coach: Vulcan leader Gene Krieger is in his second season on the Big Island, but has also served as the head coach (most recent first) at Anderson, Northwestern Oklahoma State, California Baptist, Cal Poly Pomona, Westmont, Western Oregon and Warner Pacific. He has a collegiate coaching record of 385-215, including 27-23 at UH Hilo.